Post 12 Junior team wins state championship

TROY — Dothan Post 12’s junior team wrapped up its inaugural season in style on Monday.

Cody Trusty capped an MVP performance with a two-run triple and a sacrifice fly to help Dothan Post 12 defeat Tuscaloosa Post 34’s Navy team 11-3 in the American Legion Junior state championship game at Troy University’s Riddle-Pace Field.

“It’s a great way to end the summer,” Dothan Post 12 coach Jon McLain said shortly after the dogpile celebration on the field. “At the start of the season, you’re taking a bunch of kids from different schools and trying to put in our scheme and get everybody to play with one heartbeat. About two weeks ago, everything started rolling.”

Post 12 won each of its four games in the state tourney. Trusty finished 6-for-10 batting with five RBIs, five runs scored, a double and two triples in the tournament. The right fielder was 1-for-1 with a walk, a sacrifice fly, a sacrifice bunt, a run scored and three RBIs on Monday.

“It’s amazing,” Trusty said. “I never thought about getting the MVP in a big tournament. I worked my butt off the whole summer getting to this point right here.”

He wasn’t alone. This team played much of its season against older teams. Post 12 was 19-14 before storming through to the title with four straight victories. McLain said facing older, better pitching paid off late in the season. He added that it was fitting that Trusty earned the MVP honor.

“He’s grown as a player so much,” McLain said. “Learning how to work the count, learning what the pitcher’s doing, just learning how to battle. He drew that walk after he fell behind. That was an awesome at-bat.”

The biggest turnaround came from starting pitcher Jordan Tharpe. He started Sunday’s game and didn’t retire an out in facing four batters. But there was no fear when McLain told him Sunday night he would start the championship game.

“Yesterday, I just wasn’t throwing strikes — not even in the bullpen,” Tharpe said. “I wasn’t on, or whatever. Today, I looked good warming up. The key for me is throwing strikes.”
Of course, the plate probably looked bigger when Post 12 scored two runs in the first and two more in the second.

“That looked real good,” Tharpe said. “I was proud of everybody. They helped me out.”
Tharpe pitched four shutout innings and left with one out in the fifth. Dalton Dalrymple completed the fifth before Stephen Benak pitched the final two innings.

McLain had no qualms about starting Tharpe.

“I’ve had him since he was in the seventh grade,” the Northview assistant said. “I knew he’d throw strikes. He’s a strike thrower. All he had to do is believe in himself and I know he’d get the job done.”

While Trusty and Tharpe were sharp, they weren’t alone. Alec Raley, Jake Brown and Alex Watson had two hits each. Watson left his designated hitter spot and went to catcher when Post 12 starting catcher J.T. Carroll cut his head on the dugout railing while diving for a foul ball. At the time, Dothan led 9-1 in the fifth inning.

Post 12 was opportunistic with some extra outs. Tuscaloosa Post 34, which went 3-0 in its pool play before Monday’s final, committed five errors that led to just three earned runs. Post 12 committed three errors, just one through the first five innings before the game broke open.

In the first inning, Post 12’s Brown reached on an error that brought in one run and Watson singled in a run with two outs.

In the second, Raley’s groundout drove in a run and Brown’s two-out single made it 4-0.
Post 12 took advantage of two errors to build that lead in the fourth. But Trusty’s one-out triple that one-hopped the fence in the right-field corner highlighted a five-run inning.

Trusty’s hit made it 9-0 and also chased Tuscaloosa reliever Grant Stevens, who started the fourth in relief of Josh Winingham. Wes Powell completed the game for Tuscaloosa.

Adam Davis had two hits for Post 34, which had six hits total off Dothan pitchers Monday.

Tuscaloosa Post 34 Navy was one of three Post 34 program teams in the eight-team state tournament. Post 34 also had a Red team and a Tuscaloosa Tide team participating.
Post 34 Navy scored once in the fifth and twice in the sixth — including a leadoff homer to the opposite field by Austin Alexander.

Dothan scored its final two runs in the sixth on Trusty’s sacrifice fly and a throwing error.
McLain, who was just as happy as his players, said his team settled down when it cut down to 18 players two weeks before the tournament.

“As soon as we did that, it took the pressure off some boys that maybe thought they were on the bubble,” the coach said. “We just started coming together and started playing good defense.”

He discussed the inaugural season after putting down the state championship trophy.
“I’ll take this every day of the week,” McLain said. “This is my first state championship ever. Coach (Larry) Tubbs and I talked about it last fall. We decided to do it. He’s been a tremendous support. Coach Tubbs took care of everything and put us on the platform to win.”