South Alabama football signee Cole Blaylock isn’t ready to hang up his baseball uniform just yet.

Neither are his UMS-Wright teammates.

Blaylock’s three-run double in a five-run fifth inning helped break the game open and Olin Ward shut down a powerful Bayside Academy lineup in relief as the Bulldogs knocked off the Admirals 11-4 in Game 3 of their best-of-three semifinal series Thursday in Daphne.

UMS (27-12) will play Etowah (28-11) for the Class 4A state title next week.

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“This was a hard-fought series against some amazing competition,” said Blaylock, the team’s senior centerfielder and leadoff man. “They have some guys that can really throw it. It’s just an unreal experience to come out here and beat them.”

UMS and Bayside, Area 1 rivals, played six times this season. The series ended 3-3.

But the Bulldogs won the one that counted most.

“It feels amazing. I’ve played with these dudes most of my life,” Ward said. “Then to come out here and beat a very good Bayside team that was ranked No. 1 at one time was special. It was pretty much an upset. We came out, and we wanted it more. Everyone went all in and did their part. It was a great experience.”

The two teams split Wednesday’s doubleheader, and Thursday’s rubber match looked like it would be tight throughout as Bayside (25-11) held a slim 2-1 heading to the top of the fourth. But UMS scored four runs in the fourth and five more in the fifth to break the game open.

Blaylock’s bases-clearing double gave the Bulldogs a 9-3 lead. Ward followed that with an RBI double and a tight game suddenly was a 10-3 blowout.

“It was even for a while, and we had two big innings,” UMS coach Kevin Raley said. “We got to (starting pitcher Teague) Broadhead a little. He pitched a good ballgame but got behind in the count, and Cole and Olin made him pay. We came back in and got some more, and we made some defensive plays when we needed to. In these types of games, you have to make some of those plays. You don’t have to make them all, but you have to make some.”

Ward pitched the final 3.1 innings in relief of Jake Jaye to get the win. He scattered four hits, allowed one run and struck out four. He didn’t walk a batter.

“They have an amazing lineup with some stacked hitters,” Ward said. “I was trying to let them get themselves out. I was trying to overpower them with some fastballs and mix some breaking stuff in. It’s a great feeling.”

Broadhead, the first of three Bayside pitchers, took the loss.

“You just have to credit UMS,” Admirals coach Matt Limbaugh said. “They got some timely hits, and we didn’t. That is how baseball is. It’s a crazy game.”

Blaylock finished 2-for-4 with three runs scored and the three RBIs. Ward was 3-for-4 with three RBIs and Sutton Snypes was 2-for-3 with two runs scored. Noah Cain (3-for-3) led Bayside. Jack Woods was 2-for-3.

Wake Forest signee Josh Gunther didn’t have a hit in the finale. He shut down UMS in Game 1 of the series, but the Bulldogs came back to win the final two games.

“This is what everyone dreams of,” Ward said. “Hopefully, we can come home after a dogpile next week.”

UMS-Wright’s last state baseball title came in 2017. The Bulldogs will be seeking their 10th state title overall.

“It’s exciting,” Raley said. “It’s a great opportunity for these kids and their parents and our administration. We are looking forward to it. I have to get work tomorrow and come up with some plans.”

Game 1 is scheduled for 7 p.m. Tuesday at Oxford’s Choccolocco Park. Games 2 and 3, if necessary, will begin at 4 p.m. Wednesday at Jacksonville State.