From STAFF REPORTS

CARTERSVILLE – The Americus Travelers 17U Baseball Club hit the road for Dothan, Alabama this past weekend to take part in the Matthew Jernigan Invitational Tournament.
The action kicked off on June 16 when the Travelers took the diamond to deal a pair of defeats to Jacksonville Post 283 in an afternoon doubleheader.
With a couple of wins under their belts in the tourney, the Travelers secured the number-one seed for the elimination round of the competition, scheduled to commence the following afternoon.
On June 17, the Americus-based crew geared up in their orange and navy jerseys to take on the number-eight seed in the tourney, Dothan 16U, eventually earning the win and the right to continue playing on Sunday.
On the final day of the tournament, the Travelers hit the field again to battle the Wiregrass Cardinals Blue. In their final contest of the tourney, the weary Travelers’ luck began to fade and the Americus squad took a 4-0 defeat after holding their opponents scoreless throughout the initial four frames.
Following the weekend’s action, the Travelers’ summer season record jumps to 7-5.
On the heels of their initial two successes in the showdown, an 11-0 shutout over Jacksonville Post 283 and a 13-3 blowout of the same team in the afternoon’s closer, the Travelers prepared to test their skills against Dothan 16U.
The Americus crew jumped out early in their third tilt of the tourney, plating two runners in the bottom of the first off of RBI hits from the bats of Will Kelley and Gavin Paul. Jarrett Kemp then stepped up to the plate in the bottom of the second frame to deliver a two-RBI blast and give the Travelers a four-run advantage, which would turn out to be more than enough to clinch the victory.
The Dothan squad made their run at a comeback in the top of the seventh stanza, but strong defensive play from the Travelers extinguished that spark, giving the “home” team the 4-2 win.
The Travelers connected on seven hits in the heated match-up, while their foes narrowly bested them in that category, scattering nine.
Kemp accounted for two of the Travelers’ hits in the match, along with his two RBIs. Kelley and Paul each batted in one runner.
Paul and Tyler Ross each drew one walk for the Travelers.
Will Lanneau spent all seven innings on the hill for the Travelers, striking out three batters and walking only one.
In the Travelers’ final match-up of the tournament, the game remained a nail-biter until the top of the fifth inning, when the Wiregrass Cardinals Blue broke away to push a trio of runners across the plate. The “visitors” kept their defenses tight in the remainder of the tilt to stifle the Travelers’ efforts at a comeback and added one more insurance run in the top of the seventh.
Lanneau, Reid Ragsdale, and Camron Vanlerberghe each recorded one hit in the contest.
Paul and Ross split duties on the hill for the Travelers. Paul tossed 4.2 innings, sending four opponents back to the dugout before ceding the mound to Ross, who wrapped up the game and dispatched a pair of batters along the way.
The Travelers hit the road again on June 22 to travel to Cartersville for the Perfect Game Super 25 Tournament, which lasts until June 26. The results of the contests played to date were not available at press time.
The Travelers will return to Americus on July 30 to host the Travelers Weekend tourney.