Making their presence known

RUSTON -- Exceeding expectations.
That phrase comes off as a trite statement at times.
However, for the Ville Platte Dixie Youth Major All-Stars that statement defines the entire post-season, especially for a team with as much youth as they fielded.
That is one reason why they were able to take home the Regional Runner-up title home after a week of solid baseball.
“We had half 11 years-olds and half 12 year-olds,” said head coach Josh Deshotel. “On top of that, one of our best players got injured during league play. With all of that, we really exceeded our expectations this season. Our guys came out from day one and played scrappy baseball. It was amazing to see these young guys grow as people and players everyday.”
The amazing thing about the Major All-Stars is that they had to wait almost a month to even get to play in a competitive tournament. Ville Platte hosted the District Tournament, so they did not play in Sub-District.
Nevertheless, the Majors breezed through District and came into the Regional Tourney as one of the favorites.
Ville Platte began tournament play on Saturday morning, after a rainstorm cancelled Friday’s scheduled game.
In that opening game, the All-Stars produced nine runs on 10 hits, including three extra base hits, to score a 9-1 win over Springhill. The Ville Platte pitching staff combined to allow only five hits, while striking out seven.
Game two, played Saturday afternoon, saw Ville Platte open up the offensive floodgates, as they took Rayville to the woodshed in a 15-2 run-rule win. The Majors recorded 10 hits in the game and produced nine runs in the third inning alone.
It was game three on Sunday, however, that pushed Ville Platte into the loser’s bracket and forced the All-Stars to have to battle back through the tournament to have a shot a championship title.
In that game against Sabine, Ville Platte gained the early 2-1 advantage after one inning of play. The All-Stars plated another run in the second to extend that lead.
Sabine answered with two runs in the third to tie the game up. They then took the lead for good with a solo run in the fourth. Ville Platte tried to respond in the fifth, scoring another run, but Sabine added to their lead in the bottom half of the inning to secure the 7-4 win.
Ville Platte returned to form on Monday blasting their way past Girard for a 15-4 win. In that contest the All-Stars left no doubt they were more than ready to advance on, scoring five runs in the first and eight runs in the third in the route.
That set up a re-match with Sabine in the championship. Because Ville Platte had lost once already, they needed to beat Sabine twice in order to move on the State title series.
Unfortunately, Ville Platte did not produce the type of game they had hoped for, as Sabine was able to hold off a late Ville Platte run and steal a 9-7 win.
“All season long, we have relied on our pitching and defense to win games for us,” stated Deshotel. “In that last game, we just made too many errors and walked too many batters. Against a good team like Sabine, you cannot do that. They are on a different level hitting the ball. So when you make mistakes, they will most definitely capitalize on those situations.”
With the season over, Deshotel understands that it took a number of people to help bring about the success that the team garnered this year.
“I was starting up a small business during the post-season,” commented Deshotel. “So, I had to be away from the team at times. My assistant coaches John Pitre and Chris Courville really stepped up to the plate and got these guys ready to play. Also, Eric Fontenot was out there everyday helping with anything we needed.”
“I cannot say enough about the parents and their support. They made a lot of things possible for these guys. It truly was a valuable experience for them. It is like I told them, life will knock you down sometimes. The big thing is to pick yourself back up.”