Selma 15U finishes 2-1 in state tournament

Published 7:31 pm Tuesday, June 19, 2018

The Selma 15U all-stars went 2-1 this past weekend at the state tournament in Eufala.

The team played three games in pool play last Thursday and Friday, but were unable to make it to the championship game.

“The boys played really well,” Selma 15U head coach Darren McGilberry said. “I thought everyone had a great effort and played really well.”

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However, the team made a lot of noise, scored a lot of runs and put up a strong effort during the state tournament.

Selma opened up pool play on Thursday with a 11-4 win over East Montgomery. The team collected nine hits in the game, including four hits in the sixth inning that provided five insurance runs at the end of the game.

“We pitched well, hit the ball well and played well in the field,” McGilberry said.

In the second game against Wiregrass on Friday, Selma was shutout 8-0. Wiregrass had a three-run lead after the second inning, and played an error free ball game that prevented Selma from countering.

“We knew they were going to be a really strong team,” McGilberry said. “We played them tough for about five innings. They played pretty much perfect baseball on their end.”

In Selma’s third and final game of pool play, the offense reawakened and defeated Eufala 22-2. Selma sent 15 batters to the plate in an 11-run first inning. Two errors put the first two batters on base, and then Selma hit four back-to-back doubles followed by four consecutive singles before Eufala could record its first out.

“We bounced back, and everybody held their heads high and played really hard,” McGilberry said.

Unfortunately, the 2-1 finish in pool play wasn’t enough to make it to the championship series, but the summer isn’t over for the 15U all-stars.

The team did qualify for a World Series in Ozark in July, but they haven’t decided if they’ll be able to make the trip yet.

“We can advance to the World Series and play in it, but it’s just a matter of getting our heads together with the city, coaches and the boys to decide if that’s what everybody wants to do,” McGilberry said.