Thomas leads county in All-State selections
By Bart Moss / For the FCT
Five Franklin County baseball players earned all-state honors from the Alabama Sports Writers Association: Phil Campbell’s Peyton Thomas, Red Bay’s Kolby Bragwell and Russellville’s Landon Ezzell, Rudy Fernandez, and Houston Kitterman.
Thomas earned first-team honors in Class 2A. This is the fourth straight year Thomas has been recognized by the association. He earned Honorable Mention honors his freshman year, first-team honors his sophomore year and was selected as the Class 2A Hitter of the Year as a junior.
Thomas, a UNA signee, had 32 career home runs, 10 of which came in his senior season. He had a batting average of .469 with 29 walks, 12 doubles, 30 runs batted in and 32 runs.
Bragwell, a Red Bay graduate, earned second-team honors in Class 2A. He had a batting average of .544, six home runs, 31 runs batted in, 21 walks, and he scored 36 times.
Ezzell, a UAH signee, earned first-team honors in Class 5A for the Golden Tigers as a pitcher. He finished the season with a 6-4 record with two saves. He had an earned run average of 2.02. He allowed just 45 hits, struck out 53 and walked 17 batters.
Fernandez, a senior shortstop, earned second-team honors in Class 5A. He had a batting average of .344 with 52 hits, six home runs, 35 runs batted in, and he scored 37 runs.
Kitterman, a senior third baseman, earned Honorable Mention in Class 5A. He had a batting average of .340 and 22 runs batted in, and he scored 34 times.