No. 4-ranked St. Paul’s notched a pair of late-inning wins against its biggest rival and advanced to the Class 5A semifinals.

The Saints (25-9-1) swept UMS-Wright 8-2 and 2-1 on Friday night to sweep their best-of-3 quarterfinal series. St. Paul’s finished 3-0 against the Bulldogs this season. The Saints will play either Marbury or Elberta in the semifinals.

In the nightcap, Hudson Farnell’s RBI single with two outs in the bottom of the sixth gave St. Paul’s the lead for good. UMS put two runners on with two out in the top of the seventh, but Bradley Irish struck out John Ramsay to end the game and the series.

Irish pitched a complete game to get the win, scattering 7 hits and allowing just the one run. He struck out 12 and walked just 1. Ty Waters took the loss. He allowed just 5 hits and 2 runs and struck out 10.

Brooks McDonalds had 2 hits for St. Paul’s. Manning Amorde had 2 for UMS.

In Game 1, John Stowers and Edward McLeod hit back-to-back homers to ignite a 5-run sixth inning and break a 2-2 tie.

Stowers, who hit the Game 3 walk-off homer last week to eliminate Briarwood Christian, was 1-for-2 with 2 RBIs, 2 walks and a run scored. Hudson Farnell was 2-for-3 with an RBI and 2 runs scored. Brooks McDonald was 2-for-4 with a homer.

Tate Farrell pitched a complete game, allowing just 4 hits and 1 earned run. He struck out 5 and walked 2. Andy Purvis took the loss for UMS. He allowed 5 hits and 4 runs – all earned. He struck out 3 and walked a batter.

Ty Waters was 2-for-3 for the Bulldogs, who finished 19-14.

CLASS 6A

Gardendale 1, Mountain Brook 0 (8 innings)

Gardendale’s Parker Robinson and Mountain Brook’s Caleb Barnett put on a pitching clinic, the two throwing 7 shutout innings each before Gardendale’s Carson Burdette stroked a game-winning run-scoring single in the eighth inning.

Scoreless Game 2 was suspended in the top of the second inning and will resume on Saturday at 5:30 p.m.

Robinson tossed a 4-hit shutout of second-ranked Mountain Brook (28-10) and Barnett scattered 3 hits until the eighth.

Gardendale’s Rowan Warmack led off the inning with a single and Carter Jenkins reached on an error sacrificing Warmack to second. Leadoff Caiden Combs was hit by a pitch and Burdette followed with the game winner.

Robinson threw 61 strikes in 90 pitches while Barnett — he also had 2 hits off Robinson — threw 64 strikes in 98 pitches.

Paul Barnett had Mountain Brook’s other hit.

Adam Yazel, Caleb Banks and Rhett Fitzpatrick also had hits for Gardendale (25-9).

CLASS 3A

Winfield 14, Vinemont 2

Class 3A No. 3 Winfield took Game 1 of a third-round series against No. 7 Vinemont before rain forced the game to be postponed.

Game 2 was tied 1-1 in the third inning, with the remainder set to be played at Cullman High School’s field at 6 p.m. on Saturday; a Game 3 will be played immediately after if necessary.

The winner of the series will face No. 5-ranked Gordo in the state semifinals next week, with the winner advancing to the state championship series in Oxford and Jacksonville.

Winfield dominated from the start of a 5-inning, run-rule Game 1 that saw the Pirates score 5 runs in the first inning.

Brady May, Spencer Haney and Walt Hennicke collected 3 hits apiece as May and Hennicke hit a pair of doubles. May had 3 RBIs from the leadoff spot, with Haney and Brayden McCaleb and also drove in 3 runners apiece in the victory for Winfield.

Jacob Hale and Owen McKinney both went 2-for-3 for Vinemont as McKinney and Kayden Henderson both drove in one run apiece.

Kyson Key picked up the win on the mound for Vinemont, allowing 6 hits and 2 earned runs while striking out 6 in the win that saw him allow no walks across 5 innings of work.

Rush Sandlin’s sacrifice bunt in Game 2 to score Henderson for Vinemont preceded a flyout from Winfield’s Brandon Whitley that scored McCaleb after he tagged up for the lone runs of the second game.

CLASS 1A

Hackleburg 6-1, South Lamar 1-0

The second-ranked Panthers swept their Class 1A quarterfinal playoff doubleheader at South Lamar on Friday. Game 2 was called after 5 innings due to lightning. The Stallions had runners on first and second with 1 out in the sixth when the storms rolled in and the game reverted to the last completed inning.

Hackleburg’s Blaise Vickery ripped a 2-out solo home run to left field in the bottom of the fifth inning – his second homer of the day – to snap the Game 2 pitchers’ duel.

Maddox Vickery shut out South Lamar on 2 hits with a pair of strikeouts and 7 walks in 5.1 innings to get the win. Stallions pitcher Thacker Richards gave up the home run and 4 other hits with a strikeout and a walk to take the 5-inning loss.

Jonhasten Stidham, Jaquan Reeder, Maddox Vickery and Daughtry Gober had singles for the winners.

Leadoff batter Mason Hardin and No. 2 hitter Kyelan Crimm had South Lamar’s hits in the loss.

In Game 1, Blaise Vickery did it all for the Panthers – earning the win with a 4-hit, 8-strikeout performance and smacking a 3-run home run and a pair of doubles on the way to a 3-for-4 effort at the plate. Vickery gave up an unearned run and walked 5 in the complete-game win.

Reeder went 2-for-3 with 2 RBIs and a run scored for Hackleburg. Ross Hudson had a double in 4 at-bats.

Stallions’ starter Crimm took the loss, allowing 3 earned runs on 5 hits with 2 strikeouts and 3 walks over 5 innings. Hardin, Landon McCarra, Kenton Allbritton and Nathan Norman had South Lamar’s hits.

Hackleburg will play the winner of the Addison-Lynn series in the 1A semifinals.

This post will be updated