Without

their usual arsenal of aluminum bats, the Fayette County

Tigers figured out another way to win ballgames against

the other 19 teams in the Jonesboro Wooden Bat Classic

this weekend: with their arms.

The Tigers

finished second in the tournament, with their only loss

coming in the championship game Sunday in extra innings.

Fayette County had a 2-1 lead early in the game, but host

Jonesboro tied it up to send it to the eighth inning.

"It

was one of the best games I ever saw," said FCHS

head coach Robert Townsend.

The twist

to the tournament was that all teams had to use wooden

bats instead of the aluminum, graphite and ceramic bats

used in amateur baseball today. That made Cooper Brown's

homer to right center against Heritage Friday all the

more impressive.

But the

Tigers' main key in the tournament was strong pitching,

Townsend said.

Josh Hunter

twirled a five-inning perfect game against Haralson

County Saturday, striking out seven in a row at one

point. That game was halted on the mercy rule after FCHS

took a 15-0 lead.

Michael

Harrell threw a one-hitter Saturday against George

Walton, qualifying for the 12-0 win in another game

halted by the mercy rule.

Brian Moss

pitched a four-hit complete game against Newton County

Friday for a win after Brad Burns picked up an 8-6 win

over Heritage in the tournament opener for the Tigers.

Pitcher

Eric Barnes helped get Fayette County into the

championship final Sunday by beating Salem High School

5-2.

"The

pitching was really good for us this weekend,"

Townsend said. "The hitting was, too."

Beginning

Thursday, Fayette County will host a 25-team tournament,

the Fayette County Summer Baseball Classic. Play will be

held at all four high schools' fields.