Ardmore baseball players are full of confidence after two easy victories in their first-round playoff series, and head coach Andrew Smith hopes that carries over into today’s second-round doubleheader against Brooks.

The Tigers travel to face Brooks in the Class 5A second-round series, with the first two games of the three-game series scheduled at 1 and 3:30 p.m., with an if-necessary third game set for 1 p.m. Saturday.

Ardmore advanced to the second round by easily dispatching Arab in last week’s first-round series, sweeping the series by scores of 7-2 and 14-1. Smith said he was impressed with his team’s play last weekend and expects it to continue today.

“We had a great approach at the plate for the most part, especially early in the games,” Smith said. “Pitching was also really good. Arab is a good team, but we came out and played really well.”

Smith said the confidence his players got from last weekend’s impressive series victory should carry over to today’s games.

“You need confidence this time of the year, and it helped our guys to go out and see what we could do,” he said. “They fed off each other, had energy the whole night and played very well. It was good to see.”

While Ardmore (20-12), the champion of Class 5A, Area 15, had an easy time of it last Friday, Brooks, (20-14), the runner-up of Class 5A, Area 16, and had a much tougher road to the second round, having to play three games to defeat Boaz in a high-scoring series. The Lions lost the first game of the series 10-9 before winning the second game 16-10 and taking the deciding third game 10-5.

Brooks plays in the same area as defending state champion Russellville, which won the area championship. Smith knows a series against the Lions will not be easy.

“They are a very, very good team,” he said. “They are solid defensively and always seem to make all the plays. Offensively, they’re always going to be good there as well. They’ve been hitting the ball as long as I’ve been here (at Ardmore). It’s going to be a tough challenge for us.”

Ardmore’s players are used to tough challenges, having advanced deep in the playoffs last year, and Smith said they are ready to take on this tough task.

“So many of our guys are back from last year and have a lot of (playoff) experience,” Smith said. “I hope they come out and perform well. Last week they did, but each weekend it’s a new opponent, so you’ve got to be prepared. Each game, each pitch, you’ve got to be focused. If you are, you’ve got a chance to do something special.”