Somewhere in Collinsville, West Lauderdale High School Jerry Boatner baseball coach has a grin on his face a mile wide –– it’s the only natural reaction when pondering the state of West Lauderdale baseball.

    Fresh off his 11th -straight district championship, the Knights appear a favorite to compete for a 4A state title next year. However, it’s not just the present that has the head coach excited.

    The West Lauderdale Youth Association is also creating a lot of buzz in Collinsville as all three of its baseball teams came home champions from the All-Star Classic in Brandon over the weekend.

    “It’s an awesome feeling to know that the West Lauderdale tradition is continuing.” Boatner said. “When you think of West Lauderdale baseball you think of winning, and it’s good to know that they won and one day a lot of them will be playing for the mighty Knights. I’m hope I’m around long enough to coach them.”

    The West Lauderdale Boys U6, U9 and U12 teams went a combined 12-1 in the tournament, sweeping through competition and proving that Collinsville belongs in the conversation among the state’s richest talent bases.

    “If you look at West Lauderdale, they have been consistent in baseball for years and years,” U12 head coach Russ Andreacchio said.

    “Coach Boatner has a great baseball program, and kids want to go there and play. Kids here grow up wanting to play baseball.”

    That passion for the sport was best seen over the weekend by West Lauderdale U6 player Jackson Bunyard who led his team to team to a 21-18 victory in the championship game over Northwest Rankin while suffering a broken collarbone. Bunyard, who was injured while diving for a ball at third, battled through the pain while lacing a double during his next time at bat before departing later in the game to require medical attention in Meridian.

    “He was crying on second base, and we knew something was wrong with him,” U6 head coach Scott White said. “He actually came around to score, and later when we went back on defense we found out he couldn’t go. Somebody looked at it and saw he had broke his collar bone.”

    The U9 squad made easy work of their championship contest, outscoring the Clinton All-Stars, 16-4, to finish the tournament with a 3-1 record.

    “It was a great weekend,” U9 head coach Neil Henry said. “We were able to swap the boys in a lot of positions and got them experience at different areas. It was fun to see a lot of these kids who don’t compete in travel ball go out and compete at this level.”

    No team was as dominant as the U12 boys who finished off the Madison Storm, 9-0, in the championship game to complete the tournament with a perfect 5-0 record. More impressively, the team did not allow a run all weekend, outscoring their opponents, 56-0.

    “We knew we had a good little team,” Andreacchio said. “Our pitching was lights-out and our defense was good. It’s just hard for the other team to beat you when they can’t score any runs.”

    As the WLYA comes to a close for the summer, Boatner left the young players with one message –– keep practicing hard and keep West Lauderdale’s winning tradition alive.

    “I’m real excited and proud for them,” Boatner said. “I want to wish them the best of luck in everything as they move forward.”