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By ANDREW SIMONSON | Sports Editor

SUMMERDALE – The American Legion Post 555 19U baseball team continued their tremendous season with a no-hitter from Pelham’s Jett Hopwood on Saturday, July 8 in Summerdale.

Triple Nickel remained unbeaten with their 11-0 win over Post 99 behind dominant performances both on the mound and at the plate.

The uncommitted Hopwood turned in his best game of the season by pitching five innings and allowing no hits and no runs.

He struck out 10 of the 16 batters he faced to keep the Post 99 hitters at bay and open up an opportunity for the offense to score runs.

The Triple Nickel batters did just that and racked up 11 runs off 11 hits and eight walks from the Post 99 pitching staff.

Zach Wyatt led the way in the batter’s box with a two-run home run and an RBI single to go 2-3 on the day with three RBIs. Chase Saul and John-Martin Williamson also recorded two hit days, and Saul added two stolen bases to cap a solid day both at the plate and on the base paths.

Hopwood had a strong hitting day to go with his no-hitter on the mound. He went 1-2 with a double, walk and two RBIs to help power Post 555 to a run rule win in five innings.

With the win, Post 555 improved to 20-0-1 on the season to remain undefeated. They kept the momentum from the no-hit win going with a 5-0 win over the Pensacola Bay Blues on Sunday and a 9-8 win over Post 1918 Montgomery Knights on Tuesday. Now, with three games remaining in the regular season, Post 555 is 22-0-1 and the top American Legion team in the state of Alabama.

Earlier in the season, Triple Nickel made headlines for sweeping Desert Oasis Aces Gold AAA from Las Vegas in a two-game series when they visited Pelham High School on Tuesday, June 20.

Next weekend, Post 555 will close out their season with a tournament at Shelton State Community College. After that, they will host the Mid-South Regional Tournament at Pelham High School from August 2-6 and compete against state champions from neighboring states for a spot in the prestigious American Legion World Series in Shelby, North Carolina. Post 555 automatically qualified for the tournament as the hosts.