Oxford baseball wins 2-6A title, clinches No. 1 seed in 6A playoffs

Published 9:46 am Wednesday, April 14, 2021

Oxford baseball completed one season goal off its list as quickly as it possibly could on Tuesday.

With their 10-0 win over Southaven in five innings at Edwin Moak Field, the Chargers secured the Region 2-6A title with two more region games remaining. Oxford (19-2, 7-0 2-6A) also clinched the No. 1 seed out of the region for the Class 6A state playoffs that begin later this month, earning an automatic bye into the second round.

Once again, the Oxford offense struck early with two runs in the first inning and followed it up with six more in the third. A 2-RBI walk-off single by Hays Roth in the bottom of the fifth inning secured the victory and region championship.

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“We were very good at the plate tonight. Very good,” said Oxford head coach Chris Baughman. “We’re seeing it real well right now at the right time of the year. The top of the order is just absolutely mashing the baseball right now and we had some big hits, finally, tonight from the bottom of the order. …When we’ve been really good, like tonight, it was one through nine.”

The Chargers scored 10 runs off 11 hits, which were sprinkled up and down the lineup.

Ole Miss commit and leadoff hitter Kelly Crumpton went 2-for-3 with a home run, a double and three runs batted in and scored two runs. Hitting second, Roth went 3-for-3 with two doubles, two RBIs and a run scored. In the eighth spot, designated hitter Alex Childers went 1-for-1 with a double, two runs batted in and a run scored while also reaching on a fielding error.

On the mound, Dixon Webb got the start and pitched a complete game, working five shutout innings. Webb sat down the first six batters he faced and gave up only two hits the entire game while striking out eight Southaven batters. He did not issue a walk.

“(Webb) just keeps getting better,” Baughman said. “Tonight I thought he was really, really good. I thought he was better tonight than he’s been maybe all year. He’s some really good games. But, in terms of what he was throwing for strikes, he was throwing three pitches for strikes tonight. We went to his changeup in about the third inning and I think he threw it for strikes every time he threw it tonight.”

Tuesday’s win was career win No. 251 for Baughman as head coach of the Chargers. Baughman earned milestone win No. 250 in Oxford’s win over Hernando last Friday.

Throughout those wins, Baughman has led Oxford to back-to-back state championships and three straight state title series appearances.

“It’s very special,” Baughman said. “Its special for my assistants. It’s special for me, but it’s special knowing what that shows about the kids in our program. To get 250 wins in 11 years, averaging over 23 wins a year. That shows you the type of kids we have. That has nothing to do with coaching. It has 100 percent to do with the kids we have in this program.”

Oxford will travel to Southaven on Friday for Game 2 of this week’s series before coming back to Edwin Moak Field on Saturday for to conclude the series. Both games are set for a 7 p.m. first pitch.