Summer means Dixie Youth baseball playoff time.
Six teams opened up play in the Dixie 12u Arkansas Ozone tournament at Ed Worrell Memorial Park on a sweltering Friday.
Texarkana edged Lafayette County, Ashdown run ruled Idabel 14-0, and Dierks nipped Searcy 3-2.
Texarkana plays Ashdown at 10 a.m. today on Filogamo Field, and Idabel and Lafayette County follow at noon.
The first and second place teams of the tournament will advance to the World Series in Oxford, Ala.
Texarkana 8, Lafayette County 7
The Texarkana All Stars survived a last inning rally by Lafayette County to hold on to the first round win on Filogamo Field.
Carter Coffee doubled to left center to score Dylan Thornton, who had singled, for the first run of the game for Texarkana in the first.
Mike Lambert singled past the first baseman for the Texarkana All Stars.
Coffee scored on a fielder's choice to make it 2-0 Texarkana going into the second frame.
Lafayette County put up three runs in the second stanza as Jastyn Rich led off with a single to right center. Peyton Smith walked, and Rich scored on Dakota Davidson's sacrifice fly.
Jaquan Harris laced a single up the middle to make it 2-all.
Kasten Dillon reached on an error as Harris scored to give Lafayette County a 3-2 lead going into the third.
Texarkana's Billy Davis was hit by a pitch, stole second, and landed on third after a balk. Thornton walked and stole second. Davis scored on a sacrifice fly by Coffee to knot it at 3-all. Lambert grounded out but Thornton scored to give Texarkana a 4-3 edge.
Lafayette County tacked on a run in the fifth when Dakota Davidson, who had singled, scored on an error to tie it up at 4-4.
But Texarkana put up four runs in the fourth to take an 8-4 lead.
Landry East walked, Jackson Shipp reached on an error, and both moved up a base after a ground ball for Texarkana.
Gunner Robinson hit an RBI single to left center, and Davis smacked a triple to the right center wall for 2 RBI.
Thornton hit an RBI single to give Texarkana a 4-run lead.
Preston Smith had a 2-run single in the sixth, but the Lafayette County All Stars just fell short by a run.
Lafayette Co. 030 013 - 7 6 2
Texarkana 202 40x 8 8 3
Landon Beshea, Dakota Davidson (3), Jaquan Harris and Teyton Barton. Jackson Shipp, Dylan Thornton (3), Carter Coffee (6), Mike Lambert (6) and Carter Coffee. WP-Thornton. LP-Beshea.
Ashdown 14, Idabel 0, 5 innings
Hunter Fowler belted a 3-run home run as Ashdown shut out Idabel.
Derek Hilton hit a solo home run, doubled and singled for the Ashdown All Stars.
Grayson Porter hammered a solo home run and had 2 singles, while teammate Hunter Mize added a pair of singles.
Dierks 3, Searcy 2
Courtesy runner Thomas Young scored the winning run when Searcy's catcher failed to catch strike three and threw to first with two outs in the bottom of the sixth.
The runner at first, Lawson Green, was called safe at first, and Dierks won.
Sawyer Markham hit an RBI single to score Eli Sharp, who had singled, for Dierks' first run of the game.
Sharp scored on an error in the third for Dierks and had a bunt single in the fifth.
Blake Mitchell smacked a double for the Dierks All Stars in the fourth frame.
Dierks had the bases juiced in the fifth, but Searcy got out of the jam.