[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 87 (Thursday, June 16, 2011)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1124]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              RANDLEMAN WINS CHAMPIONSHIP ON THE FINAL OUT

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                           HON. HOWARD COBLE

                           of north carolina

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, June 16, 2011

  Mr. COBLE. Mr. Speaker, unlike other sports, baseball is unique 
because there is no clock. Unless weather intervenes, the game ends 
only when the leading team records 27 outs. The baseball team at 
Randleman High School, located in the Sixth District of North Carolina, 
discovered that getting the last out can be the most difficult of all. 
Randleman won the North Carolina High School Athletic Association State 
2-A championship on Saturday, June 4, 2011, in dramatic fashion by 
collecting that final out with a play at the plate.
   The Randleman Tigers won this state championship with an 8-7 victory 
over defending state champion East Rutherford High School. The game was 
played on Doak Field at North Carolina State University. The Tigers won 
the best of three series, two games to one. This was Randleman's first 
appearance in the finals since 1985 and marks an important achievement 
in the school's history.
   In the last inning, a six-run lead dissolved to two. Another hit 
scored the seventh run for East Rutherford, but as the tying run was 
heading to the plate, Randleman's Tyler Walls launched a perfect throw 
to cut-off man Dylan Richardson. The Tiger's shortstop never paused as 
he whipped the relay to catcher Zach Bach to get the last out and give 
Randleman its first state title ever. Head Coach Van Hurley, Jr., told 
the Asheboro Courier Tribune, ``To win like that, Curtis [Linthicum] to 
throw like that. It's all unbelievable. We had three outs to get and 
six runs to give. I had complete confidence that he was going to do 
it.''
   With a grand slam on Friday and pitching the gutty win on Saturday, 
Curtis Linthicum received the MVP award. Joining him on the state 
championship team were Will Albertson, Easton Welch, Ted Luna, Jacob 
Tally, Dexter Allen, Jeremy Taylor, Dylan Richardson, Ryan Vickers, 
Cody Trogdon, Tyler Walls, Connor Pratt and Zach Bach. The winning team 
was led by Head Coach Van Hurley, Jr., who was ably assisted by coaches 
Shawn Barker, Clayton Welch and Scott Clemons.
   The Tigers finished their extraordinary season with a record of 28-4 
and the satisfaction that comes from experiencing the result of 
practice and hard work right up until that final out. On behalf of the 
citizens of the Sixth District of North Carolina, we congratulate the 
Randleman High School baseball team for winning the 2011 state title.

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