After claiming back-to-back state titles and a World Series championship last year, the Columbia 7u all-stars had one bad inning end their season.
However, it wasn’t bad due to poor play; the opposition just got hot. In the semifinals Monday, Columbia held an 8-3 lead over Malakoff (Texas) in the latter stages of the game, but the eventual champions put together a huge rally to defeat Columbia 10-8.
“In an 11-team field, there were about six teams that were fairly equal. Any one of those six could’ve won it. The last game we got beat in, we were up five with four outs to go. (Malakoff) had a lot of big hits and came back on us,” head coach Ryan Stringer said. “I can’t believe we let that one slip away from us. We haven’t given up seven runs in one inning the entire all-star season.”
Regardless of the loss, Stringer said he is excited about the team’s future, especially since there seems to be a unique harmony between all involved parties.
“I’m thankful we have a good group of kids and parents where everyone gets along. It’s a team sport and different players have different roles. The kids and the parents seem to understand their roles. It’s fun when everybody is able to get along,” he said. “Sometimes in youth sports that doesn’t always happen. I’m really fortunate to be a part of this group.”
Columbia began the Invitational World Series Saturday morning in Center, Texas in pool play and put on a dominant display all day. The young sluggers bashed Texarkana (Ark.)
17-0 then battled Ruston (La.) to the very end in a 5-2 win in the afternoon. They continued their hot streak into their night game, besting Livingston (Texas) 13-6 to finish the day as the top team in Pool A.
The 7u all-stars entered the single elimination portion of the tournament as the No. 1 seed from Pool A despite losing their first game Sunday. Gonzales (La.) handed Columbia its first loss in a 9-5 affair, but the local squad bounced back for a 12-2 win over Sabine Parish (La.) early Sunday evening. Gonzales lost its final pool-play matchup, giving Columbia the top spot heading into Monday’s action.
After its first-round bye in single-elimination bracket play, Columbia dominated Searcy (Ark.) 10-0 to reach the semifinals where its season ended.
“It was very rewarding and very trying also with the temperature. I think everybody enjoyed themselves,” Stringer said. “Defense was the one thing that stuck out the most to me. All of the teams that were there were really good defensively.”
Stringer offered a special thank you to the community for rallying together to provide financial support for the players and their families. He said without it, traveling to an out-of-state tournament like the World Series would be extremely stressful for many families, and Columbia, as a town, stepped up to the plate.
The back-to-back state champion 7u all-stars include Bentley Blansett, Connor Bozeman, Jagger Earls, Brayden Gipson, Jaydon Johnson, Noah Jones, Tyler Manning, Max McDaniel, Carter Miller, Parker Russell, Cruz Stogner and Kamron Stringer and coaches Kevin Bozeman, Randell Stringer and Andrew Gipson.
Pictured Above: Columbia 7u's Connor Bozeman rips a base hit. | Photo by Tracey McNeese
