VALDOSTA —
The 9-year-old and 11-year-old All-Star teams from the Valdosta-Lowndes County Parks and Recreation Authority lost their games on Sunday at the Dizzy Dean Baseball state tournaments.
The 9-year-old team fell 8-4 to Bartow in Canton, while the 11-year-olds lost 21-8 to Jackson County in Rock Springs. The 11-year-olds were eliminated, while the 9-year-olds will move into the loser’s bracket of the double elimination tournament.
On Sunday, the VLPRA 9-year-old team “had one bad inning,” according to head coach Jason Hamsley, and that was the difference in the game.
“They’re a good ball team,” Hamsley said. “We just didn’t play like we had the last couple of days. But the further you go, the better the teams get. Everybody that’s left is a good, steady ball team.”
The Valdosta team is one of six teams remaining in the 9-year-old state tournament. It will face NYO from Chastain Park today at 6 p.m. If it beats NYO, it will play again at 8 p.m.
“We’re going to give it a shot again tomorrow,” Hamsley said. “We’re still alive. A lot of tournaments are won out of the loser’s bracket.”
The 11-year-old All-Stars’ run at the state tournament ended with a 21-8 loss to Jackson County on Sunday morning.
The All-Stars took an 8-7 lead in the third inning, but Jackson County came alive, scored 14 straight runs and eliminated the VLPRA team from the tournament.
“The other team was just a better ball team than us today,” All-Stars head coach Scott Willis said.
Despite the loss, Willis said he was very proud of his players.
“I’m super proud of them. They represented our community well,” he said. “Even in defeat, they carried themselves very well. They never got down, and they fought the entire time. ... That shows the character of the young men, how their parents have raised them well.”
Willis said that the team hit the ball well in the tournament, pointing out that the All-Stars scored a combined 19 runs in their final two games.
“We hit the baseball,” the coach said. “John Mark Dawson’s bat was phenomenal over the three games. Seth Kipper had some really good at-bats. (A lot of players) hit the baseball.”
Willis thanked the Valdosta community for its support of the team.
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