For Demopolis Academy, the end to the 2003 baseball season could be considered a failure. Bidding for a third straight state championship, the dynasty that has become the Generals was swept from the AISA finals with 9-6 and 4-3 losses. But to call this season a failure is anything but true.

Consider that DA started the season 0-8. Consider the team didn’t even have a .500 record when they drove to Selma for an unlikely bid at a state title. Consider no one gave them a shot at even winning the area two months ago.

On Friday, the Generals made a quick exit from the state tournament, and it all may have come down to one run that Cornerstone Christian scored in the sixth inning of the first game of the tourney.

After reaching base on a double, Cornerstone’s Ty Youngblood rounded third base on a single by Casey Crumpton, setting up a play at home.

Demopolis catcher Brooks Phillips fielded the throw, and by all appearances, he tagged Youngblood out four feet before he reached home.

The umpire, however, called Youngblood safe and Cornerstone added one more run in the inning.

That run led to one more from Cornerstone, and took all momentum away from DA, which had no hits going into the sixth inning.

But in their half of the sixth, the Generals erupted for six runs and looked like they would advance in the winner’s bracket of the tournament.

Cornerstone tacked on four more runs, starting with that controversial call at home, and sent DA to the loser’s bracket to face Abbeville Christian.

In the Abbeville game, Kevin May reached base in the first inning and scored when Brooks Phillips singled.

DA added another run in the second, but Abbeville scored twice in the second, knotting the game at 2-2. In their half of the fourth, DA’s Chad Seale scored after reaching base on a fielder’s choice, and that’s the last run the Generals would put on the board.

Abbeville added two runs in the fifth, and held off the Generals for the last two innings to advance in the tournament and send Demopolis Academy home early.