Hilton Head Island’s Dixie Youth Baseball O-Zone (11-12) all-stars moved within one win of capturing the district title with another dominant performance Saturday, beating Colleton County 11-0 in four innings to advance to the championship round at The Crossings Park.
Three pitchers combined for a two-hit shutout for the host team, which worked six walks and smacked six hits, including a three-run blast by Brandon Espinoza to reach the title game. Hilton Head will await the winner of Sunday’s elimination game between Colleton and Bluffton, which survived with a thrilling 3-2 walkoff win over Beaufort on Saturday.
YOUTH BASEBALL COVERAGE PRESENTED BY
Phoenix Shapiro drew a second straight start on the mound for Hilton Head, following up his two perfect innings on Friday with 2 2/3 strong frames Sunday, allowing two hits and no walks with three strikeouts to earn the win. AJ Petro recorded the final out of the third, and Jackson Reilley worked a perfect fourth to complete the shutout.
Espinoza led the charge on offense with a three-run blast in the third, and Ty Eanes, Johnny Carr, and Colin Lozan each added a hit and two RBIs for Hilton Head.
Bluffton advanced with a hard-fought win over Beaufort in a pitching duel marked by outstanding defense from both teams. Starter Ben Rush went three innings and allowed two runs for Bluffton before Michael O’Connell held the line for two innings and Micah Morgan finished off with a scoreless sixth to set up the winning rally.
Rush led off the sixth with a walk and swiped second before Brandon Hunter was walked intentionally, and O’Connell came through with a single to right to plate Rush with the winning run, spoiling a strong outing from Beaufort’s Cam Howard, who went the distance on the mound.
Morgan, Hunter, Isaac Roman, and Johnny Schneider also had hits for Bluffton.
Bluffton will face Colleton County in an elimination game at 4 p.m. Sunday with the winner advancing to the championship round and needing to knock off Hilton Head twice to claim the title and advance to the state tournament.