Eagles Win Home Opener on Walk Off Hit by Mason Prestage

A blown lead in the last inning set the stage for Mason Prestage to win it for ACA against Reeltown on Saturday afternoon. After falling behind 1-0 in the first inning, Alabama Christian scored five runs in the bottom of the second frame. JT Moorer, Zac Westbrook and Trey Schlemmer each drove in runs during the inning for the 5-1 lead. The offense did not score again until the bottom of the seventh after Reeltown had tied the game in the top half. Westbrook led off the rally with a walk then stole second and advanced to third on the bad throw on the next pitch. Schlemmer walked and took second on catcher’s indifference. The stage was set for Prestage to win it. On a 2-2 count the senior lined a double to center field to score Westbrook and give the Eagles a 6-5 win.

Mason Prestage waits on deck for his next at bat.

Prestage finished the game 2 for 4 with a double and an RBI while Thomas Stovall was 2 for 4 out of the leadoff spot. Schelmmer drove in two runs in the game and Westbrook drew three walks from Reeltown pitchers. Westbrook started on the mound for ACA and lasted 5 1/3 innings allowing just one earned run and struck out four Rebel batters. JT Moorer was the beneficiary of the Prestage double and picked up the win in relief.

Alabama Christian will host Trinity on Tuesday night in their next scheduled contest.

Looking back 20 years to the 2001 baseball team, we caught up with Kyle Jackson to talk about his time at Alabama Christian and what he is doing these days. The 2001 team finished 21-11 on the season and reached the State quarterfinals under Coach Chris Goodman. Jackson was named the 1A-4A All-Metro Player of the Year as he led ACA with a .570 batting average in his senior season as he pitched and played second base for the Eagles. Teammate Dustin Davis was also named to the All-Metro team as a pitcher and Coach Goodman was named Coach of the Year.

Jackson and Nick Sewell talk between innings.

What year did you graduate from Alabama Christian? 2001

 What grades did you attend at Alabama Christian? 7th-12th

 What is your favorite memory of Alabama Christian? Winning the State title in 2000.

 What is your favorite baseball memory? Beating Geneva County in the 2000 playoffs. They beat us my sophomore year in a best 2 of 3 at their place.  It was a really hostile place to play. We got them the next year (2000) at our place. We beat them straight up in a one game winner take all. It was a very intense, close game. I think we wanted to beat them more than we wanted to win state. That game felt like a state championship game. 

 Who took you under their wing when you joined the varsity team? Bo Offord and Dave Davenport

 Who was your most memorable teammate? Honestly our senior class played together from 9th-12th grade, so it’s hard to say just one. Will Minter and I played the middle infield for 3 years together. He was a great player that never got recognized enough. Will was a great lead off hitter, always on base, great base runner, solid shortstop, and made every routine play. He was a good teammate. He never worried about himself or state, just winning. 

 What teacher/coach had the most influence on you? Coach Goodman gave me opportunities when games/seasons were on the line. I am thankful for those opportunities. He just let me play basketball and baseball. His only expectation of me was that I played hard. Coach Gilliam never let me slide and always pushed me to be better. He was a great encourager and knew how to get the best out of his players. I am thankful for him. A lot of how I approach life today has to do with both of those great coaches.  

Did you continue playing baseball after high school? Yes, I signed at Lipscomb University in Nashville, TN.

 Where do you currently live? Columbus, GA

What do you do for a living? I am the Campus Pastor for Church of the Highlands Columbus.

 Tell us about your family. I have been married for 13 years to my beautiful wife Jennifer. We have 2 kids, Kaylee (7) & Cooper (3).

 Rapid Fire

Favorite TV show or movie : Remember the Titans

Dream vacation spot : Italy

Person I most admire : My dad

Early morning or late night person : - Neither. I’m all in from 7am-10pm.

Alabama or Auburn (or other) : Auburn

Baseball Opens Season with Doubleheader at Stanhope Elmore

Alabama Christian opened the season Saturday afternoon at Furlow Field on the campus of Stanhope Elmore against Carroll and the host Mustangs. ACA defeated Carroll 15-5 in five innings in the opener and fell to Stanhope Elmore 10-3. In the opener, JT Moorer started strong for the Eagles as he struck out the side in the first inning between two errors and a catcher’s interference and held Carroll scoreless for the first two frames. The offense scored eight runs for Moorer in the first two innings as Zac Westbrook delivered extra base hits in both innings and drove in four runs on the way to the eight run advantage. Carroll scored the next five runs to cut the lead to 8-5, but ACA closed out the game by scoring the last seven runs for the 15-5 win. Moorer picked up the win as he pitched four innings with six strikeouts. Brandon Bice finished the game with a scoreless frame in relief. Bice finished 3 for 4 with two RBI’s and Westbrook finished 2 for 2 with a triple and a double and four runs driven in. Mason Prestage, Thomas Stovall and Isaac Warrick each delivered two hits in the contest.

Isaac Warrick pitches in game two against Stanhope Elmore.

In game two, Alabama Christian played the host team and fell 10-3 after losing a late lead. ACA scored two runs in the top of the first and held a 3-1 lead after four and a half innings. Starter Isaac Warrick pitched a strong four innings and struck out the side in the second and third innings. After walking the first two batters in the fifth, Chase Madrid relieved Warrick and the Mustang offense caught fire and scored nine runs over the final two frames against Madrid and Mason Prestage. Offensively, Brandon Bice and Zac Westbrook each had two hits and drove in a run while Warrick had nine strikeouts over four innings. Madrid took the loss out of the bullpen.

ACA next plays Catholic on Tuesday night in their home opener.

Eagles Drop Home Game to Holtville

The Bulldogs from Holtville scored five in the top of the first and never looked back in a 7-3 defeat of ACA. Holtville’s first six batters reached safely in the five run frame. After the first, the Eagle pitchers settled down and allowed only two more sixth inning runs, but the game had been decided in the first.

Alabama Christian scored one run in the third inning on a Zac Westbrook ground out that scored Jalen Clark. The Eagles scored two more in the sixth on a Preston Perry sac fly which plated Mason Prestage and a Trey Schlemmer single to center that knocked in Brandon Bice. Six different players each had a hit for the ACA attack. JT Moorer started and took the loss as he went 4 2/3 innings with four walks and four strikeouts. Copeland Hilyer pitched the final 2 1/3 to finish the night.

ACA Defeats St James on Zac Westbrook's Walk-Off Homer

It should have never gotten to this point, but after blowing a twelve run lead, Alabama Christian found themselves tied 16-16 with St James in the bottom of the seventh inning. After Thomas Stovall reached on an infield single, Zac Westbrook launched the first pitch he saw to center field for the 18-16 victory.

The game was all ACA to start. Trailing 1-0 in the first, the Eagles scored four runs aided by two Trojan errors. Preston Perry and Brandon Bice both drove in a run and two runs scored on an infield error. Alabama Christian scored eight runs in the second frame to build a 12-1 lead. The first three runs of the inning scored on Trojans’ errors. Caden Perry drove in two with a single to left and Zac Westbrook drove in the last two runs of the inning with a double to right. After St James scored three runs in the top of the third, ACA responded with four of their own to take a seemingly commanding 16-4 lead after three.

Preston Perry covers first on a grounder to first.

The second half of the game belonged to the Trojans. St James chipped away at the lead every inning, going through three Eagle relievers, until they were able to tie it 16-16 in the top of the seventh. The final pitcher was Westbrook who allowed four runs in the top of the seventh. To the delight of the crowd, the senior leader was able to redeem himself and deliver the win for the Eagles with his two run blast in the bottom half.

Thomas Stovall bats against the Trojans.

As a team, the offense pounded out 14 hits while drawing six walks with three hit batsmen. Zac Westbrook finished the afternoon 5 for 5 at the plate with three doubles and a homer, driving in six runs. Thomas Stovall picked up two hits with three runs scored while Preston Perry went 2 for 3 with an RBI. Perry started for the Eagles and pitched four innings allowing five earned runs with one strike out.

The Eagles (8-3) host Holtville Tuesday in their next contest.

Zac Westbrook Named ACA Athlete of the Week

Zac Westbrook helped Alabama Christian go 3-0 in the Jason Armstrong Memorial Tournament to earn Athlete of the Week honors. Westbrook hit .600 (6 for 10) in the trio of games with a homer and six RBIs while scoring six runs. The senior shortstop capped off his week with an inside the park homer against Billingsley at Riverwalk Stadium. Westbrook leads the Eagles for the season with a .464 batting average in addition to leading the team in runs scored, RBIs and walks.

Eagles Win Two to Finish 3-0 in Armstrong Tournament

ACA defeated Luverne and Billingsley on the last day of the Jason Armstrong Memorial Tournament to finish undefeated over their two days of play. Changes were made to the schedule due to bad weather during the week, but the Eagles took the adjustments in stride for the two wins on Saturday

ACA 14 Luverne 5

The offense was sluggish to start against Luverne, but once the scoring started, the Eagles scored 14 runs in four innings. Zac Westbrook led the offensive barrage with a 4 for 5 game with three RBIs and three runs scored. KJ Kendrick went 3 for 5 with four RBIs and two runs scored while Mason Prestage had three hits in five at bats driving in two runs.

The Eagles opened the scoring in the third inning as the first four batters reached and scored. ACA sent ten men to the plate and opened up a 5-0 lead. The offense tacked on two more runs in the fourth as both KJ Kendrick and Mason Prestage delivered RBI singles. Zac Westbrook delivered a run scoring single in the fifth to give ACA a commanding 8-0 lead. The sixth and final inning saw both teams score eleven runs as Luverne scored five in the top half, which was answered by the Eagles’ six runs in the bottom half. KJ Kendrick knocked in two with a two out single to finish the scoring for Alabama Christian. Copeland Hilyer picked up the victory with five innings of shut out baseball with six strikeouts.

Zac Westbrook bats against Billingsley.

ACA 13 Billingsley 2

The offense wasted no time in the last game of the Armstrong Tournament as the Eagles sent ten men to the plate and scored four runs in the opening frame. The big hit was a two run double by Brandon Bice that drove in Preston Perry and Mason Prestage. in the third inning, Zac Westbrook had a two run inside the park homer with a deep drive to the right field corner to highlight a four run inning. The fourth inning produced four more runs for Alabama Christian as Bice drove in two more runs with a single to center. The junior second baseman would finish the game with five RBIs with a 2 for 3 night at the plate. KJ Kendrick and Mason Prestage each had two hits to help lead the offense.

KJ Kendrick pitches in the first inning against Billingsley.

KJ Kendrick pitched a five inning complete game for ACA to pick up the win against the Bears. The defense helped the Eagle starter with double plays in the first three innings. The senior starter struck out four and allowed just two runs and gave the ACA coaches the luxury of saving the rest of the staff for important games next week.

ACA Opens with Victory in Armstrong Memorial Tournament

The Eagles were finally able to play their first game in the Jason Armstrong Memorial Tournament Friday night. ACA shut out Pike Road 5-0 at Riverwalk Stadium in downtown Montgomery.

Neither team was able to score through the first two and a half innings and combined for only one hit between the two offenses. Jalen Clark opened the bottom of the third with a single to left on an 0-1 count. With one out, Zac Westbrook drove in Clark for the first run of the game. Two batters later, Preston Perry’s ground out scored Westbrook. The final run of the inning was produced when Mason Prestage singled in KJ Kendrick.

In the bottom of the sixth inning, Alabama Christian tacked on two runs for a more comfortable 5-0 lead. The inning began with a walk and a Patriot error to put two on with no outs. The Eagles played ABC baseball as the next two batters drove in runs with productive outs.

The five runs scored by the offense were more than enough for the pitching combination of JT Moorer and Preston Perry. Moorer, who started the contest, pitched a strong five innings while surrendering just one hit while striking out four Patriots to pick up the victory. Perry threw the final two innings and shut down any hope Pike Road may have had as he struck out four of the seven batters faced to record the save.

ACA will face Luverne and Billingsley tomorrow as they wrap up play in the Armstrong Tournament.

Eagles Dominate Brew Tech in Doubleheader Sweep

ACA run ruled Brew Tech twice on Friday with an impressive sweep of the Rams. The Eagles blanked Brew Tech 10-0 in game one and followed it up with 13-2 blow out in game two.

Zac Westbrook was the star of game one as he held Brew Tech hitless in the 10-0 shutout. Westbrook pitched five innings with five strikeouts on only 62 pitches. The Eagles scored two runs in the first inning on just one hit to jump to a 2-0 lead. In the second inning, Thomas Stovall doubled in Caden Perry and later scored a run with Taylor Thornton on a KJ Kendrick single. JT Moorer drove in the lone run of the third inning with a sac fly that scored Brandon Bice. The last four runs scored by Alabama Christian came in the fourth inning. The first three Eagles reached base to load the bases. Bice singled to right to drive in the first run of the inning and Copeland Hilyer knocked the next run in on a ground out to second. The final two runs were driven by Caden Perry on a single to center to drive in Mason Prestage and Bice. Brandon Bice, KJ Kendrick and Caden Perry each collected two hits to pace the offense.

Brandon Bice readies himself for the pitch.

After giving up a run in the top of the first inning, ACA responded with two runs and never trailed again in game two. Alabama Christian tacked on five more runs, all with two outs, in the second inning to take a commanding 7-1 lead. The key blow of the frame was a two run single by Brandon Bice to drive in Thomas Stovall and Mason Prestage. In the fourth inning, ACA tacked on four more runs to close out the scoring. Taylor Thornton drove in Hayes Hunt with a two out single followed by a Jalen Clark single that knocked in Bice. The final two runs were driven in on a Zac Westbrook triple to right field. At the plate, Westbrook led the attack going 2 for 3 with a double and a triple, driving in two runs. Taylor Thornton added two hits with an RBI and three runs scored. Four pitchers combined to hold the Rams to two runs on four hits and four strikeouts.

ACA Easily Handles PCA

Alabama Christian (2-3) scored four runs in the first inning and never looked back in an 11-1 thumping of PCA. Copeland Hilyer delivered the big hit of the inning with a two run double scoring Mason Prestage and Brandon Bice. The Eagle offense continued to produce in the second inning as Zac Westbrook doubled in a run. Four more runs in the fourth inning put the game out of reach as Westbrook and Preston Perry both doubled in a run to help build a 10-1 lead. The game ended in the fifth as Perry drove in Thomas Stovall to give ACA a ten run lead.

Preston Perry dominated on the mound as he allowed only one run and four hits on just 72 pitches over five innings. At the plate, Zac Westbrook led the Eagles with two hits in three at bats with two doubles, two RBIs and three runs scored. Preston Perry drove in three runs on a 1 for 3 night as Copeland Hilyer had two RBIs.

Alabama Christian will play host to Brew Tech in a Friday doubleheader in their next contest.

Eagles Lose Home Opener to Stanhope Elmore

After a week of heavy rains, Alabama Christian (1-3) was able to take the field to face Stanhope Elmore Friday night. The ACA offense continued to struggle as the Eagles mustered only three hits against Mustang pitching. Starting pitcher JT Moorer (0-2) held the Mustangs without a run in four of the five innings he pitched. Through the first three innings, Moorer allowed only two hits with a strikeout on just 32 pitches. The Stanhope Elmore offense woke up in the fourth inning as they scored four runs on five hits, including three doubles to take a 4-0 lead. Moorer would last five innings and gave up seven hits and four runs with two strikeouts. Copeland Hilyer pitched two scoreless innings to finish the game. Caden Perry collected two of the team’s three hits in two at bats while Zac Westbrook had one hit in three plate appearances.

Alabama Christian Splits President's Day Doubleheader

ACA spent the holiday in scenic Notasulga to play a doubleheader against Reeltown and Elmore County. The Eagles split the two games, as they defeated Reeltown 10-4 and lost to Elmore County 13-1 to make their record 1-2 on the young season.

In the opener, ACA jumped ahead of Reeltown with four runs in the top of the first inning to take an early lead. The Rebel defense committed four errors in the inning which led directly to two of the Eagles runs. In the top of the fourth, Alabama Christian struck again with four more runs. The key hit of the inning was a two out double by Preston Perry which scored Thomas Stovall and KJ Kendrick. Two batters later, Copeland Hilyer drew a bases loaded walk to extend the lead to 8-1. ACA scored their last two runs of the game in the sixth inning as Zac Westbrook scored on a wild pitch and Preston Perry scored on a Mason Prestage ground out.

Preston Perry finished the contest with three hits in four at bats with two runs driven in and two runs scored. Mason Prestage finished the game 2 for 3 with an RBI and a run scored. Perry not only excelled at the plate, but pitched a solid game as he picked up the win for the Eagles. The starter went four innings and struck out seven batters while he gave up only one earned run. Brandon Bice and Chase Madrid pitched the final three innings to close out the game.

The nightcap went the Eagles way for the first two innings against Elmore County. ACA scored a first inning run when Thoams Stovall scored on an infield error by the Panthers. The score remained the same until the top of the third inning when Elmore County erupted for seven runs. The Panthers put together five hits with two walks to take a commanding 7-1 lead over the Eagles. ACA would muster no runs and only one hit over the final two innings. Meanwhile, Elmore County tacked on six more runs for the 13-1 victory. KJ Kendrick collected the only hit for the Eagles. Zac Westbrook took the loss as he gave up seven runs over three innings.

ACA Loses Season Opener at Holtville

Alabama Christian’s defense struggled in the season opener with seven errors which led to nine unearned runs. The game was called in the fifth inning as Holtville defeated the Eagles 11-1.

On a very cold night the season’s first game started in the best possible way for the Alabama Christian baseball team. The first three Eagle batters reached base, but not much went ACA’s way after that. Thomas Stovall scored a run on a wild pitch which would be the only run scored by the Eagles on the night. Holtville broke the game wide open in the second inning as they scored seven runs on only one hit. ACA helped the Bulldog’s cause with four errors, four walks and a hit batsman in the disastrous inning. Starting pitcher JT Moorer took the loss despite only giving up one earned run in 1 2/3 innings. Copeland Hilyer and Zac Westbrook collected the Eagles only two hits in the contest.

ACA will next play a President’s Day doubleheader against Reeltown and Elmore County at Reeltown .