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By Carey Reeder | Staff Writer

The Thorsby High School Rebels fell to Ariton High School 2-0 in the first round series of the AHSAA Class 2A state playoffs on April 22. The Purple Cats won 13-1 in game one and followed that up with a 2-0 win to advance to the second round.

The Rebels finished the season with a 14-10 record while winning the Area 6 title and a runner-up finish at the Chilton County baseball tournament in March.

“The seniors really stepped up and we got more out of them than what we thought,” Thorsby Coach Drew Wood said. “That helped a lot especially at the plate with some guys having their best year ever hitting.”

Ariton jumped out on the Rebels quick in game one when a fielding error aided two runs to put the Purple Cats up 2-0. Ariton added two more runs in the second, but the Rebel’s Remington Taylor hit a solo homer in the bottom of the second to make it 4-1. However, that was the lone run Thorsby could muster against a stellar Ariton pitching staff.

The Rebels had trouble getting off the field with two outs, and the Purple Cats scored nine of their 13 runs in game one with two outs.

“That was our biggest problem, and we truly did not pitch that bad,” Wood said. “I thought we pitched well enough to be in the ball games, especially in the second one, but we couldn’t scratch out a run when we needed it.”

Senior Luke Davis started game one for the Rebels and threw four innings of eight-hit baseball giving up four earned runs while striking out four batters.

Fellow senior Andrew Edwards led the Rebels at the plate in game one going 2-for-2 with two singles and a walk.

In game two, Thorsby showed a lot of resolve surrendering just three hits to Ariton in the game. Edwards threw six innings giving up three hits and striking out four batters.

There was no score through the first six and a half innings before Ariton broke through in the bottom of the sixth inning with a two-run single.

“They didn’t quit at all,” Wood said. “I told them from the first to the second game is reflective of what type of team we are.”

Noah Littlejohn and Kohen Davis each posted a hit for Thorsby in game two.

Thorsby will have a youth movement during the offseason with the rising senior and junior classes being small, the Rebels will hope some underclassmen separate themselves before next season.

“I was happy with the season,” Wood said. “If you would have told me we would have that record with what we had coming back from last year, I would have been really happy with it.”