Sports Editor
MANCHESTER - Another rain delay wasn’t going to slow down the Troup American all-stars.
On Tuesday, Troup endured a delay of more than two hours before eventually beating Troup National 3-2 in a dramatic, extra-inning ballgame that ended after midnight.
A day later, in the championship round of the Dixie Youth Baseball district tournament, Troup had to wait nearly two hours before taking the field near 9 p.m.
No matter.
Just as it did throughout the tournament, Troup American just went out and took care of business, dispatching Thomaston 7-3 to secure the district title and complete a 5-0 tournament run.
Thomaston will also represent the district at state.
“We went 5-0 and won district, so we’re going to state having won a title,” head coach Perry Prather said. “We’re ecstatic.”
Wednesday marked the fifth straight day the team played, and had Thomaston won, a sixth trip to Manchester would have been on tap for the team and the loyal parents and other supporters.
“Most parents were like, please win so we don’t have to come back,” Prather said.
A return trip wasn’t necessary thinks largely to the performance of pitchers Jarred Helton and Luke Hilderbrand, who combined to strike out 10 in six innings while giving up just four hits.
“They really didn’t hit the ball at all,” Prather said.
Hilderbrand pitched the first three innings and had four strikeouts, and Helton had seven strikeouts in his three innings of work.
Offensively, Troup got a big two-run single from Colson Blackburn in the second inning.
John Crawford singled, Hudson Graham reached on a fielder’s choice, and Hilderbrand reached on a base hit to set the table for Blackburn.
Daniel Swann added an RBI on an infield hit in the fourth inning, and two more runs scored in the inning when a grounder to the pitcher off the bat of John Todd Bohn was misplayed.
Prather said the team will take some time off before reconvening Wednesday in preparation for the state tournament, which will be held in Gwinnett County beginning July 16.
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