The lights. The stage. The pressure.
This is exactly what the kids at the Little League World Series have to live up to once they arrive at Williamsport.
The final game of day two was between Indiana, representing the Great Lakes Region, and Oregon, representing the Northwest Region.
Having the last game of the first round, both these teams have done a lot of sitting around. Luckily for both squads, they each had a pitcher who could carry a team regardless of hitting or fielding.
In the end however, Indiana was able to hold on 4 to 0.
Zero runs were put across during the first three innings as pitchers Cayden Smekens and Greg Mahlhaff were going through the opponents lineups with ease. During the fourth inning, Indiana coaches made a questionable decision by taking out ace Cayden Smekens, who was dominating the game at the time. The reason for the change was his pitch count because they wanted Smekens to pitch on two days rest instead of three.
The new pitcher for New Castle was Niah Williamson and he picked up right where Smekens left off, pitching 2 and 2/3 innings of shutout ball. Bryce Pinkard was able to come in and get the final out, securing the win for the Great Lakes.
Oregon ace Greg Mahlhaff cruised through the first four innings while only allowing 1 hit and striking out 7. It wasn't until the 5th when Indiana finally got to him.
The inning started with a single from Corey Murphy, who advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt. After a single by Brett Matney moved Murphy over to third, a wild pitch brought him home and gave Indiana a 1-0 lead. Bryce Huntley then doubled, giving Indiana 2nd and 3rd with the top of the order coming up. Mason Gillis check swung but was able to send it down the line, scoring two more and giving the Great Lakes a 3-0 lead. To top it off, clean up hitter Hunter McCubbins blooped a single into center-field, scoring another and extending their lead to 4-0.
After 4 innings with only one hit, the team from Indiana was able to dig deep and advance to the winner's bracket, despite only having a 2-2 record in regional pool play.
Oregon now moves to the loser's bracket and will play New Jersey in an elimination game Saturday at 8 PM. Meanwhile, Indiana will get a day off and play Texas Sunday at 5 PM.
In every Little League World Series, there is always a Cinderella who never seems to belong but still is able to make a deep run in the tournament.
With a pitcher in Smekens and hitters like McCubbins and Gillis, why not Indiana?
Kyle Stackpole
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