It ain’t over till it’s over!

In 1973, legendary Major League Hall of Famer Yogi Berra uttered the iconic phrase that emphasizes perseverance and the idea that a game, or any situation, is not lost until it’s truly finished. 

Many have often quoted the “Yogism” but few have truly experienced the euphoria that is brought by staying focused and maintaining a positive attitude until the very end. 

One group that has is the Jackson Parish 10U Dixie Youth All-Stars.

In an improbable turn of events, JP10U shocked the Monroe 10U All-Stars 13-11 in extra innings to win the pre-district tournament being held in Sterlington this past weekend by scoring 10 runs in the final two innings of play that included overcoming a five-run deficit in the last inning of regulation play.

With one at bat remaining, it looked bleak for the locals who had managed only five hits and three runs against Monroe pitching while giving up 8 runs to trail by a seemingly hopeless margin.

Bolstered by the positive reinforcement given by manager Dusty Nomey and coaches Railey Garrett and Lance Seymore, JP10U took advantage of an early pair of walks to Ryder Gray and Maddox Graham and two Monroe miscues on balls hit by Clay Burton and Cruz Nomey to narrow the deficit to 8-6. That led to a clutch triple by Andrew Seymore that tied the score and a single by Sutton Vail to give Jackson Parish the lead at 9-8. 

“We told the boys to keep their heads up, stay focused, and keep battling,” said Nomey. “We have a saying we do before the game and in between innings where we all say 1, 2, 3, GRIND, and that is what they did. I can’t tell you how proud I am of them.”

Monroe would come back to tie the score in the bottom of the fifth, but it would only delay the completion of the rally as Jackson Parish continued to pour it on as the first five batters of the extra inning reached base.  Gray and Asher Cooper hit back-to-back doubles after Garrett had reached on an error, and both Nash Moak and Burton singled, giving JP10U a 13-9 lead that held up to give Jackson Parish the title. 

The victory was the fourth in a row for the locals who dropped the first game of the tourney by a 9-4 margin to West Carroll Parish before coming back to beat West Ouachita by scores of 11-16 and 9-8 before gaining revenge over West Carroll 8-2 to set up the title tilt. 

Jackson Parish ended up with 13 hits, led by three from Nash Moak and two each by Burton and Seymore. Five of the hits went for extra bases with Hunter Williams hitting an inside-the-park home run, Burton and Seymore stroking triples, and both Gray and Asher Cooper slapping doubles.

JP10U will now turn their attention to the Dixie Youth District 8 tournament that will be played in Natchitoches with teams from Sabine Parish, Buckeye, Jena, Winnfield, Alexandria, Tioga, Pineville competing. JP10 will open against Alexandria on Friday, June 20th at 7:30 pm on field one of the Natchitoches Parks and Recreation Complex.