By By Michael S. Hill
Advance Staff Writer
Atmore's pair of baseball state championship teams begin pursuit of World Series berths this Friday as the Southeast Regionals get underway.
The two brackets for the 11- and 12-year-old teams are nearly identical, except for different host teams. The city hosting the tournament is afforded an automatic bid for their city's All-Star team.
Wilson Dam gets the automatic bid for the 12-year-old tournament to be held in Florence at Veteran's Park. The Inman Youth Association All-Star team gets the bid for the 11-year-old tournament to be held at the 295 Sports Complex in Spartanburg, S.C.
Note that the times for the tournaments are different. Also remember that South Carolina times are Eastern Standard Times, one hour ahead of Alabama's times.
The Florence tournament will begin selling tickets at 8 a.m. July 28 at the field. A tournament pass will cost $15. A day pass will cost $5, and children 4-and-under can enter free. For more information, contact Kim Mauldin at (256) 757-0476.
For the Spartanburg tournament, a day pass will cost $5 for adults and $1 for children 6-12. Children under 6 years of age are admitted free. A tournament pass will cost $25 at the gate, but may be purchased for $20 in advance. For ticket information, call Debbie Jennings at 1-800-374-8326.
The tournament in Spartanburg will also feature a hitting and homerun derby contest, as well as a four-man baserunning relay team competition and a pitching and throwing contest.
Wilson Dam Baseball, the host organization in Florence, is providing a cookout July 27 at 6 p.m. for the players, coaches, host families and tournament officials. The cost is $5 per person for others wanting to attend.
In South Carolina, Inman Youth Association will play host to the 11-year-old tournament and is organizing a banquet to be held on July 27 at 7 p.m. The cost is $6 per person, but is complimentary for players and coaches.
The 12-year-olds play in the second game of the tournament against the Florida state champions at 1 p.m. The 11-year-olds also play Florida in the second game of their tournament, with their game scheduled to start at 2:30 p.m.
Tournament teams are battling it out for spots in the Cal Ripken World Series. Both the 11- and 12-year-old Southeast Regionals winners will head to Mattoon, Ill., August 12-19.