Local players attend Tech-ACU game

By Sam Waller

Player, coaches, and parents from Albany Little League took a break from competition Tuesday, May 3 to attend the Abilene Christian-Texas Tech game at ACU’s Crutcher Scott Field, helping make up a record crowd.

League organizer Paul Hamilton said the trip drew near-unanimous response with a travel party of more than 130 departing from Nancy Smith Elementary School. Albany ISD provided a bus to help transport those attending the game, which Tech won 16-12.

“I didn’t expect to have almost 100 percent response from our players,” Hamilton said. “We had a big majority of our players from Minors, Majors, Juniors, and Intermediates.”

Hamilton said the response was nothing short of phenomenal.

“If you look at Albany’s population, that represents over six percent of our town going to a ballgame,” he said.

Hamilton said the ACU athletic department went to great lengths to accommodate the group, offering half-price tickets with a designated seating section.

Hamilton said he hopes seeing one of the top teams in the nation – the Red Raiders are ranked No. 9 – will be educational for the local players.

“A lot of these kids have never seen that level of baseball up close,” he said Tuesday. “They don’t know how good good can be. If this works out, and we can come back with 100 percent of the kids, we’ll probably do it again next year.”