Starkville set for Little League action
It’s been five years since Tom Mcreynolds and others assembled a team of 12-year-olds from Starkville and Louisville and competed for a shot at the Little League World Series.
That first team had to win the state tournament to move on to the Southwest Regional in Waco, Texas, before bowing out there just short of Williamsport, Penn., but they started a tradition that is getting stronger in Starkville ever since. Four years later, Allan Smith and Brad Mckenzie will lead a team of 11 of these 12-year-olds to try to get back to Waco for the fourth time in five years.
It starts with the state tournament once again that begins tonight in Hattiesburg. Starkville gets a bye until Tuesday and will have to make their way through Brookhaven, Hattiesburg, Franklin County or Clinton Smith to get to Waco and the Southwest Regional tournament.
Some of the players Smith has helped coach in recreational league or in some form or fashion for the last six years, but all of the players have played together at some point and are pretty well conditioned to perform as a unit against talented competition.
The current roster is comprised of almost entirely new players than the one last year that failed to get to the Southwest Regional. It was the first and only time that the Starkville Little League couldn’t win the state championship and move on.
Smith knows that his lineup can hit and his entire roster can pitch as well. That’s a recipe for success.
“I really think this year that we’ve got a better hitting team,” Smith said. “Time will tell if we do or not, but knowing the kids, we don’t have very many that strike out a lot. Pitching wise, all 11 of our kids will get on the mound and throw strikes and that’s the main thing you have to have. Defensively, we’ll be solid at every position.”
Major Smith is the only player on this year’s team that played with the Little League last season. The rest of the roster is Jonas Coleman, Casen Sanders, Luke Johnson, Miller Shy, Bradley Key Cohen, Davis Anderson, Luke Mckenzie, Lucian Walker, Brennan Templeton and Donovan Moorhead.
Coleman, Johnson, Mckenzie, Major Smith and Moorhead played on this year’s 12-and-under Dizzy Dean South State Championship team and the 12U Grand Slam champion. Starkville lost just one game over the summer in three tournaments of that age group.
This one takes an even bigger meaning for the players and their coaches, however, because they will be fighting to represent the entire town of Starkville and state of Mississippi in Waco if they can come out victorious this week.
The games in Waco will be televised on the Longhorn Network nationwide from August 1-7 so it adds extra incentive to get the job done.
“I’m really excited and I think they are, too,” coach Smith said. “If you can’t get excited to play for a chance to play on national television, I don’t know what else would excite you. Winning in Hattiesburg, we can play in an incredible venue on national television and I think our chances are really good to get to Waco.”