SHAWN DIGIANFELICE

Sports Writer

The Cascade Champions are headed to the TSSAA State Tournament. Behind dominant pitching, timely hitting and another gritty postseason performance, Cascade swept Huntingdon in a best-of-three sectional series this week, clinching a trip to Spring Fling in Murfreesboro with a dramatic 2-0 victory in 11 innings Thursday night after opening the series with a 2-0 shutout win Wednesday.

Game 1: Cascade – 2, Huntington – 0

Hathcock Homer, Crouch Dominance Lift Cascade

Cascade opened the sectional series Wednesday night with a strong all-around performance, riding a clutch two-run homer from Jayden Hathcock and a dominant outing from Caleb Crouch to claim a 2-0 victory.

Locked in a pitchers’ duel through the first three innings, the Champions finally broke through in the fourth. After Wickey Parker helped ignite the inning, Hathcock delivered the game’s biggest swing, blasting a two-run home run that accounted for all the offense Cascade would need.

Cascade finished with eight hits in the win. Eli Wesenberg led the attack with a 2-for-3 night that included a double. Parker, Hathcock, Crouch, Jordan Childress, Xykaiah Dixon, Thomas Demartelaere and River Maddox also added hits. Maddox, Parker and Demartelaere each doubled as Cascade consistently pressured Huntingdon throughout the night.

Crouch was outstanding on the mound, tossing six shutout innings while allowing just two hits and striking out nine. Despite working around five walks and two hit batters, the right-hander repeatedly delivered in key moments to keep Huntingdon off the scoreboard.

Parker closed the door in the seventh with a scoreless inning to secure the shutout victory.

Game 2: Cascade – 2, Huntington – 0

Champions Survive 11 – Inning Thriller to Reach State  

One night later, Cascade delivered another unforgettable postseason performance. The Champions outlasted Huntingdon 2-0 in an 11-inning sectional thriller Thursday night, completing the two-game sweep and officially punching their ticket to Spring Fling.

In a game dominated by pitching and defense from the opening inning, neither team could break through until the top of the 11th, when Cascade finally ended the scoreless deadlock with a pair of runs.

Xykaiah Dixon delivered a key RBI hit in the decisive inning, while Wickey Parker reached base three times with a hit and two walks and scored a run.

Caleb Crouch added two hits, and Eli Wesenberg doubled as part of Cascade’s six-hit attack. Daymian Maldonado also contributed a double as the Champions continued applying pressure before finally breaking through late.

The story once again was Cascade’s dominance on the mound. Left-hander Jayden Hathcock was sensational, firing eight no-hit innings while striking out 15 batters. The southpaw repeatedly escaped trouble and kept Huntingdon completely off balance during one of the most dominant postseason performances of the year.

Parker followed with three shutout innings in relief, allowing just two hits while striking out five to earn the win. Together, Hathcock and Parker combined for a two-hit shutout and 20 strikeouts over 11 innings as Cascade secured one of the program’s biggest postseason victories in recent memory.

With the sweep, the Cascade advance to the TSSAA Spring Fling in Murfreesboro.

The Champions will open state tournament play on Tuesday with the opponent and game time TBA.