Both Cartersville Little League 10U all star team won their Georgia Little League District 1 openers Saturday (June 27) at Joe Frank Harris Field in Atco. The Cartersville Purple 10U all stars beat Rome 13-3 in five innings, while Cartersville Gold 10U edged Rockmart, 5-4. Cartersville Little League is hosting the Georgia Little League District 1 tournament through Thursday, July 2 at Joe Frank Harris and Rudy York Fields. Cartersville Purple scored five runs in the fifth to put their game away on RBI singles by Isaac McNair-Seigler, Will Litton, and Brice Craig; a walk by JaKiyon Porter; and a single by Paul Gamble. Trip Bradley was 4-for-4 for Cartersville Purple. He doubled in the third inning and singled in the first, fourth, and fifth innings. McNair-Seigler was masterful on the mound in 3 and 2/3 innings of work for Purple 10U. Rome managed just one hit and no earned runs during his stint on the mound. He allowed two walks and struck out seven. Thomas Norris (1H, 2ER, 3BB) pitched an inning for Purple and Will Litton (1H, 1ER, 3BB, 1K) pitched 1/3 of an inning. Bradley singled to score Porter, Gamble scored on a groundout by Hunter Kelly, and Bradley crossed the plate on a single by A.J. Christina as Cartersville Purple jumped to an early 3-0 lead in the top of the first. Rome tied the game 3-3 in the bottom of the second, but Cartersville Purple answered with ten runs over the next three frames to put the game away. Cartersville Purple out-hit Rome 15-3 in both teams' tournament opener. In the second 10U District 1 game Saturday, Cartersville Gold came-from-behind to knock off Rockmart, 5-4. Cartersville Gold tied the game in the fourth inning on a two-run triple by Kaden Stephenson then held off Rockmart down the stretch before Stephenson delivered a game winning hit. Stephenson finished the day with three RBI on a pair of hits. Rockmart 10U jumped out to an early 3-0 lead in the top of the first and added a run in the third to take a 4-0 advantage. Cartersville Gold responded with a four run fourth to tie. Brody Tidwell had a sacrifice fly, Chandler Mathison drove in a run with a single, and Stephenson hit his 2-RBI triple completed the fourth inning rally. Silas Freeman led off the inning with a single. In the bottom of the sixth, Jack Chatman singled to left field and Collin Genrich walked with one out before Stephenson's infield single to deep short scored Chatman with the game winner. Knox Neal (2H, 3ER, 2BB), Freeman (3.2IP, 3H, 0ER, 1BB, 8K), and Tidwell (2.1IP, 1H, 1BB, 3K) saw time on the mound for Cartersville Gold. Pool play in the District 1 10U tournament continues Sunday when Cartersville Purple plays Rockmart at 2pm and Cartersville Gold takes on Rome at 4pm. Both 10U games will be played at Joe Frank Harris Field. Pool play wraps up Monday night (June 29) as Rockmart and Rome square off at 6pm, followed by a game between the two Cartersville teams at 8:30pm. The pool play winner and the pool runner-up will play a 3-game series beginning Tuesday (June 30) to determine the District 1 championship. Game 2 of the championship series will be Wednesday night. If a third game is needed, it will be Thursday night. All three games of the 10U District 1 championship series are scheduled for Rudy York Field at 6pm. Contributions for this story were "Powered by Narrative Science and GameChanger Media. Copyright 2015. All rights reserved."

The Bartow County 10 and under live arm all stars softball team only needed two innings to dispatch Rome in the championship game of the GRPA District 5 tournament winning 20-0. Bartow scored 20 runs with a 15 hit attack in the title game. MaKayla Wade was 4-for-4, Michiah Hicks was 3-for-3, Haley Stiles 2-for-2, and Olivia Talarico went 2-for-3 in the contest for Bartow. Lainey Baker pitched two scoreless innings for the victory in the circle. Baker struck out four and walked a pair. Bartow County advances to play in the Georgia Recreation and Parks Association State Tournament July 8-10 at Hamilton Crossing Park. Bartow will open the state tournament against Thomaston-Upson County at 6:30 pm on Wednesday, July 8th.

The Bartow County 12 and under softball all stars finished as GRPA District 5 runner-up Tuesday night (June 23), falling in the championship game to host Murray County, 8-0. Bartow earned a spot in the finals with a 13-0 victory over Whitfield County the previous night. Bartow also had a prior win over Whitfield in the early rounds of the double-elimination event and an opening round victory over Rockmart. The runner-up district finish clinched a berth in the state tournament July 8-11 in Dublin at the Southern Pines Athletic Complex. Members of the Bartow County 12 and under team include: Hailie Owens, Madison Bentley, Rylee Hensley, Maggie Pruitt, Jaden Mussachio, Kyla Jenkins, Harper Powell, Elle Smith, Gracie Styles, Kailey Baker, Catherine Wheeler, and Macey Vaughn, The team is coached by Randy Jenkins, Chris Owens, Brady Baker, and Daniel Vaughn.

The 8 and under Bartow softball all-stars won three times in elimination games Saturday (June 27) to make the final four teams at the 8U Dizzy Dean softball state tournament in Carroll County. Bartow defeated host Carroll County 12-3, North Hall 12-4, and Jackson County 18-7. Bartow will face the winner of Gordon County/North Hall at 1:30pm Sunday as the double-elimination (with three game guarantee) tournament continues. Bremen and Summerville remain the only unbeaten teams heading into Sunday play. Those two teams play Sunday (June 28) at 10:30am and the winner locks down a spot in the championship. Bartow bounced back from a 16-15 opening round loss Friday night to Gordon County that relegated them to the losers' bracket and all elimination games for the remainder of their tournament. Leading hitters for Bartow against North Hall were Naxyria Roberts 3-for-4, Alana Carnes 3-for-4, Marly Pruitt 2-for-4, Kate Self 2-for-4, Elizabeth Hartsfield 2-for-4, and Haley Powell 2-for-4. Leading hitters for Bartow against Jackson County were Haley Collum, Elizabeth Hartsfield and Kamryn Smith 3-for-5, Marley Pruitt, Kaitlyn Arnold, Alana Carnes, Jordan Hammonds, and Harley Powell 2-for-5 each. Leading hitters in the 3rd game of the day against Carroll County were Naxyria Roberts, Haley Collum, and Marly Pruitt 3-for-5 each. Lanye Callan was 3-for-4 and Erin McCrary went 2-for-4.

Bartow won their opening game of the 14 and under Dizzy Dean District 2 tournament 14-6 last night in Kennesaw. Bartow defeated Hobgood. Bartow will face Rome Saturday (June 27) in the double-elimination event at 1:00 pm in Kennesaw. The Bartow 10 year old all-stars lost their opening game at the Dizzy Dean District 2 Tournament to Rome last night. Bartow will be back in action Saturday (June 27) at 9:00 am vs. Oregon Park in an elimination game. The tournament is being played at Grizzard Park in Rome. The Bartow County 8 year old all-star team won their opening game at the Dizzy Dean District 2 Tournament 11-3 over the Oregon Park Piranhas. Bartow advanced to play Powder Springs today at 11:30 at Acworth Youth Baseball Association in the double-elimination tournament. The Bartow 6 year old all-stars lost their opening round game of the Dizzy Dean District 2 Tournament Thursday to Acworth Blue 17-6. They rebounded Friday night with a 20-16 win over the Kennesaw Express. Bartow advances to play the Kennesaw Generals Saturday (June 27) at 11:00 am in an elimination game at Oregon Park in Cobb County.

The 10 and under with pitching machine Bartow all stars won the GRPA District 5 title Friday night (June 26) at Hamilton Crossing Park. Bartow (photo) defeated Gilmer County 13-7 to claim the district championship and a berth in the Georgia Recreation and Parks Association state tournament July 8-11 in Effingham County. Trailing most of the contest, Bartow scored seven runs in the bottom of the fifth inning to secure the victory. Bartow tallied 18 hits in the game. Haylee Dishmon had 3 hits, Deandrea Applin, Amaya Ford, Heidi Garner, Malaney Teems, and Savannah Jordan added two hits each. Bartow had an opening round victory over Gilmer County, then defeated Whitfield County to reach the championship round. Gilmer worked their way back through the losers’ bracket of the double-elimination tournament before falling to Bartow again. Bartow County 10 and Under Girls Live Arm reaches District Final. The 10 and under live arm Bartow all stars inched one step closer to claiming the GRPA District 5 Title with a 14-1 victory over Rome/Floyd County Friday night (June 26). Haley Stiles threw a complete game allowing only two hits while striking out eleven. Bartow totaled 14 hits on the night. Emma Frothingham and Michiah Hicks each had three hits to lead the way offensively for Bartow County. Rylee Massingill and Haley Stiles added two hits each. Bartow will face the winner of Calhoun and Rome/Floyd in the possible championship game of the district Saturday at 12 noon at Hamilton Crossing Park. Bartow remains unbeaten in the double-elimination tournament and can wrap up the District 5 title with a win Saturday. An “if needed” game would be Monday night (June 29) at 7pm.

New Cass High School head softball coach Shannon Masters and longtime assistant Greg Hight are using the summer months to get their team ready for the upcoming softball season. See the full story by David Royal -- 'Cass building around solid pitching' at The Daily Tribune News.

Grant DeBruin, who played at Adairsville High School, earned a starting spot in the Class A, South Atlantic League All-Star Game Tuesday night in Asheville, North Carolina as his North team defeated the South SAL all-stars, 7-5. DeBruin, a third baseman for the Hagerstown Suns who attended NCAA Division II, University of Alabama-Huntsville, went 0-for-2 with a walk in the all-star event. DeBruin earned his all-star status by hitting .320 over the first 64 games for Hagerstown with 16 extra basehits, a homerun, and 32 RBI. Hagerstown, an affilliate of the Washington Nationals, finished the first half of the South Atlantic League season 35-33, 9 games back of the first-half Northern division winner Hickory.

Results from the 12-and-under GRPA District 5 baseball tournament at Westside Park in Whitfield County: Cartersville 12U Purple lost for the first time in the district tournament Wednesday night (June 24) and will now play the Whitfield County Blackouts Thursday, June 25 at 6:15pm in a winner-take-all game. The Blackouts defeated Cartersville 12U Purple 13-12 Wednesday. Cartersville reached the championship round undefeated and has now split a pair of games with the Blackouts. Cartersville defeated the Blackouts in their first meeting during the District 5 tournament on Tuesday, 14-11. The Cartersville 12U Purple roster includes: Nicholas Bailey, William Jackson Cline, Micah Earwood, Nicholi Alexander Freeman, Stan Charles Heidmann, Jr., Christian Hayes Martin, Trevor Jordan Montgomery, John Jackson Norris, Christopher Tyler Putz, James Matthew Surrett, and Ethan Christopher Wolfe. The head coach is Jimmy Cline.

The 9-year-old Dizzy Dean baseball Georgia District 2 championship at New Georgia ball park in Paulding County came down to a third and deciding game between Bartow County and the Kennesaw Generals Tuesday night, (June 23). Kennesaw won the first meeting between the two teams Sunday, 13-10, when they met as the only unbeaten teams in the double-elimination tournament. Bartow worked their way back to the championship round by routing Powder Springs and then forced a third game with the Generals by beating them 18-5 Monday night. On Tuesday, it was Kennesaw who won the rubber game and the district title, with a 15-5 victory. Kennesaw took a four run lead in the top of the first, but Bartow quickly responded with a pair of runs in the bottom of the frame. Bartow's Rylan Lewallen led off the inning with a single and later scored on Zach Weaver's triple. Landon Cole later drove home Weaver with a ground out. Kennesaw added five more runs in the second and another four runs in the third to build a commanding 13-2 lead heading into the fourth. Aiden Cottinghim led off the Bartow fourth with a single and Layton Sanford walked. After Ryan Johnson and Matt Scoggins reached on errors, Lewallen doubled to account for Bartow's final runs. Kennesaw closed out the game with a pair of runs in the bottom of the inning. Next for the Bartow 9-year-old team is the Dizzy Dean State Tournament hosted by North Cherokee beginning July 3.

Cartersville 10U Purple used extra base hits on offense and a solid pitching start from Trip Bradley to hold off Cartersville 9U Gray 9-5 in the championship game of the Georgia Recreation and Parks Association District 5 tournament Tuesday night (June 23) in Ellijay. Although Bradley fell behind 2-0 in the top of the first, neither of the runs were earned. Over the next three innings, he tossed shutout baseball and put his team in position to win. Bradley allowed only four hits and a pair of walks in four innings of work. He struck out five to earn the pitching victory. Will Litton tossed an inning and 2/3 for the winners and Thomas Norris was called upon for the final out in the sixth. Cartersville Gray, who defeated Cartersville White earlier in the evening to qualify for the championship game, scored twice in the top of the first to take the initial lead. Cartersville Gray had three baserunners to reach as a result of a pair of errors and a fielder's choice before Joseph Womack's single. In the bottom of the first, Cartersville Purple returned the favor and scored three times. Five consecutive hits at the top of the order gave Purple a lead they would not relinquish. JaKiyon Porter, Paul Gamble, Bradley, and Hunter Kelly each singled, then A.J. Christina doubled to generate the three run inning. Both teams' pitching controlled the second and third frames, but Cartersville Purple tallied three more runs in the bottom of the fourth on three walks and a pair of hits. A walk by Avery Higgins was followed by a sacrifice by Norris. Litton then singled followed by two more walks to Brice Craig and Nicholas Kennedy. That set up the big blow -- a two-run double by Porter to give Purple a 6-2 lead. Cartersville Gray narrowed the margin to 6-4 in the top of the fifth. Caleb Daniel doubled, then Gray took advantage of two more Purple errors and a walk to plate their runs. Cartersville Purple then effectively put the game away in the bottom of the fifth with three more runs to take a 9-4 advantage. The rally was highlighted by a pair of triples from Christina and Craig. Cartersville Gray scored the game's final run in the top of the six. Grant Knight walked, then later scored on a bases loaded walk. Cartersville Gray utilized five different pitchers in the title game. Miles Owen, Womack, Hayden James, Coby Barrett, and Daniel all worked on the bump for the Gray team. They collectively walked six and struck out five, yielding nine earned runs on eleven hits. James, Daniel, Womack, and Nicholas Hruby each had hits for Cartersville Gray. Womack had three RBI. Cartersville Purple was led on offense by Porter (2 RBI), Bradley, and Christina (RBI) with two hits apiece. Gamble, Kelly (RBI), Higgins (RBI), Litton (RBI), and Craig (RBI) added one hit each.

The Bartow County 10-and-under all-stars had another successful night on the softball diamond Tuesday, June 23. Both the machine pitch and the live-arm teams won their games to advance in district play. Bartow County is hosting the Georgia Recreation and Parks Association District Five 10-and-under softball championships at Hamilton Crossing Park. In live arm action, the Bartow 10-and-under girls defeated Murray County 9-0 in five innings to advance to the winner’s bracket finals of their tournament. Bartow will now face Rome/Floyd County Thursday (June 25, 8pm) with the winner qualifying for the championship game(s). Calhoun will play Murray County in an elimination game Thursday at 6:30pm. Saydee Najarro pitched a gem for Bartow allowing only one infield hit and no other baserunners. She struck out 12 to earn the pitching win in the circle. Offensively, Bartow totaled eight hits. Cassie Jones led Bartow with a 3-for-3 performance. Rylee Massingill, Michiah Hicks, Hayley Stiles, Madison Flemmons, and Najarro added hits. The live pitching 10-and-under tournament through Friday night with a possible "if game" Saturday morning if needed. In the machine pitch division, Bartow won a thrilling back and forth contest with Whitfield County 15-14. The victory moves Bartow County into the finals of the district tournament. Trailing 14-9 going into the bottom of the sixth Bartow plated 6 runs to complete the come-from-behind effort. Bartow tallied 18 hits in the contest. Haley Dishmon and Deandrea Applin each had three hits apiece to lead the locals attack. Amaya Ford, Heidi Garner, Harley Owens, and Alyssa Jarrett had a pair of hits each. Gabbi Becerra had added one hit, and it was a spark that led to the comeback -- a bases clearing inside-the-park home run in the bottom of the sixth to tie the contest at 14. Bartow will now await the winner of Gilmer County and Whitfield County in the possible championship game Thursday night at 8 pm at Hamilton Crossing Park. Bartow needs only one more win to claim the district title. An "if necessary game" in the double-elimination tournament will be Friday at 7pm if needed.