By Justin Jarrett
LowcoSports.com
The host teams kept the hardware at home and punched their tickets to the Dixie Baseball World Series when the 13-and-under and 14-and-under Beaufort County all-star baseball teams captured South Carolina state titles last week at Oscar Frazier Park in Bluffton.
Coach Danny Morgan’s 14U squad went 6-0 and outscored the opposition 77-7 in six mercy-rule wins to capture the crown and advance to the Dixie Boys World Series starting Saturday in Spring Hill, Va.
The team hit .399 overall with a .574 team on-base percentage with John Paul II’s Logan Cotter (9-for-15, 10 runs) setting the table for Hilton Head Christian Academy’s Ian Steiner, who was 9-for-21 with two homers and 20 RBIs. Ten different pitchers combined to allow just two earned runs in the tournament with none working more than eight innings, so Morgan’s team should have the stable of arms necessary to compete next week.
Coach Alex Hunt’s 13U team was 3-1 in the state tournament, taking two of three from runner-up Oconee County to claim the title, with both teams advancing to the Dixie Junior Boys World Series starting Saturday in Opelika, Ala.
John Paul II’s Chase Cotter earned both wins over Oconee County on the mound, throwing a one-hitter in a four-inning 14-1 blowout in the opener and battling through five solid frames before Jensen Boretti slammed the door in an 11-4 win in the finale.
Battery Creek’s Dylan Simonsen had a strong week on the mound and at the plate, striking out nine over four innings of relief to earn the win in a 7-5 victory over Tri-County and going 6-for-13 with two doubles, five runs, four RBIs, and two walks.
Both teams open double-elimination World Series play at 12:30 p.m., Saturday with the 14U team facing Hattiesburg, Miss., and the 13U squad taking on Brunswick County, N.C.
Justin Jarrett is the sports editor of The Island News and the founder of LowcoSports.com. He was the sports editor of the Island Packet and the Beaufort Gazette for 6½ years. He has a passion for sports and community journalism and a questionable sense of humor.
DIXIE BOYS STATE TOURNAMENT
Saturday’s Game
Beaufort Co. 14, Mt. Pleasant 0
Sunday’s Game
Beaufort Co. 12, Union Co. 2
Monday’s Game
Beaufort Co. 15, Jefferson 0
Tuesday’s Game
Beaufort Co. 11, Latta 1
Wednesday’s Game
Beaufort Co. 13, Oconee Co. 3
Thursday’s Game
Beaufort Co. 12, Latta 1
DIXIE JUNIOR BOYS STATE TOURNAMENT
Sunday’s Game
Beaufort Co. 14, Oconee Co. 1
Tuesday’s Games
Beaufort Co. 7, Tri-County 5
Oconee Co. 5, Beaufort Co. 2
Wednesday’s Game
Beaufort Co. 11, Oconee Co. 4
