Journal Editor

Crenshaw Christian Academy left no doubt that it belonged in the state baseball playoffs, sweeping South Montgomery County Academy on Tuesday and advancing to the Class A Final Four in Selma.

The Cougars beat the Rebels 8-2 and 12-3.

CCA head coach Roland Jones said everything just came together for his team during the doubleheader.

"It was all a matter of us playing," he said. "I knew we had a good chance but baseball's a funny game. We just needed to come and show up and play. And we did a good job of that."

The team, said Jones, knew coming into to Tuesday's series that it had a chance to make history. No Cougars' baseball team has ever advanced to the Final Four.

"It means something to them, what they've done," he said.

The state championship series for all AISA classifications will be held on May 10 - 14.

The Class A State Baseball Tournament is scheduled to take place on Thursday, May 12 at 11 a.m. The tournament is double-elimination.

With just one senior on the starting roster, Jones knows he'll bring a youthful squad into Selma next week.

But don't discount their desire, he said.

"They're a gritty bunch," he said. "Earlier in the year we went over to Demopolis and played in a tournament with a bunch of 2A and 3A schools. I think that prepared them for situations like this. They've grown up a lot since the first of the season."