UPDATE: Wicked Sticks Happy With Finish (View Photos Here)
By Jessica Perkins
Riding on the coattails of an exhilarating winning streak, Columbia baseball team the Wicked Sticks was thrilled to discover they’d qualified to play in the Elite World Series July 10-17 at Walt Disney World. How did the 10-year-olds fare when pitted against the best teams from all across the nation?
With three wins and three this-close losses, the boys came in at a respectable 16th place out of 32 teams.
“We had a great time. The kids played some great baseball,” Coach Robbie Williamson says. “The kids from Columbia were just as good as any around. We probably did better than most people would imagine.”
Heather Morris, the mother of Wicked Stick member Tre, calls the team’s three defeats “heartbreakers” because each was lost by just four runs or fewer. Nevertheless, “The boys had a blast and they played really well,” she says.
The tournament was held at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex, or as Tre puts it, “the best place to play baseball.” The facilities were not only first-rate, but their proximity to Orlando theme parks allowed many teammates to enjoy jaunts to nearby attractions during their downtime. Tre’s wish to ride the Tower of Terror at Hollywood Studios was even granted. (He gives it an enthusiastic thumbs-up.)
Their first Elite World Series under their belt, the Wicked Sticks are already looking ahead to next year’s tournament. “It gives us motivation to compete and play well next year, and maybe we’ll get a chance to go back,” Williamson says.
