10U CHLL Team Wins the DC State Championship
For the first time in a decade, Capitol Hill Little League has come out victorious in the DC Little League 10U baseball tournament.
By defeating long-time nemesis Northwest Little League by a 5-3 score on Sunday, July 17 at Chevy Chase Rec Center field, the team finished a dominant seven-game undefeated run through the six-team DC State Little League tournament, beating perennial champions Northwest Little League and Capitol City Little League two times along the way.
Photo by Kenny Harrison
It wasn't an easy win, though, as Northwest jumped out to an early 2-0 lead in the top half of the first. CHLL answered immediately with a run behind an RBI triple by Rhys T. in the bottom of the first. Northwest came right back with another run in the second, though making it 3-1.
Being down wasn't an unfamiliar situation for Capitol Hill, as they trailed in each of their last four games of the tournament. And that would be the last time Northwest would score in the afternoon, however, as pitchers Brady T. and Casey M. would shut Northwest down the rest of the way, as the two pitchers would strike out seven across the final four innings. All told, starting pitcher Brady T. pitched four complete innings, striking out eight NW batters, while Casey came in to pitch the final two frames. Multiple key defensive plays were made along the way by Loren H. and Ned H.
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With an unexpected trip to Rhode Island on the horizon, help defray some costs for traveling families and make a donation to CHLL.
On the offensive side of the ball, Capitol Hill scored twice in the bottom of the second on a single by William T. and a groundout by Rhys T. to tie the score at 3, and then forged ahead after manufacturing a run in the bottom of the third after an infield single by Nick G., a steal, a passed ball, and a run-scoring groundout by Darren C. The final run of the afternoon was an insurance run in the bottom of the fifth, as Brady T. led off with a walk and came around to score via singles by Ned H. and Darren C.
In the final frame, Northwest mounted a rally with a single and a walk, but a sure-handed play on a grounder to third saw Ned H. calmly throw out the runner to Lan O. at first to seal the win.
After the final out, a wild scrum in right field ensued, players whooping, hollering, flinging their gloves and hats skyward, as members from the CHLL 12U, 11U, and siblings poured on to the field to celebrate a championship that has been a long time in coming for Capitol Hill Little League.
The 14-member team is composed of baseball players age 10 and under who participated in Capitol Hill Little League's spring season and were selected to represent the league. The group practiced together for more than a month to prepare for the D.C. tournament, and every member of the squad made crucial hits and defensive plays during the championship run.
The team now advances to the eastern regional tournament in Cranston, Rhode Island, where they will face off against the state champions of states up and down the eastern seaboard. The tournament starts on Saturday, August 6 versus Maryland, with further games scheduled against the state champs from Delaware, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey.