Staff Report

The Selma 14-year-old Dixie Boys All-Star team won the District 4 Championship, beating Prattville 5-4 in an extra-inning contest that wasn’t over until almost midnight.

After beating Clanton 18-2

Friday then beating Prattville 1-0 in a pitching duel Sunday, Selma was in the driver’s seat to win the tournament with Prattville having to win twice Tuesday night. Prattville beat Selma 5-2 in the first game.

A 2 1/2 hour rain delay postponed the championship game until about 9:30 p.m. Selma scored first in the bottom of the first inning when Ja’shombe Smith came home after the Prattville shortstop overthrew first base.

Selma’s 1-0 lead held up until the fifth inning when Prattville tied the ball game with the benefit of a critical Selma error.

Connor Thorpe had a no-hitter working through 5 1-3 innings, but Prattville took the lead in the top of the sixth by scoring two runs on an error and two base hits. Prattville could have scored another run if not for Selma catcher Parker Hughes gunning down a base runner attempting to steal second base. It was Hughes’ third runner caught stealing in the game.

Down by two runs, the Selma boys came out determined in the seventh and final inning of regulation play.

With an easy come-backer to the pitcher and two strikeouts, it took Thorpe only nine pitches to put Prattville away.

Down 0-2 with two outs in the bottom of the frame, Daniel Blackmon slapped a hard single between third base and the shortstop, scoring Austin Crocker and Jabaris Hardy and tying the ball game. A popup ended the inning.

Prattville’s Logan Hughes belted a triple, putting his team ahead 4-3 in the eighth.

Selma’s Joel Yarbrough laced a one-out single to right center field, scoring Nathan Irwin and tying the ball game.

Later in the inning, Thorpe dug into the batter’s box with two outs and laced a 1-1 pitch to right field just out of reach of a diving Prattville defender. That sent Crocker across home plate to close out a 5-4 victory.

Selma collected 10 hits on the night, including two each by Irwin and Thorpe.

Hardy, Smith and Irwin each scored a run and Crocker scored twice.

Thorpe tossed a complete game and was the winning pitcher for Selma, giving up five hits, striking out 11 and walking only one.

Selma advances to play in the Dixie Boys Southern Divisional Tournament in Enterprise July 20-25.