May 21—OXFORD — If you need a big play to win a playoff game, who are you going to call? The answer is Cain Falciani.
The Hartselle senior started the trend last year in the state baseball finals when he gunned down a runner at home plate to seal a win and continued it three weeks ago when he drove in a run for a walk-off win over Cullman in extra innings.
On Wednesday he added to his lore, hitting an RBI single with the bases loaded to give the Tigers a walk-off 9-8 win over Spain Park in Game 1 of the Class 6A state championship series.
“We’ve walked off Game 1 in each of the last few series, and (Falciani) has been responsible for a couple of those,” said Hartselle head coach Brad Phillips. “He’s a weapon in the nine-hole for us. He allows us to flip the lineup and I had no doubt he was going to put a barrel on the ball.”
The signature of Hartselle’s 2026 playoff run is becoming the team’s proficiency in pulling off come-from-behind wins.
Coming into Wednesday’s game the Tigers had trailed in five of its previous eight playoff games, winning all five. Wednesday’s win made it 6-0 as they overcame an early 3-0 deficit.
“We never give up and we’ve proven that in just about every game of this playoff run,” Falciani said. “It doesn’t matter how much we’re down, you can never count us out.”
It was a rough start for Hartselle on Wednesday as Spain Park took a 3-0 lead in the top of the first inning without a hit. Hartselle responded, though, cutting the lead 3-2 in the bottom of the first off a two-run home run from Cruise Baker and taking a 5-3 lead in the third off a three-run home run from Braden Weathers.
Hartselle pushed its lead to as much as 8-4 before Spain Park rallied to tie it in the sixth inning, leading to Falciani’s walk-off hit.
Weathers led the Tigers with two hits and three RBIs. Falciani added two hits and an RBI, while Baker had a hit and two RBIs
Hartselle will play Spain Park on Thursday in Game 2 at Jacksonville State University at 10 a.m. Game 3, if necessary, will follow immediately after.
The Tigers are playing in the third consecutive state finals, including winning last year’s championship, but it’s the first time in that stretch they enter day two with a 1-0 series-lead.
“The first thing coach (Phillips) told us after the game is, ‘We’ve been in their shoes,'” Hartselle senior Asher Doepel said. “It feels good (being up 1-0) but we can’t be satisfied. We have to go do it again tomorrow.”
— caleb.suggs@decaturdaily.com or 256-340-2395. Twitter @CalebSuggs2