10 years ago, these SC players won the Dixie Youth World Series. Here’s how it shaped their lives

They were just a dozen normal young boys, who acted like young boys.

Some liked to hunt and fish. Some liked to make their buddies laugh. Some caused a bit of mischief more often than not.

And they all loved to play baseball.

That was their focus during the summer of 2007, when the 12 members of the Dentsville Dixie Youth Minors made their mommas and daddies and their community proud by winning the World Series. They won the final game 4-3 over Louisiana on Aug. 11, 2007.

“I think I said back then it was euphoric and it really was a euphoric feeling,” said Don Garrick, Dentsville’s manager. “It seemed like time stopped.”

A decade after a rather dramatic World Series win, all 12 boys are pursuing college degrees. Four play college baseball and still dream of playing professionally.

Some gave up baseball for other pursuits, like hunting, football, or skydiving.

They’ve remained friends, some closer than others, thanks to social media and a bond that was forged that hot summer 10 years ago when they lost their first game in the World Series, but rallied back to win the title.

“It was definitely the best accomplishment of my childhood, hands down,” said David Hodge, who played leftfield and is now developing apps as a computer science major at USC. “It’s not like you think about it every day ... but any time I run into a former teammate or see any form of youth baseball, it just brings me back.”

A lot happens to young men as they age from 10 to 20, or 11, to 21. This group graduated from high school; several played baseball at Spring Valley, Ridge View, Blythewood, a few elsewhere. Heath Gerrald switched to football at J.L. Mann High in Greenville. Nathan Tyson played basketball and tennis at Lugoff-Elgin. James Garrick became a state champion wrestler at Cardinal Newman.

Every one of them went to college; Tyler Romanik plans to be an orthopedic doctor, if professional baseball doesn’t pan out; Tony Diaz aspires to become a police officer or join the military; Hodge wants to make his mark in the technology business; Barrette Grant wants to go into the service industry.

But even at this point of their lives, each player still ranks winning the World Series as a life highlight.

“It was breathtaking,” said Connor Grant, a center fielder who made a lot of memorable plays then, and is still making them at North Greenville University. He’s even ended up on ESPN’s SportsCenter Top 10 at No. 6 on June 7 after making three diving catches in two innings for the Forest City (N.C.) Owls, his summer league team.

“I really didn’t know how to react. I couldn’t believe it happened. We just had a great group of guys.”

Griffin Hollifield, who plays baseball at Coker College, ranks it third on his list of highlights.

“One would be getting a college baseball offer, two was making high school baseball team, and three was winning the World Series,” Hollifield said. “I think about it every time I get with guys from the team and we are talking about it.”

Gerrald has a team photo in his room that he glances at every so often. James Garrick finds himself talking about it at times.

“It’s a good talking point when meeting new people and finding out that you actually used to play baseball with/against them when we were younger,” said Garrick, a business major at USC.

When they do reminisce, some remember the overall feeling of accomplishment and camaraderie.

“The one thing that I remember most was just having a good summer and fun time with some of my best friends,” said Matthew Ross, a business major at USC.

But there are specific memories. Hollifield remembers tying a World Series record for getting hit by pitches.

James Garrick remembers being the pitcher that gave up the first ever home run to a girl in the World Series, against Texas. “Luckily we were winning by double digits, so it wasn’t really a big deal,” he said. “I remember hearing that one for a long time though.”

Ross remembers Romanik hitting two grand slams against Virginia.

Hodge vividly remembers the second game in the World Series. “We’re up, 4-3,” he recalls. “Bases loaded, two outs. The last inning and Arkansas is up to bat. They hit a ball out to right field and Tony Diaz scoops it up and hurls it towards second for a force out.

“I also remember coming back from a 0-7 deficit in the state championship to win 18-8. And the dogpile and intense happiness after winning the championship. They’re good memories; they come back to me like it was yesterday.”

When Mary Ann Grant remembers watching her twin sons Barrette and Connor, and their 10 friends play that August in a small central Virginia town, she remembers the plays and hits – and the heat.

“It was record-breaking hot,” she said. And because they were in the loser’s bracket after losing the first game, they played the 6 p.m. game each day while the sun punished. “It was so hot…. We had to do two loads of laundry each day.”

No one liked being in the elimination bracket at the World Series so quickly. Of course now it makes a good story. All remember:

“Losing the first game and having to fight back in the losers bracket to play Louisiana in the championship, the team that beat us that first game,” said Casey Poole, a student at Midlands Tech.

“Losing the first game, and coming back and beating every other team,” said Romanik, who plays at Eastern Kentucky University while majoring in pre-med.. “I remember my last home run in the last game to give us the lead...and giving up a home run in the last inning to cut the lead to one run and hitting the next guy and finally getting the last couple outs to win the whole thing. It felt so good to send Louisiana home because they thought they had the game in the bag!”

Gerrald recalls the last out too.

“I remember before the final out of the championship game thinking ‘I would hate to do something really stupid if the ball comes to me for this final play,’” said Gerrald, a computer engineering major at Clemson. “The guy hit a little grounder to James and when he threw it to me at first base I kept my foot on the bag until Coach (Doug) Hollifield came and picked me up when he ran out on the field.”

It was that euphoric moment.

“The dog pile after we won the final game, that was pretty awesome,” said Tyson, a mathematics major at USC.

To earn a trip to the World Series in Madison Heights, Va., Dentsville went 10-0 in sub district and district play, then won the state championship tournament in Florence.

Before the team won the state title, manager Don Garrick told The State, “This is the best group I’ve been around in my (11) years of coaching. We have had some guys that stand out, but it seems like we always have somebody different step up and make a big play or get a key hit in each game.”

Asked to reflect on the team today, he reiterates how different players became game heroes that summer.

He remembered Diaz’s throw from right field that saved that second World Series game; his son, James, wasn’t slated to pitch in the World Series but ended up winning four games; Romanik won games on the mound and with some key home runs, including a grand slam; center fielder Connor Grant made a diving catch and threw someone out at second; Poole “was phenomenal” at shortstop; Hollifield “made some amazing catches” behind the plate.

“We all knew we had a job to do and we all did our part to win as a team,” said Zach James, a business major at USC.

In Virginia, Dentsville lost its first game to Louisiana 7-6. But they didn’t lose another game, eliminated six of the 11 other teams at the World Series and avenged its opening game loss by beating Louisiana 4-3 in the championship on Aug. 11, 2017.

“It seemed like the tougher the pressure was, the harder these guys played,” Don Garrick said.

It was fun and exciting. When the team returned to its home field at Polo Road Park in a limousine, they were greeted by hundreds of cheering fans.

And 10 years later, they just don’t remember the euphoria. They realize they learned some life lessons that summer.

“It kinda developed me as a baseball player and a person,” Connor Grant said. “Growing up and doing that at a young age, I realized what it takes to be successful. I use that every single day now.”

This story was originally published August 10, 2017 at 4:46 PM with the headline "10 years ago, these SC players won the Dixie Youth World Series. Here’s how it shaped their lives."