10U LIttle League District 6 final: Morehead ices Russell to win title: Brockman, bats lead team to district championship

Jul. 2—On a warm Friday evening in Flemingsburg, Morehead needed a player to cool off the Russell offense in the 10U Little League All-Stars District 6 championship game.

Morehead turned to Tucker "Ice" Brockman. The young hurler turned in four and two-third innings to pick up the victory on the mound. He gave up just two runs and struck out four.

Morehead coach Chase Armstrong has a wealth of pitching at his disposal. Several players on the roster can take the hill if needed. Brockman calmed a hot start by Russell until his team's bats started to heat up. Duke Armstrong posted the final three outs in the sixth inning to close out an 11-6 win.

"We named him Tucker 'Ice' because he has ice in his veins," Armstrong said. "He always comes in during tough situations and throws strikes. He recorded 75 pitches, and he held them to only two runs. Duke Armstrong came in and closed the game for us."

Russell opened the game with four runs in the first inning, but Morehead had the contest tied at 6-6 after the fourth stanza. Morehead added four runs in the fifth and one more in the sixth to claim the title.

Russell coach Lawerance Craft said he watched his team fight throughout the tournament and right down to the final out on Friday. Russell came out of the consolation bracket and defeated the same Morehead team, 12-2 in five innings, on Thursday to force a winner-take-all game the next night.

"The boys came out to play every day and left it all out on the field," Craft said. "We did drop a game to Morehead earlier in the week. They kept their heads up and kept playing. We were able to win several games by mercy rule and we saved a lot of our pitching. Even when we made mistakes, they never got down on themselves. We kept fighting all week."

The 10U district tournament was very deep. It consisted of eight teams. Morehead had to play five games to win the championship hardware. They kept winning which gave the team a three-day rest period before the finals.

Armstrong was pleased with the toughness of his team and how they responded to adversity. Morehead scored at least one run in the final five frames after facing a four-run hole in the title game.

"We battled back from a deficit," Armstrong said. "We chipped away and chipped away. Everybody kept their heads up. We had some big hits and we had some really great defensive plays in the field. Russell was an excellent hitting team. We battled through and pulled it out."

"My group of guys want to play baseball every day," he added. "We would have practice and they would all want to stay longer. They love baseball. We asked them if they wanted a day off and they would all say no. They are excited about the opportunity to go to State."

Russell shares the same adoration for the game, according to its coach. The team had to take the long way to the final game. Russell played six games in seven days, combined with a 90-minute drive each day to get to the field.

"Every kid on the team absolutely loves the game of baseball," Craft said. "Six games in seven days is a tall task, especially when you are traveling. One day off during the week and you could tell the kids were tired. But they gutted it out. They reached down and found something in them to continue to play every day. They stayed focused and knew what they needed to do to keep winning."

Sawyer Stevens, Easton Charles, Landon Thomas, Michael Strobel and Armstrong each had a hit in the championship game for Morehead.

Zaiden Ward knocked in two runs and scored another. Case Triplett and Parker Marby each had an RBI along with Charles.

Thomas plated two RBIs and Strobel collected three runs and Brockman came home with one more in the victory.

Russell received a strong pitching performance from Mason Craft to stave off elimination with Thursday's win. He completed 4.1 innings of work, allowing only two runs and he struck out five. He also added a 3-for-4 day at the plate, including a triple. Craft scored three times and knocked in a run.

Russell recorded 11 hits on Thursday. Jacob Smith also tallied three hits. Silas Hutchinson had two hits in his three at-bats. Sawyer Merrill, Carter Unrue and Beckett Clark each posted a base hit.

Smith drove in three runs. Merril had two RBIs. Ben Kiser, Hutchinson, Craft and Clark all had an RBI.

Russell could also boast pitching depth in the absence of two players, one was injured and the other was on vacation. Briar Kennard and Merrill drew mention from their coach for stepping up on the mound after not pitching much during the Little League regular season.

"We changed the lineup around a bit prior to Thursday's game," Craft said, "hoping that we could generate more hits closer together. Mason was on the mound. He has pitched well since his first game against Ashland. We had to go out and score some runs. Morehead is a good baseball team. They put the ball in play, but our defense stepped up. We only had one error in that game."

Armstrong is very appreciative of the support from the city and area businesses. The Little League facilities are top-notch and they go out of their way to support the kids.

"The attendance was great," Armstrong said. "The support from our community was huge. We had multiple people following us on gamechanger. A number of our area restaurants have reached out to me and offered to provide us with a meal before we go to State. The community has been great. Our city and Parks and Recreation Department deserve a lot of credit. They go the extra mile and give us everything that we need."

The state tournament begins on July 15 at the Cardinal Run Park in Lexington.

MOREHEAD 000 02 — 2 5 3

RUSSELL 333 03 — 12 11 1

Vance, Stevens (1), Brockman (2), Ward (3), Charles (3), Triplett (4) and Triplett, Ward; Craft, Lewis (5) and Merrill, Smith. W—Craft. L—Vance. 2B—Unrue (R), Smith (R), Clark (R). 3B—Craft (R).

MOREHEAD 032 141 — 11 5 1

RUSSELL 411 000 — 6 7 4

Stevens, Vance (1), Brockman (1), Armstrong (6) and Armstrong, Triplett; Lewis, Kennard (4), Hutchinson (5), Groves (6) and Smith. W—Brockman. L—Kennard. 2B—Charles (M), Smith (R), 3B—Merrill (R).

(606) 326-2654 — msparks@dailyindependent.com