Hagerstown LL state title dream ends  

Few things represent Americana better than Little League baseball. Ten teams composed of players aged 12 and under, who won their respective district tournaments, traveled to Lebanon, Indiana, last week to compete for the coveted state championship. 

For Hagerstown, it was a roller coaster ride that included a first-round loss in the opening game of the tournament played on Thursday, July 18, to Munster LL, followed by a win over Decatur LL on Friday, July 19, and a win over Chet Waggoner LL (South Bend) on Saturday, July 20. This set up a rematch with Munster for the right to move to the final four. 

The game one matchup was close early on, with Munster leading 3-1 after one inning, and holding a 4-2 lead after three innings. But then the boys from The Region exploded for 11 runs in their last two at-bats to cruise to a 15-2 win that sent Hagerstown to the loser’s bracket.

The game two matchup with Decatur was an elimination game for both teams. In a close game, Hagerstown won by the score of 6-3, fueled by a Joey Howard home run

The game three matchup with Chet Waggoner was also an elimination game for both teams. 

Scoreless through the first two innings, Collin King smacked a home run over the left field fence to give Hagerstown a 1-0 lead in the top of the third inning that seemed to ignite the confidence of the purple clads. Chet Waggoner came back to tie the game in the bottom of the inning but from that point on the momentum shifted to Hagerstown.

Hagerstown scored two runs in the fourth inning and four more in the fifth inning, highlighted by a two-run double from Trenton Patterson. They scored three more in the top of the sixth inning capped off by a two-run double from Palmer Ward en route to a 10-3 win to set up a Sunday rematch with Munster. 

Hale was the winning pitcher. Seth Fagan, Hale, Coleton Jones, King, Cameron Lanum, Wyatt Moore, Patterson, Quinn Schlotterbeck and Ward each supplied base hits.

With the win, Hagerstown moved to the final six for only the third time in the storied history of their program.

Hagerstown manager David Moore was happy for his kids, but realistic about the next step in the tournament for his team. 

“We are happy for a rematch against Munster,” Moore said. “We played with them for three innings in our opener so we know we can compete with them. They had to play 10 innings today in their loss to New Albany so we may have a pitching advantage. We have some things to clean up with our base running, but we are starting to hit the ball. Hopefully, that will carry over to tomorrow.”

The rematch with Munster was played on Sunday, July 21, with the winner earning a spot in the final four and the loser being eliminated. Hagerstown got a solo homer run from Coleton Jones in the first inning to take a 1-0 lead, but they never scored again, eventually losing by the score of 7-1.  

David Moore praised both teams’ efforts in the tournament. 

“Honestly, we hit the ball hard all day, but the Munster defense was outstanding,” Moore said.  “They made the defensive plays when they needed to. Collin King and Quinn Schlotterbeck both pitched well for us.”

Moore said he was “incredibly proud” of the team. “They fought back through the elimination bracket with a fighting spirit and never back down attitude. They have nothing to be ashamed of. They were great representatives of the Hagerstown Little League.”