VALDOSTA —
The Valdosta Blazers seem to have their groove.
The Valdosta-Lowndes County Parks and Recreation Authority’s 8-year-old All-Star team picked up another win in the Dizzy Dean World Series Friday.
The Blazers beat Hernando, Miss. 17-2 in the final game of pool play and have advanced to the double-elimination championship bracket. The Blazers play again today at 2 E.T against the Alpharetta Eagles. A win would earn the Blazers a game at 5 and a loss would earn them a game at 3:20.
“We have obtained our first goal,” Blazers head coach Dan Kerrigan said. “Now our second goal is to bring home the championship series.”
That second goal begins today and Valdosta has to like its chances. The Blazers are the 14th seed out of the 32 that will compete in the championship bracket and finished pool play with a 2-1 record. In their two wins, they won by a combined score of 33-3.
Clearly, the Blazers have found their baseball playing groove. They already have more wins in the national tournament than they did in the state tournament, which they finished with a 2-1 record. Luckily, they had an automatic bid into the Dizzy Dean World Series and they are now making the best of the opportunity.
If the Blazers are victorious at obtaining their second goal, they would become the third VLPRA team in two years to win the World Series. Last year, the 10-year-old and 12-year-old teams won the championships.
As for Friday’s win, the was never any doubt about who was the better team. The Blazers dominated from the very first inning.
Mason Steele led the way with 3 hits and 4 runs batted in; Lamonte Lindon had two hits and 3 RBIs, Cash Phillips had 3 hits and 2 RBIs, Wyatt Crosby had 2 hits and RBI and Labryn Depta finished with 2 hits and a pair of RBIs.
The 10-year-old All-Stars, the Valdosta Sluggers, begin play in the World Series today at 10 a.m. CT. The Sluggers finished second in the state tournament earlier this month, falling to Sandy Springs in the championship game.
Local Sports
VLPRA Blazers advance to championship bracket
10-year-old Sluggers begin play today
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VSU softball wins South Region, headed to nationals
For the third time in four years, and second in a row, Valdosta State’s softball team will play in the national championship tournament.
The Blazers won their third South Region championship Saturday, beating Alabama-Huntsville 8-3 in game three of the best-of-three series at Steel’s Diamond at Blazer Park. -
VSU baseball season comes to an end
Delta State scored seven unanswered runs to defeat Valdosta State 7-2 in an elimination game of the NCAA South Region Tournament at the UT Baseball Field Saturday afternoon.
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Blazers take 1-0 series lead
Angela O’Connor launched a pinch-hit two-run home run over the left-field fence, tying the game against Alabama-Huntsville in the bottom of the sixth inning, and sparking the Blazers and their fans along the way.
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Blazer baseball stays alive, beats Stillman
Valdosta State scored five runs in the first inning to defeat Stillman 6-2 in an elimination game of the NCAA South Region Tournament at UT Baseball Field Friday morning.
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Lowndes’ Harwell, Wortham sign with Valdosta State
Lowndes’ Ty Harwell and David Wortham won’t have to go far to play college baseball.
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Blazers host respected rival UAH in Super Regional
One would expect a matchup featuring two of the top softball programs in Division II to come in the national championship game.
Unfortunately for Valdosta State and Alabama-Huntsville, who have combined to appear in four straight national championship games, they won’t be meeting in title game on Memorial Day in Salem, Va. -
Pop Warner Football coming to Valdosta
Pop Warner Football is coming to Valdosta.
The nationally known organization that puts an emphasis on education and developing American youth has been established in the Valdosta area and will begin playing football this August. -
Blazers lose to Delta State, fall to loser’s bracket
If the Valdosta State baseball team is going to win the South Region Tournament, the Blazers going to have to do it from the loser’s bracket.
The Blazers (33-17) dropped their first game of the tournament Thursday, falling to Delta State 4-2 at UT Baseball Stadium.
VSU will face Stillman College, which lost to No. 1 seed and tournament host Tampa Thursday, Friday at 11 a.m. to advance to the weekend portion of the tournament. The loser will be eliminated. -
Lowndes’ Willis, Breit named Region 1 Coaches of the Year
The All-Region 1-AAAAAA soccer teams were announced Wednesday and Lowndes was well represented.
Lowndes coaches Chris Willis (girls) and Jordan Breit (boys) were named the Region Coaches of the Year, after leading the Lowndes teams to region championships and going undefeated in region play. -
Vikings commit 4 errors, fall to Roswell, 5-2
The small things matter in baseball, especially in a winner-take-all game three.
On Wednesday, Lowndes’ baseball team made too many mistakes on the little things. The Vikings committed four errors that led to five Roswell runs and were eliminated in the Class AAAAAA state playoffs with a 5-2 loss to the Hornets. - More Local Sports Headlines
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