Dreams of going to the Little League Baseball World Series have been dashed for one Loudoun County, Virginia, team. However, another team from Loudoun County has advanced for a chance to play in the Junior League World Series in Michigan.
The Little League World Series is a baseball tournament for children who are 10 to 12. The Junior League World Series is a baseball tournament for children 12 to 14.
The Loudoun South Little League team, comprised of 12-year-olds, fell 5-2 to a team from Tennessee on Tuesday in the regional championships in Georgia, ending the chance to play in the Little League Baseball World Series in Williamsport, Pennsylvania.
The team, based out of South Riding, made it to the semifinals of the Little League World Series in 2019. The team scored two runs early in the game but lost their lead later.
“It’s heartbreaking, especially when we had the lead for most of the game. But, you know, we didn’t have things bounce our way in the end,” coach Todd Coleman said.
Coleman said the buildup for this year’s team was exciting for the kids, especially seeing their community rally behind them.
“It was amazing. We kept getting notifications that there were watch parties happening,” Coleman said.
After the game, Coleman told the team he has never been more proud of a group of kids, and that their run this season was a great one.
“Yeah, we didn’t win today, but we’re still state champions in Virginia. Nothing can take that away from us,” Coleman said.
His son Drew Coleman, 12, played second base in the game.
“I felt good through the first five innings, and then I thought we had it at the end, but it just didn’t go our way,” said the student from Willard Middle School in Aldie.
While he’s disappointed at the outcome, Drew Coleman said that he is pleased by how well the team did this season.
“From not winning districts and making it all the way to the regional championship is just crazy, so yeah, just a great run,” he said.
Loudoun County Junior League advances
While it was a disappointing end to the season for the team made up of 12-year-olds, it was good news for some of the older players in the county.
The Loudoun South Junior League team defeated teams from Florida, West Virginia and South Carolina to win the Southeast regionals and will head to the semifinals of the Junior League World Series in Michigan.
“Our kids just really hit the ball well,” coach Eddie Jordan said.
For some members of the Junior League squad, the win was extra special because they were unable to carry on the momentum from the 2019 Little League season due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Now they find that same success in the Junior League.
“It was simply, you know what you lost your 2020 year, you lost your 12-year-old year. Let’s do it now and let’s see what we got. They’re a special group of kids and it led to this,” Jordan said.
Michael Zingaro, 14, attends Brambleton Middle School in Ashburn and was on the winning Loudoun squad.
While the game was a little nerve wracking, the win was incredible, he said.
“Honestly, it didn’t even feel real, like running out to the pitcher’s mound and jumping up and down with my teammates,” Zingaro said.
Rylan Jordan, 14, from Mercer Middle School in Aldie, said he is really happy they won. The team celebrated the 6-3 win in a way many teams, including professional teams would.
“We had a cooler full of water and poured it on all of our coaches,” Jordan said.
Jordan said one other perk of moving on is how the team will get to Michigan.
“We get a bus now, so it’s gonna be cool,” he said.
The junior team’s first game will be at 11 a.m. on Aug. 14.
