Cartersville Junior League baseball finishes as state runner-up
The 14U Cartersville Little League Junior baseball team had its state tournament run come to a close Thursday night with an 8-3 loss to Elbert County in the championship round. The loss ended a streak of three straight elimination game wins for Cartersville who must settle for Georgia Junior Little League state runner-up. Elbert County handed Cartersville both losses in the double-elimination tournament and will now advance to the Junior Little League Southeast Regional August 2-5 in Broadway, Virginia.
Cartersville out hit Elbert County ten to eight Thursday night, but fell behind early and was unable to catch up.
Elbert County led 2-0 after one inning and 6-0 after three frames. Cartersville posted a pair of runs in the fourth inning to narrow the margin to 6-2, but single insurance runs by Elbert in the fifth and sixth innings secured the victory and the state title. Ayden Ray (5.2 IP, 8R, 7ER, 8H, 6BB, 2K) went most of the way for Cartersville on the mound. Sawyer Wilson (0.1 IP, 0R, 0H) took the mound to retire the final out in the sixth inning.
Four Cartersville hitters finished with two hits each. Ray’s two hits included a double and three RBI. Trenton Payne, Colin Genrich, and Geoffrey Gore also contributed a pair of hits each. Gabriel Cox and Wilson both added singles.
Cartersville Junior Little League 14U finishes the playoffs as District 1 champions and Georgia runner-up. The player roster includes: Colt Williams, Sawyer Wilson, Geoffrey Gore, Grant Knight, Ayden Ray, Luke Altizer, Gavin Shrewsbury, Colin Genrich, Trenton Payne, Gabriel Cox, Turner Abernathy, Tripp Bradley, and Justin Peace.
Little League results are provided to Bartow Sports Zone by Bartow County Little League and Cartersville Little League. The game data is shared by the leagues via GameChanger reports from the respective teams and/or leagues. GRPA tournament team results are also provided by the Cartersville Parks and Recreation Department and the Bartow County Parks and Recreation Department or the Georgia Recreation and Parks Association. Results and capsules are sponsored on Bartow Sports Zone by Play It Again Sports and CiCi's - Beyond Pizza, both located in the Cartersville Main Street - Cherokee Place Shopping Center
