The Carroll County Board of Supervisors has agreed to pay up to $12,000 to cover a local baseball team’s expenses for the Dixie Pre-Majors World Series in Guntersville, Alabama.

The board unanimously passed a motion during its July 16 meeting to send Carroll County’s Dixie Pre-Majors’ baseball team (ages 15-17) to the Dixie Pre-Majors World Series, which begins with Opening Ceremonies July 27 in Alabama. Carroll County earned the World Series berth by beating Halifax County in the Virginia State Tournament Championship on July 11 in South Boston.

The Carroll team, coached by Larry Snow, will be just the third in county history to make a trip to the Dixie World Series. After Carroll’s 13- and 14-year-old Dixie Boys captured the state crown in 1987, no county team had accomplished the feat again until the Carroll Dixie Pre-Majors did it in 2009.

“It’s a big honor for Carroll County or any other team to get to go. And the Recreation Department will need extra funds for the bus trip and expenses while they are there,” Supervisors’ Chairman Sam Dickson said. “The last time (in 2009) we allotted $10,000 and it ended up costing about $12,000.”

Dickson said the board could approve $12,000 of funding to send the team to Alabama this year, and if it cost less than that, the county could reclaim what is leftover. Pine Creek District Supervisor Bob Martin then made a motion for the county to allow up to $12,000 to send the Dixie Pre-Majors team to Alabama.

“I think it’s a good pat on the back for Carroll County and all the coaches that have put in long hours and the kids that have practiced long hours to go there. I am strongly in favor it,” Martin said. “I move we allot up to $12,000 for the Dixie Pre-Majors to go to Alabama to the World Series.”

Sulphur Springs District Supervisor David Hutchins echoed Martin’s thoughts. He said he was sure some people would argue that the county could find better things to do with $12,000, but he thought this group of kids did a tremendous job.

“The same thing with the team in 2009, they didn’t win, but they represented Carroll County well and I think it’s an honor to have a team there,” Hutchins said. “I’d second that motion.”

Dickson said while $12,000 is a lot of money, it’s also an investment in the county’s youth.

“If you can keep a third of them off drugs, it’s my belief that you save money later by keeping them out of jail,” Dickson said. “We may have a 10- to 15-year dry spell when we don’t have a team (go to the World Series) and I think we need to send them off.”

The board then unanimously passed the motion to allot up to $12,000 to send the Carroll team to the World Series in Alabama.