Bandits 13U shut out Team Alabama
Published 4:53 pm Tuesday, June 30, 2009
The Bandits are getting post game trophy presentations down to a science. After winning 10 tournaments this year and the USSSA World Series last year, the Bandits beat Team Alabama, 4-0, to win the 13-under championship at Hoover’s Veterans Park Sunday.
Based in Alabaster, the Bandits train at Montevallo’s Bases Loaded Training Facility, alongside Team Alabama.
“We’re brother teams, but we have a very strong rivalry,” head coach Rusty Rigney said.
The Bandits jumped on Alabama early, as Davis Cox led off the bottom of the first with a tripple and scored on a balk to take a 1-0 lead.
“When we lead off with a base hit, we’re going to score,” Rigney said.
That happened all three times Sunday. In the first game of the day, a 12-0 win over Hoover, the first four batters collected hits, including a two-run home run by Rocky Milton to give the Bandits a 4-0 lead.
In the third inning of the second game, an 8-0 win over the Cullman Cats, Hunter Rigney hit a three-run blast after the first two batters of the inning collected hits.
The Bandits are 42-4 on the year and will play a few tournaments before going to Disney later this month for the Elite World Series. It’ll be the first trip the team has made to the national tournament.
“It’s our first time to want to go there,” Rigney said. “We may look to pick up one more pitcher. When you go down there these teams are flying kids in from all over the country.”
The Bandits qualified for the tournament by finishing fourth at a Southaven, Miss., tournament earlier this season.
Most of the Bandits have played together since 2004, compiling a record of 190-72.
Bandits players are: Drew Avans, Hunter Black, Kolby Brannon, Jay Burton, Davis Cox, Peyton Johnson, Rocky Milton, Samual Milton, Samual Moody, Joel Patete, Ryan Renfrow, Hunter Rigney, Zachary Seagle, Joe Simonetti, Jonah Todd and Anthone Walden.