Saturday’s game against the Midwest Region Champions was a heart-breaker for New England’s Coventry Little League, which lost the lead late in a 9-5 defeat.
The Midwest squad trailed, 5-4, in the top of the fourth inning when Alex Stewart singled on the first pitch of the at-bat, scoring two runs and keying a four-run rally.
The team from Grandview Little League in Des Moines, Iowa, opened the scoring in the first inning, when Blake Larson doubled on the first pitch of his at-bat, scoring one run, but it was the fourth inning that put the game away.
New England scored five runs in the third inning, driven by an error on a ball put in play by Jake Mather and a single by Tommy Turner.
Larson got the pitching win for the Midwest, going five innings, and allowing five runs on three hits, with four strikeouts. Connor Duong threw one inning in relief.
Logan Lama took the mound loss for New England, surrendering five runs, on four hits over 3 1/3 innings, striking out six.
Mather was New England’s starting pitcher, and he was charged with four runs on four hits over 2 2/3 innings, striking out three.
Midwest had eight hits in the game, powered by Maddox O’Connor’s 3-for-3 performance.
Midwest advances to face the loser of Sunday’s Great Lakes-West game.
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