The Columbia 10u all-stars came one bad inning away from their fourth straight World Series title in Ruston, La.
Upon reaching the championship round of the World Series Aug. 8, Columbia had to beat Alabama twice to bring home the title. The all-stars got the job done in the first game with a 7-3 victory but lost 4-2 for all of the marbles.
Columbia had jumped out to an early 2-0 lead with a run each in the first and second innings, but Alabama’s bats got rolling in the fourth to score four runs that would prove to be enough. While the all-stars may not have won the title, coach Doug McMichael said the team accomplished its goal.
“It was another good year with a good group of kids. We get better every year, and that’s what it’s about — trying to improve every single player’s game,” he said. “I think we accomplished that.”
To reach the championship, Columbia beat Louisiana 2-0 Aug. 3, lost to Alabama 2-1 Aug. 4, beat Ruston 9-2 Aug. 5, topped Georgia 11-7 Aug. 6 and Florida 10-0 Aug. 7.
“We got beat in the second game (against Alabama), then in the (fourth) game (against Georgia) we were down 5-1 in the second inning and could have gave up but kept scoring every inning to win that one and make it all the way to the championship,” McMichael said. “We kind of ran out of pitching at the end, but it was good for the kids.”
The all-stars had claimed the title in their three previous trips to the World Series, but Alabama had their number this year.
“The first time we played them we made two errors, and they got one hit that scored two runs. They actually only pitched three kids the whole tournament. They pitched them 40 pitches apiece the entire tournament; whereas, we pitched five or six at least,” McMichael said. “But it was a good run.”
While it didn’t claim the World Series title, Columbia 10u won its first Sportsmanship Award.
Pictured Above: Columbia 10u includes, not in order, Will Breland, Trent Buckley, Greyson Carney, Chayse Cox, Reed Duncan, Christian Expose, JP Haddox, Corban Lawrence, Zac McCain, Carter McMichael, Carson Stuart and Eli Hicks and coaches Paul Lawrence (head), Jeffrey Haddox and Jamie Cox.
