MC 11s to begin state tourney Friday

The Morgan City 11-year-old All-Stars will begin play Friday in the 11 Minors State Tournament in Ponchatoula against the host team.
Morgan City and Ponchatoula will meet Friday at 8 p.m.
Morgan City also will be competing against West Monroe and Alexandria in Bracket A, one of two brackets.
Morgan City will meet West Monroe at noon Saturday and Alexandria at 5 p.m. Morgan City coach Beau Theriot said both are “usually two pretty good areas to battle with.”
However, first off, Theriot said getting a win in their opener would be good for his squad in terms of momentum.
In Bracket B action, Gonzales, Sabine, Winnsboro and Moss Bluff all will be in action Friday and Saturday.
Sunday at 2 p.m., the winner of Bracket A will face the winner of Bracket B for the state title.
Theriot said if his team’s pitching is solid it will provide a good basis for his squad.
“If I get some good innings from some key pitchers then we can actually do some good,” Theriot said.
On the mound, Theriot expects to use Matthew Mire, Zach Bennett, Gunnar Theriot, Brett Morell and Hugh Hamer this weekend.
Of course he said he knows he will need his hitters to produce, too.
Morgan City advanced to the state tournament after defeating Franklin twice on the final day of the District 3 Tournament to clinch the district title.
While Morgan City started the district tournament with a 6-2 win against Thibodaux, Morgan City fell to Franklin two days later, 9-7.
On the tournament’s final day, Morgan City defeated Franklin 10-4 and 7-3 to advance.
While Morgan City has been idle for nearly two weeks and was able to take some time off for the Fourth of July holiday, Theriot said his squad responded well when coaches upped the intensity this week in practice.
“I think they’re getting into the mood again after the last two practices,” he said.
This weekend’s action will be played at the Ponchatoula Sports Complex.