Thompson -sed a four-run first inning Friday night to defeat Hueytown 6-1 and clinch a berth to the Class 6A state playoffs.

&8220;Both of -s are young teams that lost a lot from last year,&8221; Warriors coach Pat Hamrick said. &8220;We got an early lead 4-0 and that gave -s a chance to relax, and on a cold night like tonight four runs was a lot.&8221;

Corey Kimbrel led off the inning with a base hit and later scored to start a string of runs for the Warriors off a walk, two errors and a wild pitch. The Warriors added two more runs in the third inning with a two-run triple by Tyler Reeves. Craig Robins led the team with two hits.

Trent Lucas (4-3) went the distance on the mound, allowing one -nearned run off seven hits.

&8220;Coming through the year we didn&8217;t know how much he would pitch, but as the year progressed he has really stepped it -p,&8221; Hamrick said.

Thompson traveled to Pelham last night for a chance to win the area title. A Thompson win would force a one game playoff for first. Results were not available at press time.

Pelham defeated Hueytown 11-1 last Tuesday. Caleb Payne collected three RBIs off two hits. Alvin Hines had two hits, including a two-run home run in the fifth inning.

In other games:

-Dawgs in playoffs after long absence: Montevallo posted an 18-16 victory over Thorsby Monday night to help clinch their first berth in more than a decade to the state playoffs.

The Dawgs (9-7, 4-1) rallied back from a 4-0 first inning deficit Monday to take a 14-4 lead into the fifth inning at Thorsby. Thorsby rallied to score 12 runs over the next three innings, including a grand slam by Matthew Bowman in the seventh. Montevallo&8217;s four-run sixth inning helped hold off the Thorsby rally.

Kyle Stewart (6-1) picked -p the win, while also collecting three hits and three RBIs with a home run. Zach Stansell and Brandon Lilly each had two hits and three RBIs, while Coleman Sears had four RBIs off two hits. Dallas Lucas collected the save.

Following the game, Stansell was honored at the

Bryant-Jordan awards banquet

in Birmingham as the Class 3A, Region 3 Bryant-Jordan Scholar-Athlete.

The Dawgs carry the tie-breaker over West Blocton for second place in Area 6 by holding a better win percentage against non-area common opponents.

-Briarwood advances to state playoffs: Briarwood Christian School picked -p a pair of wins over Ramsey and Parker last week to improve to 4-0 in Class 5A, Area 8 and clinch a playoff berth. The Lions played John Carroll Tuesday for a chance to win the area title out right. Results were not available at press time.

The Lions also defeated St. Clair County last Wednesday, 9-1. Luke Furuto led the team with his seventh home run of the season and had three RBIs. Ben Bracewell struck out 11 in the win, allowing just one run off three hits