Pedal Valves falls, Retif eliminated in Legion regional

METAIRIE – It was a tough day for the locals Thursday in the American Legion Mid-South Regional.

The local host committee dealt with multiple rain delays and a location change from Kirsch-Rooney Stadium to the all-turf John Ryan Stadium, which stretched the four-game session to nearly midnight. The two local entries then came up short on the diamond.

Host Retif Oil was eliminated 8-2 by the North Mississippi Indians, while Louisiana state champ Pedal Valves lost 4-2 to Bryant, Arkansas, in a winner’s bracket game.

Pedal Valves had a 2-1 lead in the sixth inning when a rain delay of nearly two hours halted the action. The Arkansas champs put up three runs in the bottom of the sixth inning when play resumed.

“We just couldn’t get the big hit with men on base,” said Pedal Valves coach Danny Riehm, whose team not only had chances to score more than single runs in the fifth and sixth innings, but left the tying run on base in the eighth and ninth.

Pedal Valves meets North Mississippi in the first of two elimination games at 12:30 p.m. The two-time defending state champion Cardinals need a win to keep their season alive.

Because of the rains over the last 36 hours in New Orleans, the tournament returns to John Ryan for Friday’s tripleheader. At the end of Friday’s action, the field will be down to four teams – one unbeaten and three teams with one loss.