NEWBERRY, Fla. — The Washington 8U All-Stars etched their names into the softball history books this weekend by finishing third at the Babe Ruth Softball 8U World Series.

“For a small community to come out and compete against towns who get to pull from over 40,000 people, it says a lot about Washington softball as a whole,” said head coach Monte Weathington. “The effort (the parents) put in to make sure all these girls have the skills they need to play, it’s just phenomenal.

“We were pretty happy with the third place finish and hopefully we can build off of that.”

After dominating pool play with a 3-0 record, outscoring opponents 47-20 and claiming the top seed, Washington made it all the way to the World Series play-in game before eventually falling to Fern Creek, Ky., 5-3, on Tuesday.

“The loss was a little tough to swallow,” Weathington said. “We just couldn’t hit the ball when we needed to, but Fern Creek Played a good game.”

In the final game, Peyton Youmans, Emaleigh Cherry, Tenley Weathington, Melanie Rutledge and Addison Miller all reached base in the first inning, but the Fern Creek defense remained poised, escaping a bases-loaded jam to come out of the inning unharmed. On offense, Kentucky’s top team pounded out five-straight hits, including a double and a triple, before Washington could retire the side.

Down 3-0, Washington had its answer in the top of the second, powered by singles from Zarlyah Gorham, Rylei Smith, Youmans and Cherry, coupled with a triple from Isabella Boykin.

Fern Creek scored the winning runs in the bottom of the third on four hits, resulting in the 5-3 final score.

“All of these girls will move up into 10U next year,” Weathington said. “I see big things in the future for these girls, if not next year definitely the following year. They need to adjust and get acclimated to 10U, but they have skill and talent to be able to compete at a high level.

“I want to thank all the parents and sponsors who helped us throughout this whole thing. Really, a big thank you to the whole community for buying in and supporting this team, making it as special as it was. Without everybody, we wouldn’t be here.”

Manasass, Va., a team that defeating Washington earlier in the tournament, went on to win the World Series. Fern Creek finished second.