Six wins and 508 miles separate the Troy Ponytails from a Dixie Ponytails X-Play World Series Championship. Since winning the Alabama State Championship two weeks, the team has been hard at work fine tuning their game and skills.

“We have worked specifically on our infield/outfield defense and our bunting,” said Troy head coach Larry Rushing. “We want to be prepared to play small ball if we see faster pitching. We know that might have to take a few more chances on the bases.”

The 508-mile trip to Alexandria is by far the longest trip of the season for the team, besting the trip to the state tournament in Underwood by over 250 miles. But Rushing feels that the travel time won’t affect his team much at all.

“Going out there the girls will be excited about it,” Rushing said. “The trip isn’t the hard part, it is keeping them focused while we are there. They are not at home, not on their home field and everything is bigger. We have to stay focuses on what we do.”

Troy, playing as Team Alabama, opens the tournament on Saturday against West Robeson, the North Carolina representative.

Twelve teams from 11 different states will compete for the ultimate prize of hoisting the World Series trophy after the tournament’s final game, and Rushing believes that his team has a good shot.

“We expect the competition to be the best we have seen,” said Rushing. “But if we can stay focused and play our best, we can bring it home.”