BRYAN, Texas — Unbeaten Lake Creek went a perfect 6-0 to capture the 2022 NFCA Texas High School Leadoff Classic, held Feb. 17-19 in the adjacent cities of Bryan and College Station, Texas.
The Montgomery, Texas-based (7-0) Lions, who defeated Klein Collins, 3-2, in a nine-inning thriller for the title on Saturday night at Bryan High, trailed for much of the game before getting going late.
Klein Collins scored in the top of the first and held Lake Creek at bay until the Lions tied things with a run of its own in the bottom of the sixth. The Tigers re-took the lead with a run in the top of the ninth, before Lake Creek walked it off with two runs in the bottom half.
For their six games, the Lions outscored their opponents, 33-8, winning each of their first four tournament games by five runs or more. Then, one run in the bottom of the first was all they needed to capture their semifinal against Clear Springs.
Prior to the tournament, Lake Creek opened its season with a 14-0 rout of Tomball on Feb. 14.
Meanwhile, San Antonio O’Connor defeated Clear Springs, 4-1, in the championship bracket third-place game, and Mansfield rolled by Round Rock Cedar Ridge, 10-0, to claim the consolation bracket crown.
The 26th edition of the long-running Bryan-College Station Tournament, which was rebranded the NFCA Texas High School Leadoff Classic in 2019 through a partnership with the Association, featured 101 teams. It continues to be run annually by the softball coaching staff at Bryan High School.
Games in the bracket and round-robin divisions were played at eight sites in the Bryan and College Station area. Nearly two-thirds of the squads (64) participated in bracket play, while the other 37 teams competed in round-robin format.
Bryan High was among the four high school hosts, along with Bryan's Rudder High. College Station schools A&M Consolidated and College Station High were the other two school locations.
Bryan Regional Athletic Complex, and Travis Midtown Park, also in Bryan, were two of the complexes involved in the event, while College Station sites Stephen C. Beachy Central Park and Veterans Park rounded out the game locations for the three-day tournament.
