The Huntland High School Hornets lost to the Richland Raiders 9-2 on the road Friday in the District 9A championship game.

The Raiders scored runs in five of their six turns at the plate to steadily pull away as the Hornets finished second in their district bracket.

The Raiders took an early lead in the contest as they scored one run in the first inning and three in the second to put the Hornets in a 4-0 hole.

The Hornets were able to get a run back in the top of the fourth as Grant Jernigan reached base on an error, moved up to second on a sacrifice bunt from Carson Riley and scored on an RBI single from Jed Ashley to make it a 4-1 game.

However, the Raiders countered with a run of their own in the bottom of the fourth, and a three-run frame from Richland in the bottom of the fifth put Huntland behind by an 8-1 margin late.

The Hornets recorded another run in the top of the sixth as Riley scored off of an error on a ball hit by Kasen Kildoo, but the Raiders got that run back in the bottom of the sixth to put the overall score at 9-2.

The Hornets weren’t able to push any runs across in the top of the seventh as they lost by seven.

Parker Schultz pitched the first three innings for the Hornets with one strikeout, three hits, five walks, three earned runs and one unearned run allowed for the day.

Kildoo pitched three innings in relief with one strikeout, nine hits, one walk and five runs allowed.

With the loss, the Hornets moved to 15-10 on the season.

Following the conclusion of the district tournament, Bryant Mooney, Ashley, Riley and Kildoo were named to the all-district team for the 2026 season, and Mooney, Ashley and Eli Fitch were given alltournament nods.

Jernigan was named the MVP of District 9A for the year.

Hornets 7, Cornersville 5

The Hornets beat the Cornersville Bulldogs 7-5 at Richland Friday in an elimination semifinal game for the District 9A tournament.

The teams traded runs throughout the contest with the Hornets taking the lead for good in the bottom of the fifth to keep their season alive. The victory gave the Hornets their first berth to the regional tournament since 2006.

Huntland head baseball coach Brent Davis, who played for that 2006 Huntland baseball squad, said that the victory and the berth to regionals should spell positive things for his program going forward.

“It just helps put Huntland back on the map with baseball. We used to be one of those teams that people didn’t want to see on the schedule,” he said. “Doing it this way, maybe it’ll get some of the younger ones to start following along, wanting to get into baseball, and just keep the program building.”

Cornersville’s leadoff batter singled and later scored on a sacrifice fly to give them a 1-0 edge in the top of the first.

However, the Hornets answered back quickly as Mooney hit a sacrifice fly to drive in Jernigan from third base, and Riley slid under a tag at home plate to score off of an RBI fielder’s choice from Kildoo and make it a 2-1 game.

The Bulldogs loaded the bases with two outs in the top of the second on a single and two walks with a passed ball allowing the lead runner to score to tie the game at 2-2.

The Hornets retook the lead in the bottom of the fourth as Chandler Banks recorded a sacrifice fly to drive in Kildoo from third base, and Jernigan followed with an RBI single a few batters later to put the overall score at 4-2.

However, the Bulldogs countered with a trio of runs in the top of the fifth to flip the scoreboard back in their favor by a 5-4 margin.

With two outs and two runners on in the bottom of the fifth, the Hornets rallied to jump back ahead as Chandler Banks hit a game-tying RBI single, and Fitch recorded a go-ahead two-run single on the next pitch to give Huntland a 7-5 advantage.

The Bulldogs loaded the bases with two outs in the top of the sixth, but Kildoo struck out the next batter to escape the jam, and the Bulldogs were retired in order in the top of the seventh on three straight flyouts as the Hornets won by two.

Jernigan pitched the first five innings for the Hornets with four strikeouts, five hits, three walks and five unearned runs allowed for the day.

Kildoo pitched two shutout innings in relief with one strikeout and three hits allowed to record a save.

With the win, the Hornets improved to 15-9 on the season.

Richland 7, Hornets 4

The Hornets lost to the Richland Raiders 7-4 on the road on April 30 in a semifinal game for the District 9A tournament.

The second-seeded Hornets briefly took the lead in the third inning of the postseason matchup, but the top-seeded Raiders regained control of the game shortly afterward and gave the Hornets their first loss in the double-elimination bracket.

The Raiders got on the board in the bottom of the first as their leadoff hitter singled, moved up to second on a sacrifice bunt and scored on an RBI double to make it a 1-0 game.

The Hornets flipped the scoreboard in the top of the third as Caleb Maxwell hit a two-out RBI single, and Mooney recorded a threerun home run a few pitches later to give Huntland a 4-1 lead.

However, the Raiders answered back with a trio of runs in the bottom of the third to tie the score at 4-4.

The tie was then broken in the bottom of the fourth as an RBI groundout in the frame put Richland in front by a 5-4 margin.

The Hornets moved a runner into scoring position in the fifth and sixth innings, but they weren’t able to turn those offensive opportunities into runs in either frame.

The Raiders expanded their lead in the bottom of the sixth as they scored two runs in the inning to set the overall deficit at 7-4 late.

The Hornets were then held scoreless in the final inning of the contest as they lost by three.

Cayson Banks pitched a complete game for the Hornets with four strikeouts, six hits, three walks, five earned runs and two unearned runs allowed for the day.

With the loss, the Hornets moved to 14-9 on the season.

Hornets 3, Moore County 0

The Hornets beat the Moore County Raiders 3-0 at Richland on April 29 in a first-round game for the District 9A tournament.

The Hornets jumped ahead early in the contest and recorded their first shutout victory of the year as they opened the postseason with a victory.

Davis paid tribute to Fitch for putting together a strong complete-game performance on the mound for the day.

“Fitch threw a heck of a game on the mound. Getting a full-game shutout in the district tournament is just awesome, especially against a good team like (Moore County),” he said before also praising his team’s total defensive effort. “We had the defense backing him up tonight, and we told them, if we do that, it’s going to be hard for people to play with us.”

The Hornets loaded the bases with one out in the bottom of the first as Jernigan and Ashley drew walks and Caleb Maxwell hit a single. Mooney and Kildoo then recorded consecutive RBI singles to give their team a 2-0 advantage.

The Hornets struck for one more run in the bottom of the fourth as Ashley came through with a two-out RBI single to drive in Jernigan from second base and make it a 3-0 game.

The Raiders moved a runner into scoring position in the second, third, fourth and fifth innings, but Fitch and the Huntland defenders were able to get out of the jam each time without allowing a run.

A one-out single from the Raiders in the top of the seventh put the potential tying run on deck in the final inning before Fitch induced a fielder’s- choice groundout and recorded a strikeout to end the game as the Hornets won by three.

Fitch pitched a complete- game shutout with eight strikeouts, five hits and three walks allowed for the day.

With the win, the Hornets improved to 14-8 on the season.

They will next play Friday at Eagleville High School in a semifinal game for the Region 5A tournament. First pitch is scheduled for 7 p.m.