Dexter All-Stars Headed to State Little League Championship

An exceptional collaborative effort proved overwhelming for the Jackson Southwest All-Stars on Thursday at Tyler Steffey Field in Ann Arbor, where the Dexter All-Star 12U team rolled to an impressive 15-0 victory in the District 3 Little League championship game.

The weeklong tournament brought eight teams together at the Peace Lutheran Church ball field to compete for the coveted title of district champion.

The Dexter boys appeared solid in nearly all aspects of their game Thursday, completing the outing by mercy rule in the fourth inning.

This type of consistent, fundamental baseball is something Dexter Coach Matt Seidl said he has come to expect.

“We’re clearly the best team in the district,” Seidl said, suggesting that he and his team were thirsty for the win. “I would have been disappointed with anything else.”

As they head to the state championship next weekend in Commerce, Seidl said the boys are well-prepared.

“We’re actually used to it,” he said, citing past success in capturing the right to represent the district in the Michigan state championship. “This is the third straight year for most of them, and for three of our kids, it’s four in a row.”

Seidl said that while the Dexter All-Stars team has had trouble getting past this threshold in the past, he said he hopes this year will be different.

“We just come up a little short; we lost two tight games (last year),” he said. “That bar is set really high, but that’s a good thing for Dexter Little League.”

Though her team was on the losing end, parent Debbie Copplin said she was proud of the gallant effort put forth by the Jackson Southwest All-Stars.

“These kids have all played hard, and they just keep getting better,” she said.

While they didn’t make it to Commerce, Copplin said the most important thing to her is simply watching her boys develop a genuine love and respect for the game of baseball.

Dexter scorekeeper Randy Ritter echoed that sentiment and said his team certainly does not take its success for granted.

“It’s a huge source of pride for them,” he said.

If the Dexter All-Stars come out of Commerce with the state title in tow, the team would head to the central region tournament in Indianapolis, Ritter said.

The final step is the Little League World Series in Williamsport, PA.

Jenny Weber, whose son Stuart Weber plays for Dexter, said that regardless of what happens in Commerce and beyond, she is proud of everyone involved.

“It’s just exciting,” she said. “It’s a good group of kids and a good group of parents.”