CLARKSVILLE, TN (CLARKSVILLE NOW) – The Clarksville National Little League 10-12U baseball team faced Columbia in an elimination game on Wednesday. The contest was a back-and-forth offensive battle, which needed extra innings to be decided. In the end, Clarksville National pulled out an 8-7 victory, pushing them to the state title game tonight.
Right out of the gate, Clarksville National’s offense made a statement with Brody Wilkins and Boone Hampton each hitting two-run home runs. Clarksville went on to scratch a total of seven runs in the first two innings.
“I’m proud of the way they handled their business and handled adversity,” said Clarksville National head coach Matt Sundstrom. “After the loss last night, they could’ve hung their heads, but they started hot.”
As the game continued, Columbia’s offense found their rhythm, and their pitching got back on track. Due to a four-run third inning and two-run home run in the sixth, the game was tied going into extra innings.
However, Clarksville National was not fazed. In the top of the seventh inning, Preston Heggie got on base, and a line drive from Nolan Lingg brought Heggie around to score. When the inning ended, Clarksville led 8-7, and they slammed the door shut to survive and advance to the next round of competition.
“It’s taking years off my life doing this man,” Sundstrom said. “We’ve become competitively mature, and we just kept battling pitch by pitch. They kept their head, stayed positive, and got it done. We’re not done yet.”
Now, Clarksville National has a rematch with Goodlettsville in the state title game, tonight at 7 p.m. at Clarksville National. Goodlettsville has won the state tournament 12 years in a row. As far as Sundstrom is concerned, there’s only way they’re going to break the streak.
“We have to have each other’s backs,” said Sundstrom. “We’re playing for each other, and there’s not a lot of me on this team, there’s a lot of we. It’s not one on one, it’s 11 on 11, and we’re going to do this together.”