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OTTUMWA — At first, Christian McElroy thought it would be a routine pop up to the infield.
In a matter of seconds, it became a play that might lead to one of the biggest achievements ever for Ottumwa Little League baseball.
McElroy made a diving catch in center field on a fly ball for one out, then threw back to second base for a second out. The amazing double play clinched a 5-3 win for the Ottumwa 12-year-old Little League squad over Davis County, moving Ottumwa atop the Iowa District 7 tournament standings with one pool-play game left.
"I just saw the ball kept going, so I just started running as fast as I could," McElroy said of the fly ball off the bat of Jaxtyn Jones with two runners on. "I saw the runner at second was halfway to third base, so I knew if I could make a play I'd have a chance to get him out.
"I've had a lot of diving catches, but that was was pretty impressive. I thought for sure I was going to drop it. It was exciting. It's something I never would have dreamed of."
More dreams could come true for Ottumwa this week following Friday's dramatic win. Ottumwa is on the verge of not only playing for, but potentially hosting the Iowa State Little League Baseball Tournament as this year's District 7 champion will have the option to hosting the 8U, 10U and 12U state tournaments that will be held next month.
Thanks to McElroy's game-clinching play, Ottumwa (5-1) is in the driver's seat to be playing in that 12-year-old district final in Albia. With a win on Wednesday, the road to Williamsport for the Little League World Series could go through the City of Bridges next month.
"That would be great the community. That'd be great for the kids and it would be something they would always remember," Ottumwa 12-year-old Little League coach Brad Scott said. "We don't talk about it too much with the kids. We don't want to put the pressure on them. I know the kids kind of know that's in the back of everyone's mind, so they're probably playing with a little something extra.
"We're playing good teams, but we're playing as a team. The boys are playing with attitude and effort and playing the right way."
Friday's night of District 7 play proved to be highly dramatic. The results around the district Ottumwa out in front needing only to win at Jefferson County on Monday to secure a spot in the district final while Davis County, Appanoose County and Je-Wa-Ke enter the final night of district play tied for second place.
Appanoose County secured its third straight win to remain in the hunt for a spot in the district final after an 8-5 win over Van Buren County at Pulaski Field. Four straight hits with one out in the fifth snapped a 5-5 tie with run-scoring hits by Castyn Cook and Hunter Ripperger keeping Appanoose County in the running to host state Little League baseball for the second time in four years.
"It's big for our district and it will be big for the host town," Appanoose County Little League coach Chris Cook said. "It doesn't matter which one of our teams wins it. Just to have the chance to play it here in the district is an opportunity we don't get that often. It's not like we get to host one every year. Having the chance to host the 8-year-old, 10-year-old and 12-year-old state tournaments is a big thing for these kids."
Ottumwa may have a legitimate chance to win the 10-year-old state title at home based on the results of Wednesday's district finals. The Ottumwa 10-year-old Little Leaguers improved to 6-0 in district play with a 15-2 win over Davis County, scoring 11 runs in the fourth inning with a squad of players that nearly won the nine-year-old state championship last summer.
"We're absolutely excited to have a chance to play for a district title and, if we can finish it off, have a chance to play in a state tournament close to home," Ottumwa 10-year-old Little League coach Bryan Goldsmith said. "Last year, we had a tremendous amount of support at state in Des Moines. There were a lot of people that followed us up to Grandview last summer. I have to think that's only going to grow if we can play at or close to home. Our kids are familiar with all the facilities.
"It'll be fun to bring some success to the district. Hopefully, we'll get to host more state tournaments in the future."
Continue reading...
In a matter of seconds, it became a play that might lead to one of the biggest achievements ever for Ottumwa Little League baseball.
McElroy made a diving catch in center field on a fly ball for one out, then threw back to second base for a second out. The amazing double play clinched a 5-3 win for the Ottumwa 12-year-old Little League squad over Davis County, moving Ottumwa atop the Iowa District 7 tournament standings with one pool-play game left.
"I just saw the ball kept going, so I just started running as fast as I could," McElroy said of the fly ball off the bat of Jaxtyn Jones with two runners on. "I saw the runner at second was halfway to third base, so I knew if I could make a play I'd have a chance to get him out.
"I've had a lot of diving catches, but that was was pretty impressive. I thought for sure I was going to drop it. It was exciting. It's something I never would have dreamed of."
More dreams could come true for Ottumwa this week following Friday's dramatic win. Ottumwa is on the verge of not only playing for, but potentially hosting the Iowa State Little League Baseball Tournament as this year's District 7 champion will have the option to hosting the 8U, 10U and 12U state tournaments that will be held next month.
Thanks to McElroy's game-clinching play, Ottumwa (5-1) is in the driver's seat to be playing in that 12-year-old district final in Albia. With a win on Wednesday, the road to Williamsport for the Little League World Series could go through the City of Bridges next month.
"That would be great the community. That'd be great for the kids and it would be something they would always remember," Ottumwa 12-year-old Little League coach Brad Scott said. "We don't talk about it too much with the kids. We don't want to put the pressure on them. I know the kids kind of know that's in the back of everyone's mind, so they're probably playing with a little something extra.
"We're playing good teams, but we're playing as a team. The boys are playing with attitude and effort and playing the right way."
Friday's night of District 7 play proved to be highly dramatic. The results around the district Ottumwa out in front needing only to win at Jefferson County on Monday to secure a spot in the district final while Davis County, Appanoose County and Je-Wa-Ke enter the final night of district play tied for second place.
Appanoose County secured its third straight win to remain in the hunt for a spot in the district final after an 8-5 win over Van Buren County at Pulaski Field. Four straight hits with one out in the fifth snapped a 5-5 tie with run-scoring hits by Castyn Cook and Hunter Ripperger keeping Appanoose County in the running to host state Little League baseball for the second time in four years.
"It's big for our district and it will be big for the host town," Appanoose County Little League coach Chris Cook said. "It doesn't matter which one of our teams wins it. Just to have the chance to play it here in the district is an opportunity we don't get that often. It's not like we get to host one every year. Having the chance to host the 8-year-old, 10-year-old and 12-year-old state tournaments is a big thing for these kids."
Ottumwa may have a legitimate chance to win the 10-year-old state title at home based on the results of Wednesday's district finals. The Ottumwa 10-year-old Little Leaguers improved to 6-0 in district play with a 15-2 win over Davis County, scoring 11 runs in the fourth inning with a squad of players that nearly won the nine-year-old state championship last summer.
"We're absolutely excited to have a chance to play for a district title and, if we can finish it off, have a chance to play in a state tournament close to home," Ottumwa 10-year-old Little League coach Bryan Goldsmith said. "Last year, we had a tremendous amount of support at state in Des Moines. There were a lot of people that followed us up to Grandview last summer. I have to think that's only going to grow if we can play at or close to home. Our kids are familiar with all the facilities.
"It'll be fun to bring some success to the district. Hopefully, we'll get to host more state tournaments in the future."
Continue reading...
