McMinnville Civic Center got the honor of playing host to the 12-U district tournament and two local squads used the home-field advantage to claim two of the top three spots in the tournament.
The 12-year-old Warren County All-Stars finished second, while the McMinnville Thumpers – an 11-year-old team – placed third. Both teams ultimately finished behind the Putnam County All-Stars, who went undefeated through the tournament to claim the championship trophy.
Warren County found itself in the championship game Tuesday night at Dottie West Field after eliminating the Thumpers 10-5 in a contest Monday night.
As both local teams faced off, Clay Eckenrod’s two-run triple in the third inning was part of a four-run frame that helped Warren County build an 8-1 lead early.
Braden Bottoms tried to rally the Thumpers with a bases-loaded, two-run single in the bottom of the third. Jared Scruggs and Omari Harris added RBI singles in the third inning as well when the Thumpers cut the deficit to 8-5, but it would be as close as it would get.
Back-to-back doubles by Heath Kuykendall and Will Rivers started the fourth inning for Warren County and Dale Robinson added a run-scoring single to provide for the final score.
Dakota Gibbs added a two-run double in the second inning while John Garrett and Carter Mansfield also had RBI hits for Warren County in the elimination game.
Robinson earned the win by pitching three innings before being relieved by Kuykendall. Kuykendall shut down the Thumpers over the final three innings to earn the save.
Scruggs and Harris led the Thumpers with two hits each in the contest. Bottoms, Ben Rivers and Bryson Elrod added one hit each.
The win over its local rivals seemed to spur Warren County when the championship game started, though a late rally by Putnam County left the home crowd stunned.
Warren County took an early 1-0 lead in the second inning when Mansfield led off with a single, then ultimately scored on a passed ball after moving around the bases on a pair of groundouts.
Gibbs sent the hometown faithful in a frenzy in the third inning when he took a big cut on a 2-2 pitch from Brady LeFever. Gibbs knew it was gone when it left his bat and the team’s lead-off batter trotted around the bases before being mobbed at the plate by his teammates.
Putnam County cut the celebration short in the third inning with a pair of two-out runs. Will Jackson was able to score on Jackson Kelly’s double off Will Rivers while LeFever got redemption with a game-tying single.
Will Rivers settled down to strike out Caleb West to end the third inning – one of nine for Warren County’s starting pitcher in the contest. Will Rivers followed by striking out the side in the fourth inning as he and Putnam County reliever Stacy Allison locked into a pitcher’s duel going down the stretch.
Warren County was able to scratch across a run in the fifth inning when Drake Todd drew a lead-off walk and made his way around the bases. Todd took second on a balk, stole third and eventually scored on a groundout by Gibbs. The 3-2 lead lasted until the final frame, when Putnam County was able to rally back to take home the title.
Eric Farley started the bottom of the sixth with a single and quickly stole second base. Farley would steal third as well, shortly before Allison drew a walk to put runners on the corners. Allison was steal second base without a throw, putting the winning run in scoring position.
Another walk loaded the bases, giving Colton Nichols a shot to be Putnam County’s hero. Nichols came through with a RBI groundout to knot the score, but Warren County had a shot to force extra innings.
It all fell by the wayside when Warren County was unable to capitalize on a rundown that involved Allison. Warren County had Allison stuck in a pickle between third base and home, but the slippery Putnam County runner was able to avoid tags multiple times.
Allison eventually made a sprint toward home and an errant throw allowed him to slide in safely for the game-winning run.
Mansfield finished with two hits in the championship game while Gibbs, Kuykendall, Todd and Rivers added one hit each.
The Warren County All-Star team included Gibbs, Kuykendall, Mansfield, Robinson, Eckenrod, Todd, Garrett, Gage Walker, Logan Thomason, Jathan Cagle and Will Rivers.
The Thumpers featured Bottoms, Scruggs, Harris, Elrod, Ben Rivers, Weston Wilson, Wyatt Wilson, Xander Lee, Ty Martin and Dawson Waldron.