Hagerstown makes history at Little League World Series, ends run after 3 games
HAGERSTOWN, Ind. — This Hagerstown team has a lot of fight.
Everyone who watched the group of 12-year-olds representing the Great Lakes Region at the Little League World Series (LLWS) knows it, as they watched them walk off their first game and nearly do it again a few days later.
Everyone in little old Hagerstown, Indiana, of just 2,000 knows it, as they watched them complete numerous late-inning rallies all summer to get to the LLWS.
Our guy Kaden Hall rips a triple and we are underway in Williamsport. #LLWS pic.twitter.com/ZYy6BoINt5
— Barstool Indy (@barstoolindy) August 23, 2022
Team manager Patrick Vinson certainly knows it, and he had to remind his players of it during Tuesday’s elimination game against Pennsylvania.
As Vinson walked out to the mound to make a pitching change down 4-0 in the bottom of the third inning, he saw frowns on faces and heads hung low. In the most encouraging voice he could offer in the moment, he told his players, “You guys are acting like it's a 14-0 ballgame. It's 4-0. We've come back from that.”
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He was right, but Pennsylvania had taken control of the game, and it only got worse for Indiana from there. The score was 6-0 by the end of the inning, and Hagerstown batters struck out in order the next frame.
A rain delay kept Team Mid-Atlantic from scoring for the next hour and 40 minutes. When play resumed, Pennsylvania only needed 10 minutes. An RBI single increased the lead to 7-0, and back-to-back walks loaded the bases for Tyler McGough, who promptly cleared the bases with a double to win the game via run rule 10-0.
More:Live updates from Hagerstown's Little League game against Pennsylvania
Chase hit another tank so we'll Link you to his two others ⬇#LLWS pic.twitter.com/CXFFc21SVJ
— Little League (@LittleLeague) August 23, 2022
The loss was Hagerstown’s second of the tournament, ending its LLWS run after three games in Williamsport.
When those 13 kids get back to Hagerstown, they’ll see the impact they’ve made on their small town. No team from Hagerstown had ever made it to the LLWS before them, let alone win a LLWS game. They already had the hearts of everyone back home, but they captured those of new fans throughout Indiana and around the world.
Open message to Hagerstown:
Those kids deserve to be celebrated and we wanna keep that going post-game. I’m talking parade, keys to the city, whole 9 yards. If there’s any content along those lines, or just anything of the team you want posted, feel free to send my way.— Barstool Indy (@barstoolindy) August 23, 2022
These kids made history in front of a national audience, and that’s what they’ll take with them as they leave Williamsport.
Zach Piatt reports on sports and education for The Palladium-Item. Contact him at zpiatt@gannett.com or on Twitter @zachpiatt13.
This article originally appeared on Richmond Palladium-Item: Little League World Series 2022: Hagerstown's run ends after 3 games
