HATTIESBURG — The journey is over for Starkville’s Little League team after a tough defeat in the State Championship series. The Maroon ball club went down to Hattiesburg last week to play for a fourth straight trip to Waco for the Little League World Series Southwest Regional. They put in a strong performance against the tournament hosts before being eliminated with two losses to Clinton.
“They came out hot on us in the first game and beat us 14-1,” head coach Kain Ellinburg said. “The boys knew facing them the second time was their last shot at them, and we held it 0-0 up until the very last play of the game. We just made an error and they got a runner on because of it, and then one hit sealed the deal.”
Starkville’s pitcher Tucker Chance put in ace work for his team on the mound, and he was backed by solid team defense. He pitched all six innings, throwing 74 pitches with four strikeouts, just two walks and allowed only 3 hits all game.
The problems came at the plate, as Clinton saw ace pitching of its own. Starkville was held to seven hits and no walks with seven batters striking out. Clinton’s walk-off run sealed a 1-0 win and a trip to Waco.
“They all learned from it, but that was as good a game as I could have asked for from them,” Ellinburg said of his team’s performance. “I can honestly say they gave everything they had and left it on the field. It was one of the best ball games I’ve been a part of. It didn’t turn out how we wanted it to, but they gave it their all and someone had to win. It just came down to who made the first mistake, and unfortunately, that was us.”
A few players are eligible to play again next year, and Ellinburg expects them to come back prepared and hungry. He wants every one of his players to keep playing the game as long as they can, and he looks forward to what’s in store for them.
“That group of kids ain’t going anywhere,” he said. “They’re all going to get better from these tournaments, and they’re all extremely talented. We’ll see them for years to come whether it’s school or travel ball.”
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Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 36 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
