All-stars still playing at press time
By Donnie A. Lucas
Both the 10U and 12U Albany Little League All-Star teams moved into the consolation bracket of the District 5 tournament after losses on Monday.
Both teams were scheduled to play on Wednesday, with the winner advancing in the consolation backet of the single elimination consolation portion of the tournament. The 10U team was scheduled to play Merkel All-Stars at Abilene Northern at 6:00 p.m., while the 12U team would follow also at Northern at 8:00 p.m. against the Northern All-Stars.
There are three rounds to get to the finals of the consolation bracket.
Results of the June 22 games were not available due to a Tuesday deadline for the News.
12U Results
The 12U All-Stars won their opener against Clyde 19-0 in a game played in Albany on Saturday.
“The guys had their bats going against Clyde,” coach Clint Chapman said.
Albany hosted Breckenridge on Sunday, June 20, losing 8-7.
“We played hard against Breckenridge,” Chapman said. “We started out giving up five runs, but the boys battled back to take the lead in the top of the sixth. However, Breckenridge scored in the bottom of the sixth to beat us by one run.”
The coach said that pitchers Clay Chapman and Aiden Vickers “battled hard on the mound against Breckenridge.”
The 12U team then played Abilene Eastern on Monday, losing 8-6.
“We knew we had to win against Eastern to stay alive,
Chapman said. “The game was neck-and-neck until the last inning when Eastern led by four runs. We had the last bat and battled back two runs, but we came up two runs short.”
The coach commended Graham Ceder and Lyle Wheeler for their performances on the mound.
“We knew Eastern was going to be a good competitor,” the coach said. “I have coached a lot of teams over the years, and this one is special. They have worked hard and played hard all season.”
10U Results
The 10U All-Stars lost the first two rounds of the tournament to be moved to the consolation bracket.
Albany hosted Breckenridge last Saturday, falling 22-8. Patton Smith and McCoy Vaughn pitched the game for Albany.
The team played in Jim Ned on Monday in the second round, losing 7-1.
Trevor Bellah and Patton Smith pitched the game.
