In baseball, as it is with all sports, it does not matter who leads for most of the game, just who is winning when it is over.

That was the hard lesson that both the Auburn Blue and Hartselle learned Thursday in the Dixie Minor State Tournament.

Both had leads over Taylorville, and both were unable to hold on to them, as Taylorville went on to win both games and clinch a berth to Gonzales, LA in the Dixie Minor World Series.

In both cases, all Taylorville needed was a big inning to take out its opponents.

Against Auburn, Taylorville trailed 4-1 until the fifth inning, when it scored five runs, to lead the team to a 6-4 victory.

While against Hartselle, Taylorville again trailed by three or more runs, until it tied the game at 4-4 in the fourth-inning and then took the lead thanks to a seven-run fifth inning, to win 11-4.

“It seemed to take us a while to get going,” Taylorville head coach Greg Crowe said after the championship victory. “But our bats came alive and we were able to get a couple big innings in each game.”

Taylorville will take the field against North Carolina on Saturday, Aug. 7.

“There were some great teams in this tournament,” Crowe said. “And Troy did a great job as the host.

“It was a real honor to be a part of all this,” the coach added.

In both wins, Taylorville’s Carson Crowe played an important factor.

Against Auburn, Crowe tied the game at four a piece with a two RBI double and on the mound, he pitched a complete game, striking out 10.

In the night cap, during the big fifth-inning rally, the Home Run Derby champion hit his third homer of the tournament, bringing home two runs.

Along with Crowe, another Taylorville player hit a home run in the championship game.

Dalton Beck’s homer in the fourth inning cut the Hartselle lead to just one run.

David Higginbothan and Jack Shelton also helped out Taylorville, as the two combined for five RBIs and four runs scored. Both went 1-2 at the plate with a walk.