by Malcolm Butler
Minden was full of Ruston wins his past weekend.
On the same weekend that the Ruston 11u Dixie All-Stars were winning their way to a state championship in Minden, their younger 318 baseball buddies were doing the same on the 9u stage in the same city.
The Ruston 9u Dixie All-Stars fought their way through the elimination bracket this past weekend in Minden and ultimately defeated Ponchatoula in the title game 12-1 to win the Louisiana State 9u tournament title.
With the title, Ruston advances to play in the 9u Dixie World Series in Laurel, Mississippi, next week.
Ruston opened the state tournament with a walk-off 3-2 victory over Minden, winning in the bottom of the sixth inning after Minden tied the game at 2-2 in the top of the frame.
The Ruston squad then fell 14-12 in a shoot-out against Ponchatoula, falling into the elimination side of the double elimination tournament.
With their backs against the wall, the Ruston 9u’s then reeled off three straight wins, outscoring their opponents by a combined score of 30-3. This included wins over Tioga (11-0) and No. 1 seed Pineville (7-2).
Ruston — the District 4 champions — then avenged its lone loss to Ponchatoula in the title game by a score of 12-1.
The Ruston 9u All-Stars will head to Laurel, Mississippi, to open pool play at the World Series on July 18 against Livingston, Texas. They will also face Dothan (Ala), Auburn (Ala) and Lawrence County (Miss.) in pool play.
Coaches for the Ruston 9u All-Stars are Jeremy Telford, Beau Holloway, and Cody Rodrigues. The team is comprised of #9 Austin Moore, #12 Briggs Holloway, #99 Brooks Telford, #15 Camp Adair, #11 Emmit Fouts, #28 Hayden Haddox, #7 Marus Roy, #1 Paisleigh Rodrigues, #5 Randon Gantt, #21 Tripp Scott, and #2 Weston Gantt.
