The Crossville 6U all-stars dropped a 17-9 decision to Tri-County Tuesday night in the championship game of the Dixie Youth Baseball District Tournament in Rockwood.
Crossville had fought its way back into the competition, coming out of the losers’ bracket to have the opportunity to fight for the championship. The local all-stars hit the ball well and put pressure on Tri-County. However, Crossville could not do enough to pull out the victory.
“Our offense started out strong, but we had a couple of scoreless innings,” said Crossville coach Jesse Edmonds. “Despite those two innings, we kept it close until right at the end.”
Edmonds said Tri-County’s abilities at the plate put pressure on Crossville’s defense. Overall, however, he was pleased with the way his team competed in the field.
“Our kids played better defensively in the championship game against Tri-County than we did the first time we met this team,” Edmonds said. “Tri-County can hit the ball hard.”
Despite the loss, Crossville will be going to the state tournament in Chester County on July 6.
“We knew going into the game we were headed to state,” Edmonds said. “But we still wanted to win. The guys left it all on the field. Our kids competed really well during the entire tournament despite only practicing together five times, and never having played together before this week. We had several boys playing new positions and they all stepped up as a team.”
Edmonds said finishing second in the district has left a bad taste in their mouths and he believes his team will be extra motivated to play even better at the state championship.
Now, the Crossville all-stars will focus on learning what they can from the district tournament and preparing for the state contest.
“We have a few areas we would like to focus on in our upcoming practices, and possibly a few position changes to hopefully put us in the best place to bring home the wins,” Edmonds said. “At this age, focusing on fundamentals is key so we want to continue to refine those and teach them more about how the game is played.”