PLAYING LIKE CHAMPIONS: Andy 8U played their hearts out in state tourney
Published 12:00 am Tuesday, July 9, 2019
- Andalusia’s 8U All-Stars fought hard, but were eliminated for the state tournament after back-to-back extra inning losses on Sunday in Decatur. Courtesy Photo
The Andalusia 8U All-Stars gave their best efforts, but were eliminated on Sunday from the state tournament in Decatur.
GAME ONE
ANDALUSIA 21,
TUSCALOOSA 4
Andalusia opened up the tournament with a convincing 21-4 victory over Tuscaloosa.
Farley Brannon opened up the game with a single.
The Bulldogs took the lead when Row Thorn doubled home Brannon.
Isaack Harkins followed with a double that allowed Thorn to score with ease.
The doubles parade continued as M.J. Berry drove in Harkins with a double to put Andalusia up 3-0.
Tuscaloosa added a pair of runs in the bottom of the first inning.
In the bottom of the second inning, Tuscaloosa tacked on two more runs to go up 4-3, but it was all Andalusia after that.
Beau Bennett opened up the top of the third inning with a single and then moved to second on a sacrifice from Collin Coursey.
Andalusia tied the game when Brannon drove in Bennett with a single.
Cooper Maynor gave Andalusia the lead when he drove in Brannon with a double to center field.
Andalusia continued to add to their lead with a run-scoring triple from Harkins.
The lead went up to 7-4 with an RBI single from Berry.
Kaleb Covin kept the inning going with a single that plated Berry.
Zay Leslie and Houston Weant then hit back-to-back home runs to put Andalusia up 12-4.
Andalusia then loaded the bases with three-straight triples from Ian Kimbril, Jackson Grimes and Bennett.
Coursey followed with a single that scored Kimbril and Grimes.
Andalusia’s explosive offense continued to increase their lead in the third inning.
Maynor drove in Bennett, Thorn drove in Brannon, Harkins drove in two more runs, Berry tripled home a run, Covin plated a run and Leslie capped off the scoring with an RBI single to put Andalusia up 21-4.
Andalusia held off Tuscaloosa for a 21-4 victory.
GAME TWO
ANDALUSIA 15, HARTSELLE 8
Andalusia put up another big offensive game as they picked up a 15-8 win over Hartselle.
Thorn picked up a two-out single in the top of the first inning, but Andalusia couldn’t plate a run in the first inning.
Hartselle used timely hits in the bottom of the first inning to go up 3-0.
In the top of the second inning, Berry tripled to open up the inning.
Covin put the Bulldogs on the board when he drove in Berry with a single.
Leslie followed with a single to give Andalusia runners on first and second.
Andalusia added another run when Covin scored off of an error.
Weant then tied the game when he drove in Leslie with an infield single.
Grimes singled with one out in the inning to move Kimbril to second, but Andalusia was unable to add anymore runs in the inning.
In the bottom of the second inning, Hartselle scored another run to go up 4-3.
Andalusia got a single from Brannon to start the top of the third inning and then moved up to second on a single from Maynor.
Thorn tied the game after driving in Brannon with a single to left field.
The Bulldogs took the lead when Harkins drove in Maynor with an infield single.
Berry widened the lead with a three-run inside-the-park-home-run.
Covin and Leslie followed with a single before a single from Weant put Andalusia up 9-4.
After a pair of outs, Bennett drove in Leslie with a single and then single from Coursey put Andalusia up 11-4.
Hartselle drove in two runs in the bottom of the third inning.
In the bottom of the fourth inning, Hartselle plated another run to bring the score to 11-7.
Andalusia got back-to-back one-out singles from Weant and Kimbril before Grimes drove in Weant with a double.
Bennett followed with an RBI single and then a single from Coursey put Andalusia up 14-7.
Andalusia’s final run of the game came off of an RBI single from Maynor.
Hartselle was a able to add one more run, but it wasn’t enough to overcome the Bulldogs.
GAME THREE
SMITHS STATION 14, ANDALUSIA 13
Andalusia’s first loss of the tournament came when Smiths Station picked up a 14-13 walk-off win.
Andalusia got on the board first when Kimbril drove in Thorn with a double to left field.
Smiths Station picked up back-to-back singles to open up the bottom of the first inning, but Andalusia was able to turn a double play and hold onto the 1-0 lead.
In the top of the second inning, Covin singled to start the frame and then moved to third on single from Leslie.
The Bulldogs added to their lead with a single from Weant that allowed Covin to score easily from third.
Andalusia then went up 3-0 with a sacrifice ground out from Kimbril that plated Leslie.
Grimes followed with a single and then moved to second with a single from Bennett, but Andalusia wasn’t able to add another run in the frame.
In the top of the third inning, Brannon singled to get the frame started and then moved to second off of an error.
Maynor moved Brannon to third with a sacrifice and then a sacrifice from Thorn put Andalusia up 4-0.
Smiths Station got on the board in the bottom of third inning to make the score 4-1.
Andalusia got a two-out single from Leslie to get things rolling in the top of the fourth.
The Bulldogs picked up a pair of two-out singles from Weant and Kimbril to put Andalusia up 5-1.
Smiths Station picked up another run in the bottom of the fourth inning.
In the bottom of the fifth inning, the Bulldogs looked like they might win the game via the 10-run rule.
Hits from Bennett, Brannon, Maynor, Thorn, Harkins, Berry, Covin and Leslie put Andalusia up 11-2.
Smiths Station cut into the lead with a two runs in the bottom of the fourth inning.
Smiths Station came charging back in the bottom of the sixth to tie the game 11-11 and send the game to extra innings.
Andalusia took the lead with back-to-back two-out doubles from Berry and Covin put the Bulldogs up 13-11.
However, Smiths Station plated three runs to win the game in the bottom of the seventh inning.
GAME FOUR
MONTGOMERY 15, ANDALUSIA 14
Andalusia found themselves eliminated from the tournament with a 15-14 extra inning loss to Montgomery American.
Andalusia picked up 10 singles in the opening frame to go up 4-0.
Montgomery plated three runs in the bottom of the first inning.
Grimes opened up the top of the second inning with a single and then came around to score off of a two-out single from Brannon.
The Bulldogs increased their lead with a single from Maynor that brought in Brannon to score.
Montgomery chipped away at the Andalusia lead in the bottom of the third and fourth inning.
In the bottom of the fifth inning, Montgomery was able to take a 12-8 win.
Weant got things rolling with a single in the top of the sixth inning.
Coursey came through with a big two-out single that plated Kimbril.
After a single from Brannon, Maynor laced a triple that allowed Bennett, Coursey and Brannon to score to tie the game 12-12.
Thorn and Harkins followed with hits that gave Andalusia a 14-12 lead.
Andalusia had a two-run lead heading into the final frame, but Montgomery was able to tie the game 14-14 in the bottom of the sixth inning to send the game into extra innings.
Montgomery picked up the win with a walk-off hit in the bottom of the eighth inning to eliminate Andalusia from the state tournament.
Brannon and Maynor were each 5-for-5.
Thorn, Berry, Covin and Grimes had four hits each.
Harkins, Leslie and Weant had three hits each.
Kimbril had two hits.
Bennett and Coursey each had one hit.