Fort Scott's 11-year-old Cal Ripken Baseball team, seen here after winning the district tournament in Osawatomie Sunday afternoon, will participate in the state tournament beginning Friday at Peabody. (Submitted photo)

OSAWATOMIE -- Fort Scott's 11-year-old Cal Ripken Baseball team won the four-team District Six Tournament here over the weekend and earned a berth into the Kansas 11-year-old State Tournament, which will be held in Peabody beginning Friday.

The State Tournament will have eight teams split into four pools. Fort Scott is in a pool with host team Cottonwood Valley, Rose Hill and Wellington. The first game will be at 7:30 p.m. Friday against the hosts.

Saturday, Fort Scott will play Rose Hill at noon. Sunday, it will take on Wellington at 3:15. If Fort Scott finishes as the winner of its pool, it will play for the championship at 7:30 Monday. If it finishes second in the pool, it will play for third place at 5;15 Monday.

Fort Scott was undefeated in the District 6 Tournament. They started with an 11-1 win over Linn County Friday night. Wyatt Reehl pitched and have up just four hits. Joe Doherty was three for three at the plate, scored three runs and drove in four. Mason Knopp had two hits. Ryan Pickert won the WOW Award for a defensive play in right field. Reehl was voted the game's Most Valuable Player.

Saturday, Fort Scott defeated host Osawatomie, 12-4. John Hughes had a home run and a triple in the game. Knopp pitched and allowed only three hits. He also had two hits, including a home run. Knopp was the game's MVP while Hughes won the WOW Award.

That win allowed Fort Scott to go straight to the championship game while the other three teams slugged it out in the losers' bracket. Osawatomie beat Linn County, 17-2, later Saturday to force a rematch with Fort Scott for the championship.

Reehl pitched a four-hitter as Fort Scott won the championship on Sunday, 17-4. Hughes his his second home run of the tournament. Ajele Smith was MVP and Doherty won the WOW Award.

Other players who performed well in the tournament included Jonah Jones, who batted .333 in the tournament, Connor Antonetti with a pair of drag bunts, Ryan Harper got on base on every plate appearance and Drew Martin throwing a runner out at home from right field.

The 11-year-olds would appreciate any sponsors who would be interested in helping the team with expenses at State. The cost is about $500 per player to get through the tournament. Anyone interested in sponsoring the team can contact Don Doherty at (620) 223-2272, Jeff Knopp at 223-2919, Des Hale at 223-6875 or Paul Martin at (620) 704-3879.

NOTES -- Peabody is about 40 miles northwest of El Dorado. From El Dorado, take U.S. 77 north to U.S. 50 at Florence. Peabody is 11 miles west of Florence....