The Hartselle 6U softball all-stars had a tremendous showing the in the 2023 All-American Youth Sports World Series held in Brandon, Miss. The team battled out of the loser’s bracket to finish second.

“I am so blessed to have coached such a great group of girls,” Hartselle head coach Chase Lusk said. “I loved every bit of it, and the girls seemed to as well. The memories and friendships made this all-star season will hopefully last a lifetime.”

The 6U Lady Tigers started pool play with a 15-3 win over Pike County, Ga. They took an 8-6 loss to West Mobile in their second pool game.

Hartselle went into bracket play as the fourth overall seed. They opened bracket play with a 16-4 win over Central Baldwin, Ala. Their next game was against the top seed, Northwest Rankin, Miss., who was the Mississippi State Champs and hadn’t lost a game this season. The Lady Tigers picked up a 20-11 win to advance to the winner’s bracket finals. And once again, Hartselle had a matchup with West Mobile, who came out on top by a 21-9 score, forcing the Lady Tigers into the loser’s bracket.

Hartselle met up with Purvis, Miss., in the loser’s bracket final. Purvis defeated No. 1 seed Northwest Rankin and No. 2 seed Clanton, Ala., to set up the matchup with Hartselle. The Lady Tigers battled through the game, coming out with a 15-13 win over Purvis to advance to the championship game.

It was a rematch with West Mobile in the championship game. This would be the third time the teams have played during the World Series and the fourth overall in the last two tournaments. Unfortunately, the Lady Tigers’ bats went cold in losing 16-1 to West Mobile.

“I could not be more proud of these 12 girls,” Lusk said. “We lost three games at the World Series, all to the West Mobile team. Our first loss in bracket play put us in the loser’s bracket, but we were able to fight our way out to play West Mobile again for the championship game. The girls played great, but we came up short in the championship game. World Series Runners-Up is still something to be proud of!”

The Lady Tigers finished the season 21-5 with three tournament championships and two runner-up finishes.

Skill events

The Hartselle 6U team had a couple of girls who showed out during the skills events to open the World Series.

Two Lady Tigers finished first and second in the Home Run Derby competition. Amelia Forman hit 31 to finish first, while Bella Burkeen hit 27 to finish second.