McKenzie Bows in State Finals

McKenzie had cruised undefeated to the state finals and faced Union City in the double-elimination event.

Union City did everything right and McKenzie, which had been hitting on all cylinders, had problems fielding and putting the bat on the ball.

After defeating Marshall County in the opener 4-0 and Union City in the next round, 4-3, McKenzie topped Decatur Co. 5-4 to advance to the finals.

There, Union City won two games, 9-2 and 10-5, to wrest the state title away from McKenzie.

"It was a shame," said McKenzie coach Kyle Manns. "These kids have worked hard all year long, but that's the way it goes sometimes."

In the first game, Brian Winston was 2-3 at the plate while Jake Smith had a single and an RBI. Clint Manns scored, singled and drove in a run. Chris Wall was the starting pitcher and struck out three in five innings. Jake Smith was the relief pitcher.

Wall singled and John French walked and scored a run.

In the nightcap and deciding game, Union City claimed the crown with a 10-5 win. Smith had two hits, an RBI and scored three runs. French, Manns, Wall and Drew Hayes each had two hits. Starting pitcher Brian Winston had a hit as did Jay Taylor and Matt Hutcheson.

McKenzie finished with a 28-7 overall record and lost seven games to two opponents, Union City and Decatur County.

"And we finished one-two-three in the state," Manns said. "Union City was first, we were second and Decatur Co. was third."

McKenzie's appearance at Marshall County this year was legions better than it was last year, when it fell to Humboldt and the hosts.

"The credit all goes to the kids," said Manns. "It was a goal of theirs to get to the state and they did that. I guess it just wasn't meant to be, but they played real hard."

Teague Urges Tigers to Enjoy High School

Coach Gilman introduced Teague, listing his professional credits since being drafted by Denver where he was a member of the Super Bowl team. Teague is now the starting center for Bills.

Throughout his brief “talk” with the boys, Teague spoke of the great times he had at their age, how special high school football is. He urged them to enjoy these days. However he also noted that building a good team required hard work and sacrifice. He urged them to pay attention to academics, noting a team was somewhat like a family and to allow grades to slip could be detrimental to that “family.”
In closing, Teague wished the 2004 Tigers “good luck and a good season.”

He then answered several questions from the boys and coaches as well. He emphatically noted that “Playmakers” (a series allegedly about the NFL on HBO) is definitely Hollywood. Having been a member of two different teams, he said he had seen nothing resembling the series that portrays NFL players in a poor light. He also noted how special it was for him to be on the Super Bowl team that was won by the Broncos and how playing with John Elway will remain a fond memory.

Warren Sapp and Ray Lewis, both known for their bravado off the field, are serious players on the field, but he found neither to be particularly loud or insulting while the game was in progress.

He told the players that in going from high school to college to the pros, he found that each required more work and conditioning. He found the transition from college to the pros overwhelming at first and noted that once you move beyond high school, you become more and more accountable and the game becomes more serious.

Again he urged them to enjoy high school football, saying, “it’s the best time to play.”