3 local all-star teams still in bracket play
Albany’s three all-star teams picked up victories with the start of bracket games over the weekend in the District 5 tournament.
Both the 12U and 10U earned a pair of bracket wins over the weekend and were scheduled to host a double header on Tuesday.
The 11U team members played their first bracket game on Monday, advancing to the second round of the double elimination tournament on Tuesday against Wylie.
Teams that won on Tuesday were scheduled to play again on Thursday, while a loss on Tuesday would result in a Wednesday game for the next round.
12U Results
The older all-stars beat Sweetwater, 15-3, on Saturday.
Cole Read was the starting pitcher, with Brayden Watson coming in as relief.
“We hit the ball much better, collecting 13 hits – five of which were home runs,” manager Kevin Hill said. “Zane Waggoner had two homers, including a grand slam, and Houston Heatly, Tyler Chapman, and Cole Read each had one.”
The 12U faced Merkel on Sunday, earning a 15-5 win.
We got down early in the game, letting them score three runs in the top of the first,” the manager said. “We had trouble finding the zone and didn’t throw as many strikes as we needed to, but our offense carried us.”
The team scored five runs in the first and seven in the second to jump out to an early lead.
The manager credited Lute Wheeler, Caden Price, Cole Read, and Ashton Bailey with multiple hits. Adam Hill hit an inside the park home run.
The team played top seed Snyder on Tuesday, picking up a 12-1 win.
11U Results
The 11U team, managed by John Tom Heatly, split pool games last week but won their first bracket game on Monday.
The 11-year-olds defeated Eastland, 16-1, last Wednesday, then lost in Breckenridge on Friday.
The team bounced back with a 14-2 win over Jim Ned in their first bracket game on Monday,
Laithe Leech went one out short of three innings on the mound, striking out six batters.
“That was a big stage for Laithe and he really delivered for us,” manager John Tom Heatly said. “He hadn’t pitched that much for us, but he really helped us out in that game.”
Cade Fairchild and Woods Peterson finished out the game at the mound.
Heatly said that the team had a good game at the plate, with Huffman Heatly, Mason McCloy, and Calhan Fairchild each getting two hits, and Shawn Keen and Peterson coming up with one each.
Albany traveled to Abilene on Tuesday to face Wylie, dropping the game 12-1 for their first loss in tournament play.
“Pitch count becomes very important as the tournament progresses,” Heatly said. “A pitcher can throw 35 pitches with one day of rest or 50 pitches with two days. That makes it tough unless you have several good pitchers.”
10U Results
The younger team defeated Abilene Eastern in the first round on Saturday, 22-10.
Clay Chapman pitched two and a third innings, followed by Aiden Vickers and Wesley Gleitz with 20 pitches each.
“Clay pitched a very good game against Eastern, and Wesley came in to close the game for us,” manager Gary Vickers said. “All the guys batted well.”
Aiden Vickers had a pair of triples and Clay Chapman hit two singles. Lyle Wheeler batted one double.
The 10U team defeated Clyde, 12-1, on Sunday.
Aiden Vickers took the mound for 50 pitches, or four and a third innings, striking out seven batters.
“Aiden did a good job of holding Clyde to one run, and Wesley came in and closed the game for us,” said the coach. “We played great defense behind the pitchers, including a double play.”
Gleitz hit a single and two doubles, while Vickers and Chapman both had singles.
The team hosted Clyde on Tuesday, losing their first bracket game 23-20 in a high scoring contest.
Assisting manager Kevin Hill on the 12U team are coaches Tony Wheeler, Justin Read, and Don Taggart.
Members of the 12U team include Houston Heatly, Ayden Balliew, Lute Wheeler, Cole Read, Ashton Bailey, Adam Hill, Caden Price, Tyler Chapman, Cort Peterson, Zane Waggoner, Brayden Watson, Dalton Richards (alt), and Jayden Lucas (alt).
The 11U all-stars are managed by John Tom Heatly, with coaches David Fairchild and John Peterson.
Members of the team are Huffman Heatly, Cade Fair-child, Calhan Fair-child, Shawn Keen, Will LeMay, Gatlin Wills, Mason McCloy, Woods Peterson, Ty Richards, Laithe Leech, Landon Balliew, Caroline Chapman (alt), and Jake Hale (alt).
Gary Vickers is managing the 10U team, with coaches Anthony Ceder, Chris Edgar, and Clayton Oliver assisting.
Those named to the team were Wesley Gleitz, Aiden Vickers, Clay Chapman, Lyle Wheeler, Brody Oliver, Jackson Shack, Sam Vickers, Colter Edgar, Zarek Bell, Graham Ceder, Connor Smith, Ace Vickers (alt), and Bennett Neece (alt).
