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Citrus Park Wins Southeast Region Opener

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By NICHOLAS J.E. MURRAY

The Tampa Tribune

Published: August 3, 2008

GULFPORT - Citrus Park Little League starting pitcher Kevin Merrell may have overstated it when he said his team's 7-0 win in its opening game of the Southeast Regional Tournament was the biggest game of the tournament, but maybe he knows how important being 1-0 instead of 0-1 can be in a four-team round-robin tournament.

Merrell led four Citrus Park pitchers, who combined to allow only two base runners, while Austin McCullers hit a bases-clearing double in the first inning as Citrus Park beat Hurricane (W.Va.) Little League at Arnold S. White Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
Citrus Park will face Warner Robins (Ga.) Little League, a 7-3 winner against Tullahoma National (Tenn.) in its opener, on Monday night at 7.

"It was a good first game," Citrus Park manager Joe McGuire said. "We played good defense, we pitched well and we hit well. That was a good team we just beat."

After Hurricane starting pitcher Riley Metz walked the bases loaded in the first inning, McCullers drove a double to left-center field, bringing home Ryan McCullers, Michael McGuire and Levi Gilcrease. Austin McCullers advanced to third on the throw home and scored on Danny Lastra's single to give Citrus Park a 4-0 lead.

"He threw me four fastballs in a row," Austin McCullers said. "I knew he didn't want to get behind me. He pretty much gave me a hit before, he threw me a fastball right down the middle, and I just took it."

"We love to score runs in the first inning," Joe McGuire said. "It just takes all the pressure off the pitching and everything else."

Merrell started on the mound for Citrus Park, and gave up a hit to the first batter he faced. From there, however, he sat down eight batters in a row, striking out five, before he was relieved by Michael McGuire. McGuire went 11/3 innings, before Gilcrease and Darren Miller closed out the game with an inning apiece.
Citrus Park tacked on a run in the third inning as Gilcrease came home on Lastra's second hit of the game. Wyatt Reid then hit a solo home run in the fifth inning before Gilcrease scored his third run of the game, coming home from third on a single by Lee Huckerby.

"Winning the first game is good," Austin McCullers said. "We've got a lot of confidence now."

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