USSSA (Sanford) Semifinals: Diamond Hawks 10U 11, WR 9U Blue 4

Well, that was pretty much not very fun. In the semifinals of the USSSA tournament in Sanford, the 10U Diamond Hawks came out ripping the ball and cruised to an 11-4 win over 9U Blue. Because of the tournament format, that meant Blue didn't get to play another game, leaving them with just three games this weekend.

Part of the problem in Sunday's game was the hot Diamond Hawk bats, as they pounded out 10 hits. But West Raleigh also left the door open too many times, committing four errors and allowing five unearned runs, and was never able to recover from a five-run Diamond Hawk first.

9U Blue will begin Ripken competition next week in an area tournament that will be played somewhere between Murphy and Manteo, unless it is played in Seattle or possibly Amarillo, Texas. Exact site location and game times will be announced...oh, probably about an hour before the first game. Stay tuned.

Semifinal Blue scoring plays

First inning

Bryce singled and stole second. JT singled and stole second. Gavin's sacrifice fly scored Bryce, and JT came home on a balk.

Score after one inning: Diamond Hawks 10U 5, WR 9U Blue 2

Fourth inning
With two outs, Chace singled and stole second. Banks smacked an RBI single, and then, in one of the best at-bats of the summer, Brady battled back from down 0-2, worked the count full, eventually saw nine pitches, and finally thundered an RBI single.
Score after four innings: Diamond Hawks 10U 11, WR 9U Blue 4

Pitching Performances
Chace threw three strong innings in relief of Bryce.

Brady finished it up in the fourth.

Semifinal Web Gems

• This section left blank due to some defensive issues throughout the game.

Semifinal line score	1	2	3	4	5	6	R	H
Diamond Hawks 10U	5	0	3	3	X	X	11	10
WR 9U Blue	2	0	0	2	X	X	4	7