Sports Columnist

This weekend was heaven for folks like me who like ball.

On Saturday, the Charles Henderson baseball and softball teams were in action as were the Troy State baseball and softball teams in doubleheaders.

At Frazier Field in Hogan’s Hole it was CHHS vs. Monroe County in the second round of the 5A state playoffs. The Trojans, 10-17 on the year, were looking for another big win after Wednesday’s huge upset of powerful Demopolis, 4-1.

But it was not the Trojans’ day as the Monroe County bats were hot like firecrackers in a 16-5 Tigers’ victory.

Coach Reed Utsey’s Tigers were too much for Steve Garrett’s proud CHHS team.

Garrett can feel good about this baseball team because Alex Long was the only senior to dress for the game. This year’s team was composed of Long, two freshmen, 11 sophomores and five juniors. That’s what you call a young but talented baseball team. Six of the nine starters in Saturday’s second round game for the Trojans were sophomores. So good things lie ahead in baseball at Charles Henderson.

Who knows? Maybe even Troy’s first 5A state baseball title!

Troy State lost to Belmont on Friday but came back to take two from the Bruins on Saturday. The Trojans are playing good baseball right now, winning 14 of their last 18 games. They play the Auburn Tigers at Montgomery’s Paterson Field today at 6:30 p.m.

Melanie Davis’s softball team is also playing great. The Lady Trojans, playing at their beautiful new softball complex, also swept Belmont on

Saturday in a doubleheader. TSU has now won 13 out of its last 14 in softball, good enough for second in the A-Sun behind Florida Atlantic. Troy State has just two games left on its schedule, today at home against No. 15 Alabama and on May 4 at Florida State, before hosting the conference tournament championship on May 9-11.

The Charles Henderson softball team is 28-13 on the season. Coach Steve Haug and Assistant Coach Jerry Goodson have done an outstanding job with this year’s team, going 2-1 during this weekend’s round-robin tournament held at the Sportsplex.

If you love baseball and softball, Troy is about as good a place to live as there is in Alabama.