By KEVIN ECKLEBERRY

Daily News

Troup’s Colby Williams has been one of the state’s best pitchers the past two seasons, and LaGrange’s Trent Bailey has established himself as an elite catcher.

Next week, those two will get to show what they can do against some of the best high-school players in the country.

Williams and Bailey have been selected to play for Team Georgia in the Junior Sunbelt Classic in Oklahoma.

Also, former LaGrange High head coach David Smart will serve as an assistant coach for Team Georgia.

The tournament, which features 10 teams, begins on Friday and runs through June 13.

There will be teams from Georgia, Oklahoma, Arizona, Tennessee, Missouri, Colorado, Texas, Mississippi and Canada.

Georgia’s opening game will be against Tennessee on Friday at 4:30 p.m.

When Williams is on the mound, Georgia figures to have a pretty good chance to win.

Williams has been nearly unbeatable the past two seasons, and he’s been at his best in the biggest games.

One of Williams’ best performances this season came in a showdown with Cartersville for the region championship.

Williams threw a complete-game three-hitter in a 5-1 victory over Cartersville.

In the first round of the state playoffs, Williams was even better, tossing a two-hit shutout with 15 strikeouts in a 7-0 victory over Ridgeland.

Bailey, who played at Troup his first two seasons before transferring to LaGrange, was a rock behind the plate for the Grangers.

Bailey was one of LaGrange’s top hitters, and he was a standout defensive player, especially when it came to throwing out potential base-stealers.

Williams and Bailey will both return to lead their teams next season.

Smart, after serving as LaGrange’s coach for the past three seasons, is heading to Denmark High in Alpharetta to become the head coach in baseball and softball.

Smart led LaGrange to the state semifinals in 2017.