Local Athletes Compete In Babe Ruth Southwest Regional

FAYETTEVILLE — Five local athletes competed as part of a Northwest Arkansas All-Star team during the Babe Ruth Southwest Regional baseball tournament for boys ages 16-18 at Fayetteville July 13-16.

Eric Hill, Brandon Hodge, Derek Perona and Ellison Stevens, of Farmington, as well as Will Luther, of Prairie Grove, helped fill out the roster of the NWA host team. The NWA All-Stars were bombed 16-1 by Pine Bluff in their opening game, but rebounded with a 3-2 win over Camden. They were eliminated by Del Rio, Texas, which dished out a 6-2 loss.

NWA coach Robbie Foster, who has been coaching baseball 28 years, singled out Hill, Luther and Perona, saying, “These three boys are very unique. They love the game. They give team effort in everything they do. It’s not always about baseball. We try to teach these kids to be gentlemen, to be respectful. These three boys are very classy. I’d love to have them on my team any time.”

A team from Mobile, Ala., won the tournament, thrashing Camden, 25-2, edging Pine Bluff, 9-7 and Mid-County, Texas, 5-4, before blasting Mid-County, Texas, by a 19-3 in a rematch that decided the championship. Mobile, Ala., advances to the World Series held at Jamestown, N.Y., beginning Aug. 2.

Charles Pepper, tournament director for the Southwest Regional, was pleased with the overall success of the tournament.

“We had a pretty good number of volunteers involved in that,” Pepper said, noting six teams came from out-of-town and one local All-Star team competed in the double elimination tournament won by Mobile, Ala.

“The Regional every year happens about this time,” Pepper said in a telephone interview Monday, July 23. “The World Series is generally played around the first or second week of August.”

Pepper has now been involved in hosting three Regional Babe Ruth tournaments in northwest Arkansas. The tournament shifts around. Last year Dumas, Texas, hosted the Regional and it will return to another Texas city in 2019. According to Pepper expenses are in the $5,000 to $6,000 range to take a local team to a Regional tournament.

“This year, obviously we didn’t have that travel expense, but you do have to pay to host the Regional tournament,” he said.

This year marked the first time the tournament was held in Fayetteville. Previous tournaments were played at Bentonville and Rogers.

“This year we brought it to Fayetteville,” Pepper said. “Joe Featherston, president of the Southwest Region, was really complimentary. We did fine. The City of Fayetteville was working with us. We had both the Parks & Recreation helping us and volunteers coming out to help us out this year.”

PHOTOS BY CASEY LUTHER SPECIAL TO THE ENTERPRISE-LEADER Eric Hill, who will be a senior this fall at Farmington High School, follows through while pitching for the NWA All-Stars during the 2018 Babe Ruth Southwest Regional baseball tournament for boys 16-18 in July. Hill is now busy competing for the...

Will Luther, who will be a junior this fall at Prairie Grove High School, plays catcher for the NWA All-Stars during the 2018 Babe Ruth Southwest Regional baseball tournament for boys 16-18 in July.

Derek Perona, a 2018 graduate of Farmington High School, delivers a pitch for the NWA All-Stars during the 2018 Babe Ruth Southwest Regional baseball tournament for boys 16-18 in July. The tournament was played at Fayetteville July 13-16.

Ellison Stephens was one of three Farmington pitchers competing for the NWA All-Stars during the 2018 Babe Ruth Southwest Regional baseball tournament for boys 16-18 in July.

Brandon Hodge, of Farmington, takes an at-bat for the NWA All-Stars during the 2018 Babe Ruth Southwest Regional baseball tournament for boys 16-18 in July.