Few communities can match the rich, storied football tradition that is found in the city of Warner Robins, Georgia. Warner Robins High School has won four state and two mythical national championships, and finished the 2006 season with its 39th consecutive winning season. Rival Northside High School, the state AAAA runner-up in 2005, claimed that title in 2006 while completing the school's 35th winning season in a 36 year span. (Northside repeated as the state AAAA champions and was ranked among the country's top ten teams by several national publications in 2007.) The Demons and Eagles have drawn crowds in excess of 20,000 for their annual matchup at McConnell-Talbert Stadium, and the programs carry a high profile in prep football circles due to their strong legacy, as well as the number of non-natives who embrace the tradition when stationed at nearby Robins Air Force Base.

But dig a little deeper, and you'll find a much broader sports tradition in the Middle Georgia community that bills itself as the International City.

"A lot of people think of Warner Robins as just a football community," explained Donald Walker, the city's mayor. "That's not true. We are a sports community. We have strong baseball and softball traditions as well as other non-football sports."

The facts certainly support Walker's point. A pair of Warner Robins teams reached the Dixie Softball World Series in 2007, with one team finishing as the runner-up in their age group. Warner Robins American Little League finished third at the Little League Softball World Series in 2002. Warner Robins American's major baseball division all-star team finished second to eventual Little League World Series champion Columbus Northern Little League at the 2006 Georgia state tournament, and the league's 9-10 year old all-star team won the Tournament of State Champions in Ceredo-Kenova, West Virginia, in 2007.

And of course, there's the not-so-small matter of the 2007 Little League World Series.

In eight glorious weeks during the summer of 2007, Warner Robins American Little League carved out a legacy to rival anything offered by the city's considerable gridiron success. The Georgia league opened the summer with a 22-0 thrashing of nearby Vine Ingle Little League, and closed it with an extra inning win over an opponent from halfway around the world. Warner Robins American defeated Tokyo Kitasuna Little League, 3-2 in eight innings, to win the 2007 Little League World Series in South Williamsport, Pennsylvania.

But getting to the Little League World Series, let alone winning it, was no easy feat for the Georgia team. To reach South Williamsport, Warner Robins American first had to muster come-from-behind 3-2 and 10-9 victories in the semifinal and championship games at the Southeastern Region tournament in Gulfport, Florida.

Warner Robins opened a big lead in the early innings of their matchup with Mobile Westside (Alabama) Little League in the region championship game, before the Alabama team whittled the deficit down to three runs and took a 9-8 lead in the fourth inning.

But Georgia's Kendall Scott slammed the door on Mobile's offense with three innings of one-hit relief, and Warner Robins capitalized on an untimely Alabama error to recapture the lead. Dalton Carriker tapped a grounder to third with two runners on base and two outs in the top of the fifth inning, but the throw to first sailed high and past Mobile's first baseman. Instead of an inning-ending groundout that pushed Warner Robins one step closer to its first tournament loss, Hunter Jackson and David Umphreyville raced home with the tying and go-ahead runs.

Scott's move from behind the plate to the mound curtailed Mobile Westside's hopes. The Alabamans had scored eight runs and sent 21 batters to the plate in three-plus innings against Warner Robins' starting pitcher, but managed just two baserunners in three innings against Scott after the switch.

The Georgia closer's bat also figured heavily in the victory: Scott's two-run homer in the first inning staked Warner Robins to an early advantage, and he later added a solo shot in the fifth as part of a 3-for-3 evening.

"(Scott's home run) in the first was big," said Georgia manager Mickey Lay. "I think it took a little pressure off the boys."

Scott's home run helped the Georgians grab a 3-0 lead in the first inning, and Warner Robins American batted around while padding the advantage in the third. Clint Wynn produced a run-scoring single, and Jackson's base hit drove in a pair of runs.

Mobile inched closer in the bottom of the inning, when Chad Luse, Mason McCullough, and Forrest Anderson all delivered RBI singles. Scott's second home run gave Warner Robins American an 8-5 edge in the fourth, but Westside answered with four runs in the bottom of the inning to take the lead. McCullough's three-run homer to center field tied the game, and Brett Glover slammed a solo shot off the scoreboard in right to give the Alabama team a brief advantage.

"Everyone in the dugout was jumping around," said Mobile manager Terry Albaro of his team's latest rally from a big early deficit. Mobile had overcome 3-0 and 7-5 deficits in defeating Tullahoma American (Tennessee) Little League during pool competition, and, in a precursor to the title game, trailed Warner Robins 4-0 before zooming to a 5-4 lead.

Warner Robins also knew a thing or two about come-from-behind victories -- the Georgia champions eventually pushed past Mobile Westside, 6-5, in that initial meeting, and later overcame a 2-0 deficit in a 3-2 semifinal round win over SYA East Little League (Centreville, Virginia).

SYA East grabbed an early lead on Marshall Peters' leadoff home run in the first inning, and added a run in the second. Warner Robins American then answered with three in the third. Ninth-place hitter Micah Wells reached on a one-out single, and Zane Conlan followed with a game-tying home run to left. Carriker, the next hitter, then deposited a pitch over the right field fence to give Warner Robins the lead. Wynn threw a complete game in the win, allowing five hits and striking out four batters.

Wynn's effort was Georgia's third consecutive complete game: Carriker shutout Wren Little League (Piedmont, South Carolina), 6-0, in the team's second pool game, then Scott allowed only four hits in a 4-1 victory over Tullahoma American. Mobile Westside batted .333 (20 for 60) against Warner Robins pitchers in the teams' two meetings, but the Georgia team held its other region tournament opponents to two earned runs and a collective .217 batting average in three games.

Mobile Westside bounced back from its opening day loss to Warner Robins -- the winning run scored when Wynn was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded in the sixth -- with a trio of wins, including a 6-2 decision over North Palm Beach (Florida) Little League in the semifinal round. Mobile jumped in front with three runs in the top of the first inning, and pitcher Blake Elmore held the Florida champions to two runs over 5-2/3 innings.

McCullough's RBI double drove in the first Mobile run, and Elmore followed with a two-run homer. In the third, McCullough added a solo home run and Connor Albano chipped in with a run-scoring single.

North Palm Beach had baserunners in every inning, but left nine runners on base. The Florida team suffered its first loss after seventeen consecutive wins to start the international tournament.

Two days later, the Alabama team pressed Warner Robins to the limit, but the Georgia team rallied and extended its storybook summer with a championship game victory.

The victory secured Warner Robins' berth at the Little League World Series, and it also had other consequences -- two more weeks away from home, and two weeks without football drills for the multi-sport Warner Robins players.

"I can tell you this," said Lay, the Georgia manager, on the eve of the region championship game. "Those football coaches won't be pulling for us."

Not to worry -- by the end of the summer, all of Warner Robins had embraced the newly crowned Little League World Series champions. There's room for more than one tradition in the International City.

Linescores:

Pool Play Game 1	1	2	3	4	5	6		R	H	E
SYA East (Virginia)	0	1	3	1	1	1		7	6	5
South Berkeley (West Virginia)	3	1	0	1	0	1		6	8	3
Pool Play Game 2
Wren (South Carolina)	0	0	1	0	2	3		6	7	1
Tullahoma American (Tennessee)	1	0	2	2	1	1		7	9	1
Pool Play Game 3
North Durham (North Carolina)	0	0	2	1	0	0		3	6	2
North Palm Beach (Florida)	3	0	4	2	0	x		9	6	1
Pool Play Game 4
Warner Robins American (Georgia)	2	0	2	0	0	2		6	8	2
Mobile Westside (Alabama)	0	0	5	0	0	0		5	12	4
Pool Play Game 5
Mobile Westside (Alabama)	0	3	0	0	3	1		7	7	1
Tullahoma American (Tennessee)	3	2	0	0	0	0		5	10	3
Pool Play Game 6
SYA East (Virginia)	0	0	0	0	0	5		5	2	3
North Durham (North Carolina)	0	0	0	2	0	0		2	4	3
Pool Play Game 7
North Palm Beach (Florida)	0	3	7	5				15	14	1
South Berkeley (West Virginia)	0	0	0	0				0	2	0
Pool Play Game 8
Warner Robins American (Georgia)	1	0	0	0	5	0		6	6	0
Wren (South Carolina)	0	0	0	0	0	0		0	6	1
Pool Play Game 9
North Durham (North Carolina)	1	0	0	0	0	0		1	5	2
South Berkeley (West Virginia)	1	0	0	5	2	x		8	6	0
Pool Play Game 10
Wren (South Carolina)	0	1	0	0	0	0		1	4	1
Mobile Westside (Alabama)	2	1	0	0	2	x		5	7	0
Pool Play Game 11
Tullahoma American (Tennessee)	0	0	0	1	0	0		1	4	2
Warner Robins American (Georgia)	0	0	3	1	1	x		5	6	2
Pool Play Game 12
SYA East (Virginia)	2	1	0	2	0	0		5	8	0
North Palm Beach (Florida)	4	0	0	0	2	x		6	9	1
Semifinal Round
Mobile Westside (Alabama)	3	0	3	0	0	0		6	10	2
North Palm Beach (Florida)	0	1	0	0	1	0		2	7	0
Semifinal Round
Warner Robins American (Georgia)	0	0	3	0	0	0		3	9	1
SYA East (Virginia)	1	1	0	0	0	0		2	5	0
Championship Game
Warner Robins American (Georgia)	2	1	4	1	2	0		10	11	2
Mobile Westside (Alabama)	0	1	4	4	0	0		9	8	2

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