SHERWOOD — Add the Bryant 6-and-under All-Stars to the list of[more] State champions.
At the South Arkansas State T-ball Tournament at Sherwood, the team won five games by a combined score of 80-16.
The team will advance to compete in Regionals in Benton starting this Friday.
The 6 year old all stars of Bryant, managed by Kevin Nagle, include Brady Brower, Reid Catton, Clay Crawford, Gage Horn, Aiden Hughes, Dylan Hunt, Grant Johnson, Carson Kemp, Julius McClellan, Carson Nagel, Aiden Palmer, Caden Stovall.
The team opened the tournament with an 18-0 romp over Camden then dismissed Star City 18-3. A 17-1 win over the Cabot Chaos moved them to the winners bracket final against Sylvan Hills. With a 13-5 win, Bryant reached the championship round. Sylvan Hills went on to win the losers bracket game to get another shot at Bryant. But the Bryant Stars claimed the title with a 14-7 victory.
Bryant 14, Sylvan Hills 7
After both teams scored the maximum of six runs in the first inning, Bryant’s defense put the stops on Sylvan Hills, which was only able to add one run the rest of the game.
That run gave Sylvan Hills a brief lead but Bryant scored twice in the bottom of the second then put the game out of reach with another six in the bottom of the fourth.
The game-breaking fourth began with a double by McClellan then back-to-back singled by Brower and Crawford. Palmer whacked a double to deep right center and, after Hughes and Horn added singles, Nagle plugged the gap in right-center for a triple to clear the bases. Kemp then capped the inning with an RBI single.
The opening outburst in answer to Sylvan Hills’ fast start, was ignited by Horn’s triple. Nagle doubled him in but was out trying to second on a double by Kemp. Hunt followed with yet another triple. He scored on Johnson’s double to left-center. Stovall and Catton brought Johnson around to score then McClellan’s three-bagger tied the game.
After Sylvan Hills regained the edge with a run in the top of the second, singles by Crawford and Hughes along with doubles from Palmer and Nagle put Bryant on top 8-7.
Bryant 13, Sylvan Hills 5
In the winners bracket final, Bryant scored a run in the bottom of the first then Sylvan Hills got five in the second to take the lead. But it didn’t last long. As it turned out those were the only runs Sylvan Hills would get and Bryant proceeded to run away with it by putting together max-innings in the second and third.
The first run scored when Kemp doubled and Hunt singled him in. After Sylvan Hills’ uprising in the second, the Bryant bats erupted with singles by Stovall and Catton then a some muscle from McClellan, who doubled, Crawford, who tripled, and Horn, who doubled. Singles by Hughes, Nagle and Kemp made it a 7-5 lead.
Sylvan Hills managed a lead-off single in the top of the third but then Bryant made two force plays and caught a flyball to send it to the bottom of the inning.
Hunt started the second max-inning with a single then Johnson belted a triple to center. Stovall singled him in and, after Catton singled, McClellan cracked his second RBI double of the game.
With one out, Crawford’s double chased in two. Singles by Palmer and Hughes brought Crawford around with the sixth run.
Bryant 17, Cabot Chaos 1
The Chaos took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first then Bryant blanked them over the next three innings.
A five-run home first put Bryant in the driver’s seat. Horn, Kemp and Hunt had doubles before Johnson drilled a triple to make it 3-0. Stovall singled in a run then scored on a base hit by Catton and a groundout by McClellan.
Cabot opened the second with a single but when the batter tried to stretch it to a double, he was thrown out. After another base hit, a fly to center resulted in a doubleplay when the throw from the outfield beat the runner back to first.
In Bryant’s second, Crawford and Palmer set the table with a pair of singles. Hughes doubled in a run and Nagle singled in another. Kemp cracked a bases-clearing triple and came home moments later on a single by Johnson. Stovall’s single and Catton’s double brought Johnson around for the sixth run of the inning and an 11-1 lead.
McClellan started another six-run blitz in the third with a double. After Brower singled, Palmer circled the bases for an inside-the-park homer.
Hughes, Horn and Nagle kept the carousel spinning with singles ahead of doubles by Kemp and Hunt that set the final score.
A Cabot single to start the fourth was erased when the runner was doubled up on a pop to first. Another single and yet another force play brought the game to an end.
Bryant 18, Star City 3
With three max-innings, Bryant buried Star City which answered the first salvo but had no answer for the other two.
Horn, Nagle, Kemp started the game with hits to the fence. They scored as did Hunt, Stovall and Catton. Brower had the hit that concluded the inning.
Star City scored its three in the bottom of the inning.
Bryant didn’t make an out in the second inning as Crawford, Palmer, Hughes, Horn, Nagle, Kemp and Hunt all getting hits in succession to make it 12-3.
In the third, it was Johnson, Stovall, Catton, McClellan, Crawford, Palmer and Horn that produced the six-run burst.
Bryant 18, Camden 0
Camden only managed two hits as the Bryant defense got the tournament off to a great start.
As would be the case in the win over Star City, Bryant’s Stars scored the maximum of six runs in each of the three innings. In those three frames, Camden was only able to record one out.
