University Heights Academy scored eight runs in the first inning on its way to a 16-0 victory over Lyon County in the semifinals of the All A Classic region semifinals at Caldwell County on Tuesday.
The Blazers will meet Caldwell County, a 9-4 winner over Crittenden County, in Thursday’s championship.
UHA sent 12 batters to the plate in the first inning and effectively ended the contest with eight Blazers crossing the plate. Hayden Hunt scored two with a single, and Courtland Gibson added a two-run single as the Blazers scored four times before making an out.
Cadence Gibson delivered a three-run double to round out the first inning scoring and tacked on an RBI single in the third inning. He finished the game with two hits and four RBI.
Jackson Flynn smacked a two-run double later in the inning, and a pair of RBI groundouts completed the scoring effort.
UHA, who entered the game batting .339 as a team, needed only seven hits to plate its 16 runs – the fourth time the Blazers have scored double-digit runs this season.
Ryan Luckey (1-0) pitched a three-inning no-hitter, striking out six and walking two.
Lyon County put two runners on base in the home half of the first inning when Paysen Oliver walked and Cohen Wiggins was hit by a pitch with one out. However, Luckey coaxed a pair of fly outs and only allowed one more runner the rest of the game.
The Lyons (5-6) will play at Hopkins County Central on Thursday.
UHA (11-2) and Caldwell County (10-2) will meet at 6:00 for the championship on Thursday at 6:00 in Princeton.
Caldwell County has won five All A region titles, their last coming in 2023. UHA has won four championships, their last coming in 2016.
