Local Sports

More World Series action

Photos

Allen Moody | Highlands Today
Published: August 4, 2012

Dixie baseball has been front and center on the local sports scene the past two weeks, as four area teams competed in their respective Dixie baseball World Series tournaments and there's more to come. Beginning today, both the Junior Dixie Boys (age 13) and the Dixie Youth AAA (ages 9-10) teams will open World Series play.

While fans have had to listen to games on the Internet to follow the local teams so far, they can make the short trip to Bartow to watch coach Anthony Gaines' squad take on Alabama at 7:30 p.m.

Gaines said playing so close to home is a bit of a mixed bag.

"It's nice to be at home, but it's always fun for the players to get to travel, also," he said.

Gaines expected his squad to have a solid following at the tournament, which will be played at the George Pittas Complex near the Bartow Civic Center.

The team won the state title in dramatic fashion, beginning with a wild 15-13 victory over West Seminole in the state semifinals, a game that saw Sebring trailing 9-4 with one out and nobody on in the final inning. Sebring's next 11 batters reached base and all managed to score and they were able to turn back a West Seminole comeback to advance to the finals, where they defeated rival Lake Placid 4-1.

Gaines said the team wouldn't be playing today without big contributions from every one of his players and they'll all have to step up once again in Bartow.

There will be plenty of eyes on coach Dean Frazier's Junior Dixie Boys team, which are the two-time defending Dixie Ozone World Series champions. The team begins play at 7 p.m. against Tennessee at the Harkrader Sports Complex in Christiansburg, Virg.

Frazier's squad had to work hard for its state title, defeating a tough Spring Hill squad twice to reach the finals against a talented Mulberry team. Mulberries needed two victories in the finals to wrestle the title away from Sebring and were able to get one win, a 17-16 thriller, before Sebring clinched the state crown with an 8-5 win in the nightcap.

Sebring has plenty of big game experience and can roll out a number of talented pitchers, which is a huge luxury in the tournament.

Both World Series tournaments are double-elimination. The Junior Dixie Boys tournament is scheduled to run through Wednesday, while the AAA tournament will conclude Thursday.

amoody@highlandstoday.com (863) 386-5841