Starkville 12-year-old Little League team starts off state tournament with a victory

HATTIESBURG – A run to the Southwest Regional in Waco, Texas, started off on a fantastic note for the Starkville 12-year-old Little League Allstars on Tuesday at the state tournament in Hattiesburg.

Thanks to 10 runs in the first two innings, Starkville blew through Clinton and run-ruled its opponent in four innings 13-1. It had eight hits offensively and three different pitchers held Clinton to just a hit in the victory.

“They were all really nervous,” Starkville coach Allan Smith said. “Parents and players alike really just built it up playing in this so we didn't know what to expect. We came out and just put the ball in play and got that good lead early and were able to really play within ourselves from there.

Starkville came out firing with a four-run first inning and added six in the second and two in the third inning. The solid start early on allowed starting pitcher Luke Mckenzie the opportunity to pitch without much pressure and he went to work against Clinton.

After inheriting that 4-0 lead, Mckenzie faced just five batters and retired them all – four via the strikeout.

“Luke has got good velocity and is able to locate pitches,” Smith said. “At 46 feet, velocity with location is tough to hit. He did an excellent job.”

While Clinton was able to scratch across a run in the bottom of the third inning, that was all it could muster as Starkville added another in the fourth to provide the final score.

In the victory, Luke Johnson led the way with a threehit game. He drove in three of Starkville's runs and had a double and scored another two runs himself. Templeton had two hits in the win and scored three runs and Major Smith drove in three runs on a home run.

Donovan Moorhead threw 0.2 innings after Johnson, gave up a home run and two walks with a strikeout. Lucian Walker got the win with his 1.2 innings and two strikeouts to close the game out.

Starkville now prepares to face off with the host team Hattiesburg on Wednesday night with a day off on the line. With three more wins, Starkville will advance to the Southwest Regional in Waco as the Mississippi state champion for the fourth time in five years. The tournament is double elimination.

“I told the guys after the game that I couldn't be more proud of them taking care of business like that right out of the gates,” Smith said. “We're happy for that first win, but now it's time to go back to work and we've got a heck of a team to match up against. It's going to be a show.”

The Starkville LL is comprised of Jonas Coleman, Casen Sanders, Johnson, Miller Shy, Bradley Key Cohen, Davis Anderson, Mckenzie, Walker, Brennan Templeton, Major Smith and Moorhead. Allan Smith and Brad Mckenzie are coaches.