JENSEN BEACH, Fla. — Make no mistake, head coach Kam Rouse and the Chocowinity All-Stars are honored to represent their town and Beaufort County in the 16U age division of the Babe Ruth Softball World Series this weekend. But over the last three days, the team has, at times, been simply outmatched, dropping two of three games in pool play and the first of the double-elimination bracket on Monday.

“The teams we went up against played a lot of small ball and I felt like they were a step ahead of us,” said head coach Kam Rouse. “We hung in there with them for a while, but they starting connecting, hitting the balls in the gaps and we just couldn’t make plays.”

The team arrived in scenic Jensen Beach last Tuesday and was able to soak in more than just the World Series stage, enjoying three days of leisure time before gearing up for their first opponent. After a tournament orientation on Friday and some light batting practice, Chocowinity opened the 16U showcase with a 12-2 loss to the host Jensen Beach White (Fla.).

Through the early innings, pitcher Alyssa McLawhorn battled Jensen Beach’s Caitlyn Corner pitch for pitch, as both teams were scoreless through three. In the fourth inning, Madison Ballash broke the deadlock for the host with a single, followed by two stolen bases. Ballash came around to score, but despite giving up another two hits and a walk, McLawhorn managed to escape the bases-loaded jam.

Jensen Beach tacked on another two runs in the fifth on three hits and exploded in the sixth for eight runs on seven hits, including two doubles and a triple. Symone Ruffin and Madison Sadler reached and came around to score in the bottom half of the frame, but that was all the offense the visitors could generate.

In the second game on Saturday against the West Volusia Athletic Club (Fla.), Chocowinity’s offense was touched up for 15 hits and 11 runs in a shutout. For a second-straight game, Ruffin finished with two hits in a losing effort.

The players of Beaufort County’s lone 16U softball representative could have hung their heads, but that wasn’t the case. Chocowinity regrouped and powered its way to a dominating 19-1, one-hit victory over Waldo in the third contest of pool play.

“I was real proud of them,” Rouse said. “They didn’t give up and easily could have rolled over us. At the end of the day, we played solid, starting hitting the ball and had fun.”

In what resulted in a 10-run first inning, Hope McKeever slugged a double to the fence in left-center, Grace Rose singled, eight players walked and Waldo committed three errors. Chocowinity pieced together a massive two-out rally in the second frame on two hits apiece from Gabrielle Brinkley and Rose and base knocks from Taylor Langley and Maggie Craig, coupled with three errors and two walks.

McLawhorn tossed all five innings, striking out seven, walking one and allowing one run on one hit. Rose and Langley led the way at the plate with three hits each and four RBIs combined. The win qualified the team for the double-elimination tournament.

Chocowinity’s dream of a World Series took a detour on Monday in the first round against Lodi, Calif., a five-inning, 12-2 loss. Opposing pitcher Shelby Featherston kept the offense at bay and allowed just two runs on three hits (none earned). She finished with eight strikeouts.

Despite jumping out to a 2-0 lead in the first inning on two errors and a Saddler single, Chocowinity would be held scoreless through the final four frames, as a seven-run fourth inning put the game out of reach.

The loss moves Chocowinity into the losers’ bracket, where the team must now fight for its playoff survival today. Whatever the result, Rouse says the experience in Florida has been memorable for the players, as well as beneficial for the future of the sport in Chocowinity.

“To make it this far past the regional and to the World Series, it’s a great experience these girls had,” he said. “I know our talent level has increased and it’ll be great for the talent in Chocowinity. We’re currently trying to build our softball program back up and us making it here keeps doing it. It shows the girls it is possible for a little town like this to make it here.”