Three games in one day, which included having to wait out a lightning delay in the Gold Medal game, didn’t seem to phase District 4.

Though District 4 ultimately fell to District 6, 4-2, in the State Games of Mississippi’s All-Star baseball championship game, District 4 made its opponent work until the final out. Trailing 4-1 and down to their last three outs, Neshoba Central outfielder Beck Williams hit a single for District 6 and took off for second during the team’s next at-bat. When District 6 attempted to throw him out at second, the ball instead got past the District 6 fielder and went into the outfield, allowing teammate Nick Sims to score from third and make it 4-2.

That play summarized District 4 in the eyes of its coach, Jordan Smith. Even if it would be the last run his team scored, Smith said he was proud of how far this players got having to play three games in one day, and how they fought the entire day.

“It’s extremely tough,” Smith said. “It’s hot out here. Guys had to throw a lot. They were tired, but they competed and didn’t quit, all the way to the last out, and I think that speaks for itself.”

District 6 got on the board in the top of the second inning when Walker Birchfield smashed a two-run double. District 6 made it 3-0 in the top of the third when Edwin Smith hit an RBI double. In the bottom of the third, District 4 scored its first run when Jesse Boydston came home on a fielder’s choice.

Following the top of the fifth inning, the game was delayed for 30 minutes due to a lightning strike nearby. When play resumed, District 6 added one more run in the top of the sixth inning to take a 4-1 lead into the seventh.

With Silver Medals in hand, Smith said he hopes the experience was about more than just hardware for his players.

“This team was resilient,” Smith said. “They came together like glue. They established friendships that they’ll never forget for the rest of their lives. They’ll be talking about this 10 to 15 years from now. What they were able to accomplish was so much more than a Gold Medal. I’m proud of them and the effort they showed. They represented District 4, their coaches, their families and the schools tremendously.”

EARLIER MATCHUPS

Thunderstorms Thursday forced State Games of Mississippi officials to postpone the evening’s All-Star baseball games at Meridian Community College’s William F. Scaggs Field until Friday morning, affording District 8 and District 4 an extra day to scheme for their matchup.

District 4 entered the game with a 2-0 tournament record, needing only to win its first game to clinch a spot in the Gold Medal game.

Plans for an early clinch disappeared when District 8 earned a 4-2 first-game win to force a decisive second game for a spot in the championship, but Neshoba Central’s Brayden Dunn remained unfazed. 

“I was just thinking that we had our ace (pitcher) Tanner Knight coming in the next game, and I knew he’d come in and shut them down for us,” Dunn said.

District 4 defeated District 8 3-1 in the championship play-in game, sending Dunn and his Neshoba Central teammate Beck Williams to the Gold Medal contest to face District 6, and District 4 to its second consecutive All-Star tournament Gold Medal appearance. 

Eupora’s Al Dumas scored on a wild pitch in the first inning to give District 4 a 1-0 lead. Dunn drew a walk during his first plate appearance in the top of the second, and was replaced by pinch runner Dillon Scott of Oak Hill Academy. The inning ended when Bryce Braddock, of New Hope, popped out to right field.

Dunn plated New Hope’s Nick Sims in the top of the third with an RBI single to push District 4 ahead 2-0. 

“The first at-bat, the pitcher hadn’t thrown many strikes and I was ready for him to throw me a strike and he only threw me one, I think, and he walked me that at-bat,” Dunn said. “(For the RBI) I was just looking for an inside fastball, and he threw me one and I hit it.”

Dumas scored again in the top of the fourth to extend District 4’s lead to 3-0.

Williams was hit by a pitch in the top of the seventh inning and stole second base before being thrown out at home as District 4 held on for the win. 

“We were just trying to execute because that’s the most important thing,” Williams said. “Because if you don’t execute, you don’t score runs. And that’s probably the most important thing to do. You have to come up big in those kinds of situations.”

West Harrison’s Kasey Donaldson tallied an RBI in the bottom of the fourth to give District 8 its lone run.