Just three runs separated Milton and Georgetown's 9-10 District 3 matchups July 15-18, as Georgetown battled back from the loser's bracket to win the title 7-6 July 18 in Milton.
Milton had defeated Georgetown 6-5 July 15, sending them to the loser's bracket, where they defeated Laurel 5-2 July 16. Georgetown downed Milton 5-4 July 17 to create the final District 3 Championship game July 18.
"These players are just 9 and 10 years old," said Milton manager Zach Crouch. "They battled back in the last two games, but we just fell a little short."
After being down four runs in the July 17 game and five runs in the final contest, the Milton team battled back to fall by just one run in each game.
"We fought back," said Crouch "I'm very happy about that. The kids did not quit and that shows a lot of their character and sportsmanship of not quitting. They showed a lot of heart and determination."
Each team has respect for the other as they both have players who are teammates on travel ball squads.
"We came out with a plan last night and it came together," said Georgetown manager Ken Rogers. "We had a plan tonight and it came together, too. We were able to jump on them early and that helped us out and we didn't look back.
"They are a hitting team and we hit tonight, thankfully. They've got some big bats on that team and that's for sure."
One thing for sure is the respect each manager has for their competitors.
"[Milton has] a great group of kids and a great group of coaches," said Rogers. "It was a pleasure playing them."
"Those kids [from Georgetown] are a great bunch of kids," said Crouch.
"Ken and the coaches are really nice guys," said Milton coach Brad Breasure.