Belles, SweeTees set for World Series Championship
Published 11:44 am Tuesday, August 1, 2023
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Both the Troy Dixie Belles and the Troy Dixie SweeTees will be vying for World Series Championships tonight.
The Troy 6U SweeTees have gone 4-0 in the Dixie 6U Softball World Series in Alexandria, La., with resounding wins throughout the tournament. The SweeTees started the weekend off with a 19-0 shutout over host team Ward 10 (La.), and then bested Florida 22-13 in the second round. In the third round, the SweeTees beat Georgia 27-17 and then topped Tennessee 23-6 in the fourth round.
“I’m super proud of them,” SweeTees coach Will Starling said. “A lot of hard work has gone into it and they came on a really long road trip to play in a different place and came ready to play. I’m pleased with how well they’ve done and we just have to finish things off tonight.”
The SweeTees will meet Florida again tonight in the World Series Championship round at 5:30 p.m. With just one win, Troy will come away with the World Series Crown, while Florida will have to beat the SweeTees twice in the double-elimination tournament.
“The No. 1 thing is that we came here to win but it’s been a great experience overall, so far,” Starling said. “We want them to have fun and just go out and play as hard as they can and get the best outcome as we can and win this thing.”
Also in Alexandria, is the Troy 15U Belles, who have gone 3-1 in the tournament to earn their place in the World Series Championship round. In game one, Troy beat North Carolina 13-3 on July 29. Charles Henderson’s Janazia Cantlow went 2-for-3 at the plate with two runs, while fellow Charles Henderson teammate Calleigh Compton earned two RBIs and two runs. Pike Lib’s Julianne Meyer also scored one run and Reese Garrett scored three runs. Pike Lib’s Alissa Barron earned a triple. Beth Dixon got the win in the circle, throwing five strikeouts and giving up one hit and two earned runs in four innings pitched.
Next, the Belles thrashed South Carolina by a score of 15-7 on July 30. Pike Lib’s Gracie Smith went 3-for-3 at the plate for Troy with a double and one run. Barron hit a triple and earned three RBIs and scored two runs, while Cantow earned an RBI and two runs. Garrett went 2-for-4 at the plate with two runs. Barron also pitched five innings and struck out five batters with six hits and one earned run given up.
In the third round, Troy dropped its only loss of the tournament thus far 8-4 to Louisiana. Charles Henderson’s Lakayla Sellers went 3-for-3 at the plate with a double and a run, while Cantlow went 2-for-3 with a double.
Facing elimination, the Belles came from 6-0 down against Alexandria (La.) on July 31 to pick up an 8-6 win and advance to the championship round. Cantlow went 2-for-3 with a run, while Compton earned a double and two runs and Smith went 2-for-3 with two RBIs and one run. Dixon pitched all seven innings and struck out six batters, while giving up seven hits and one earned run.
The Belles will rematch Louisiana tonight at 5:30 p.m. and will need to win in back-to-back games to earn the championship.
Additionally, the Troy Dixie 8U Darlings went 3-2 in the 8U Dixie Softball World Series in Tennessee. The Darlings opened the weekend with an 11-6 win over Florida on July 29. Za’liya Reynolds went 2-for-3 at the plate with a triple and one run. Cate Barron went 2-for-2 with a double, two RBIs and two runs.
After losing 12-7 to Louisiana in the second round, the Darlings bounced back to win 10-6 over North Carolina on July 30. Reynolds went 2-for-3 at the plate with a double, a triple, four RBIs and one run. Chandler Cole and Taeli Slater scored two runs each.
The Darlings remained alive in the tournament with a 14-7 win over Tennessee on July 31. Reynolds went 2-for-3 a the plate with a home run, two RBIs and two runs, while Barron went 3-for-3 with a double, a home run, three RBIs and three runs.
The Darlings World Series run came to a close on July 1 with a 10-3 loss to Louisiana in an elimination game.