Emanuel Outlasts Vidalia to Claim 14U Title

The Lyons Recreation Department played host to the Annual Lyons Youth Tournament this past week. The 14U girls bracket, running from May 18 through May 21, featured a tough local showing, with the girls from Vidalia fighting their way to a secondplace finish and the host team from Lyons securing third. VRD vs. Emanuel Co.

Vidalia opened the tournament for the local squads with a hard-fought matchup against Emanuel County. Emanuel struck first, taking a 3-0 lead in the top of the third inning. Vidalia immediately answered with two runs in the bottom of the frame to cut the deficit to 3-2. After Emanuel plated two more in the top of the fourth to extend their lead to 5-2, the Vidalia bats woke up. They scratched across a run in the bottom of the fifth to make it a two-run game, then mounted a late rally in the bottom of the sixth, pushing three runs across the plate to walk away with a gritty 6-5 comeback victory.

LRD vs. E. Dublin

The Lyons 14U team had a much easier time in their tournament opener against East Dublin. The Lyons offense clicked early and never let up, steadily pulling away to cruise to a dominant 13-1 win and advance in the bracket.

VRD vs. LRD

That opening round set up a local clash between Vidalia and Lyons in the semifinals of the winners' bracket. Vidalia controlled this one from the jump, breaking a scoreless tie with three runs in the bottom of the third inning. They kept the pressure on, putting up a five-run spot in the fourth inning to put the game out of reach. The 8-0 shutout victory punched Vidalia's ticket straight to the Championship game.

LRD vs. Emanuel Co.

The semifinal loss dropped Lyons into the losers' bracket for a survival matchup against Emanuel County. The Lyons bats went quiet in the elimination game, managing just a single run. Emanuel County's offense proved too much, pulling away for a decisive 14-1 victory that brought the host team's tournament run to an end. VRD vs. Emanuel Co.

Championship Game 1 Lyons' exit set up a rematch between Vidalia and Emanuel County for the Championship. Coming out of the losers' bracket, Emanuel needed to beat Vidalia twice to take the title. Game one was a grind. Emanuel took a 2-0 lead in the top of the third, but Vidalia battled back to tie it at 2-2 in the bottom of the fourth. The teams traded single runs in the fifth inning to remain deadlocked at 3-3. After a scoreless sixth, the game went to extra innings. Emanuel managed to plate a crucial run in the top of the seventh to edge ahead 4-3. Vidalia couldn't find an answer in the bottom half of the inning, and Emanuel held on to force a winner-takeall second game.

Championship Game 2 In the deciding contest, Emanuel County carried their momentum over and never looked back, leaving no doubt about the Championship. Emanuel jumped on Vidalia pitching early with three runs in the top of the first inning. They steadily built on that lead, adding a run in the second and another in the third to make it 5-0. Emanuel broke it wide open with three runs in the fourth and three more in the fifth, pulling away for an 11-0 shutout over Vidalia to secure the 14U tournament title.