Troup will face a tough hitting team in North Carolina, who will have to beat Troup twice today in order to claim the title.
Game one is scheduled for 11 a.m. (CST) and, if necessary a second game will be played at 7 p.m.
Troup pitcher Kevin Craft, working off of two days of rest, pitched five strong innings for the team giving up four runs and striking out 10 batters. Dylan Johnson closed the game for the team with a strikeout.
“Kevin was great on the mound for us tonight,” coach Kevin Howard said.
“He gave up a few walks, but was able to shut them down and pitch a great game.”
When Craft wasn’t shutting down Florida’s offense from the mound, he was making them pay at the plate.
Craft led Troup on offense going 3-3 in the game with a homerun and four RBIs. Jacob Shelnutt went 2-4 with a homerun and two RBIs.
Troup gave up six errors in the game, ending a streak of error-free baseball that started at the regional tournaments.
“Our defense was a little loose tonight,” Howard said, “The ball was really wet and slick, but we were able to get some timely hits and tightened up and were able to pull through.”
Florida would gain an early lead in the game in the second inning, but Troup would respond in the third, when Craft would hit single to bring in a run across to tie the score. Troup would score again later in the inning on a walk.
The two teams went back and forth over the course of the next two innings, and going into the top of the fifth inning, Troup held a slim 3-2 lead.
Troup would strike for five runs in the inning, courtesy of a two run homerun from Shelnutt, and a three run homerun from Craft, giving Troup an 8-2 lead, and all the runs they would need for the win.
Troup and North Carolina faced off against each other two years ago when the youth world series was held in LaGrange.
“Pretty much that whole North Carolina team is the same team that was in LaGrange a few years ago, and that’s who we battled it out with twice,” Howard said. “I know they will be fired up tomorrow and they believe they can win.”
Howard said that as long as the team reclaims their strong defensive play, and keeps getting timely hits, that Troup has a good chance tomorrow.
“We will see how it goes,” Howard said. “We just have to sharpen up our defense for tomorrow because North Carolina is a team that is going to put the ball in play.
They have been going two-two and two every game and they have a lot of good pitchers. They are a great hitting team. Hitting is their bread and butter, so we will have to pitch well tomorrow to be able to capture the title.”
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