The Parent's of the Phoenix team look like the typical little league parents you hear about. This is not a good way to show 12-year olds on how to behave.
http://www.eastvalleytribune.com/index.php?sty=72307
Bitter finish to Dawgs’ dream run
By Scott Bordow, Tribune
August 23, 2006
This isn’t the way it should have ended.
With Ahwatukee parents complaining that the fix was in.
With the coach from Columbus, Ga., having to defend his integrity.
With bitterness and anger and a security guard having to be called because an Ahwatukee mom was screaming at Columbus’ coach, players and parents —during the game.
There should only be fond memories of Ahwatukee’s stay here.
Instead, this was the scene Tuesday after Ahwatukee was eliminated from the Little League World Series when Lemont, Ill. beat Columbus, 2-0.
Connie Watson, the mother of Ahwatukee first baseman Hunter Rodriguez, accused Columbus manager Randy Morris of throwing the game so his team wouldn’t have to face the Dawgs again.
Another Ahwatukee parent screamed at kids wearing a shirt with “Southeast” on the front, the region Columbus represented.
There was talk of a formal protest to Little League officials.
It was a sad and unfortunate ending to a wonderful experience, and one can only hope that a little distance and time will change the perspective of some of Ahwatukee’s parents and fans.
The lit fuse to Tuesday’s ugliness was a comment Watson and another Ahwatukee mom said they overheard a Georgia reporter make in the pressroom a day earlier. According to Watson, the reporter said Columbus, “wasn’t above sandbagging a game.”
The alleged comment was then passed around to Ahwatukee’s other parents, and even before the game between Columbus and Lemont began, they were worried Columbus wouldn’t play as hard as it could.
The reason: If Columbus won, Ahwatukee would advance as the No. 2 seed in pool play, and, according to several parents, Columbus didn’t want to play the Dawgs again.
“This is totally wrong,” Watson said, tears in her eyes. “Georgia laid down their bats. This isn’t hearsay. It’s an absolute fact.”
Watson was so angry she walked over to the Columbus dugout in the sixth inning and confronted Columbus manager Randy Morris. Watson said she asked Morris if he was a “Christian man.” Morris, Watson said, responded with an obscene gesture.
Morris said he didn’t make a gesture toward Watson, but he did ask security to escort her away from the Columbus dugout.
Asked about throwing the game, Morris said, “That’s ridiculous. That’s the most absurd thing I ever heard. ”
Columbus struck out 13 times and had just one hit against Lemont’s Josh Ferry, but Ferry had been nearly as dominant against Ahwatukee on
Saturday, allowing two hits and striking out 11 batters.
Other Ahwatukee parents were upset with the tiebreaking system that determined the top two seeds in pool play. Lemont, Columbus and Ahwatukee all finished 2-1 — Ahwatukee beat Staten Island, 4-1 earlier Tuesday — but Lemont advanced into the U.S. semifinals as the No. 1 seed out because it allowed the fewest amount of runs, and Columbus moved on as the No. 2 seed because it beat Ahwatukee.
“The problem is there shouldn’t be a situation where you finish 2-1 and don’t get in,” manager Tom Kingery said. “It’s hard to believe it ends like this, when we can’t control our own destiny.”
As his players wiped away tears and hugged their parents, Kingery shrugged off his disappointment and focused on the positive.
“It is very hard to take right now,” he said. “The kids are in there saying, ‘It’s our only chance. We’re not going to get another chance.’ But they’ll be OK. They’re never going to forget this summer.” “I’ll never forget these boys, either. They will be with me the rest of my life.” That’s the perfect ending.
