BELL BUCKLE, Tenn. – After shutting out the two-time defending state runners-up Huntingdon Mustangs (22-11, 6-0) in game one of the sectional series, the Cascade Champions (24-7, 5-3) punched their ticket to Murfreesboro for the first time since 2015 with a 2-0 win after 11 hard-fought, excruciatingly intense innings of baseball between two state-finalist worthy teams.

“That was a state title game right there,” Cascade Head Coach Travis Sheffield said postgame,” “But these are the coolest bunch of kids I’ve ever been around. They just always seem to be even-keel. There’s no moment too big. I think they’ve probably seen every scenario by now, but they are just cool cats. The difference this year is we have baseball players. All they know is grind hard and play baseball. They have a lot of innings under their belt. Sophomores playing like seniors, seniors playing like next-level guys, they’ve all matured all season long, and there is no moment too big for them.”

The pitching for both teams was exceptional, and both starters saw their outing extended into extra innings. Huntingdon’s Owen Krueziger left it all out there for the visiting Mustangs in an admirable duel against the Class AA Mr. Baseball favorite, Jayden Hathcock. Krueziger pitched 9.0 shutout innings, giving up just five hits and one walk while striking out seven batters on 116 pitches.

“Kudos to [Owen Krueziger] man, that dude was dealing,” Sheffield said, “He changed speeds, he threw the ball where he wanted to throw it, and near the end of the game, he’s out there barely able to move because of his back. He was giving everything he had. You could see the passion that he had. Kudos to that guy.”

On the Cascade side, Jayden Hathcock pitched arguably the greatest outing of his career – a no-hit masterpiece across 8.0 innings with 15 strikeouts and just two walks administered on 119 pitches before handing the ball over to Wickey Parker. 

“This is his best outing because those dudes [Huntingdon] have hoisted a silver ball each of the last two years, and those guys know how to play baseball,” Sheffield said about his shining star pitcher, “I know what Hathcock has done all year long, a lot of the reaction from the outside can be focused on his opponents, but to do it against those guys on this stage to take us to State, what else can you say? That is the epitome of Mr. Baseball. He won the game for us last night with the 2-run homer, then he comes out here tonight with his arm and pitches eight no-hit innings with 15 strikeouts. If that ain’t Mr. Baseball, I don’t know what is. He is the best dude in the state, hands down. He’s shown it night in, night out.”

Well after both starters had exited from the game, Cascade’s Wickey Parker worked what seemed to be an uneventful two-out walk against the Mustangs reliever, Kenton Smith, in the top of the eleventh inning. However, when Hathcock battled back to work a walk of his own, Parker advanced to scoring position, and suddenly the Cascade crowd could feel something special brewing in the air. Or, perhaps they were pleading for something special to happen out of desperation. Either way, Xykaiah Dixon, the hometown kid, came through with the biggest hit of his young career with a chopper on a two-strike fastball that found its way into center field to score the eventual game-winning run from second. 

“Xykaiah [Dixon] got a fastball to hit,” said Sheffield, “I can’t say enough about Xykaiah either. He’s been our unsung hero. He got another stolen base tonight and he’s at 21, 22 stolen bases for the year. He plays excellent in left field, and for the local boy to get that hit…I mean he grew up here, his parents went to Cascade, all of his brothers went to Cascade, for him to get that hit, it’s amazing.”

Smith balked home the second run of the inning from third base, and the Champions took a 2-0 lead into the home half.

Finally, in rapid-fire fashion, Wickey Parker set down the Mustangs in order in the bottom of the inning to punch the Champions’ ticket to Murfreesboro. Parker entered in the bottom of the ninth, and perhaps drawing back on the 10-inning classic at Loretto where he came in to throw 4.1 innings of shutout baseball to pick up the win, the lefty came through again for Cascade. Parker pitched the final 3.0 innings, this time trying to prevent Huntingdon from walking the game off, and he struck out five batters while giving up just two hits and walking none to ignite an incredibly carbonated celebration on the field.

However, Parker’s outing was not stress-free on the basepaths. In the bottom of the tenth inning, the Mustangs singled with one out before an error allowed runners to settle at the corners with just a single out. Caleb Ezell struck out, then Parker induced an inning-ending groundout against the Mustangs leadoff man, Hayes Eubanks, to escape the jam as the hometown crowd erupted into a thunderous roar that was probably heard outside of the Bell Buckle Cafe.

“I think that’s the passing of the torch, so to speak,” said Sheffield, “Wickey [Parker] finishing this game in front of his family, his hometown fans, people that have rooted for him in baseball since he was five years old and probably younger, the Parker name rings loud in Wartrace and Bell Buckle, and for him to finish this game after Hathcock did what he did, we absolutely just witnessed the passing of the Bell Buckle torch.”

Sheffield also took a moment to shout out the tremendous support the program felt across the two electric nights against Huntingdon.

“Bell Buckle, Wartrace, even Tullahoma, just the support that we keep getting from not just the family of the players, but the community itself, I looked over there and I’m like, man, this is big time baseball,” he said, “If we can get that level of support out there next week, we’ll lift the gold ball, I promise you that. Having that kind of support, it just bleeds out onto the players. The support is phenomenal.”

At the plate, Cascade tallied six total hits. Caleb Crouch went 2-for-5, Parker was 1-for-3 with two walks, Dixon finished 1-for-5 with the game-winning RBI. Elijah Wesenberg went 1-for-4 with a double, and Daymien Maldonado finished 1-for-4. 

Cascade now awaits the reveal of its first opponent. The Class AA State Tournament begins on Tuesday, and details will be provided at a later date.