Washington County was runner-up in last year’s Pony League World Series. The host team will play the winner from Bronx, NY, and Gijon, Spain, on Sunday afternoon.
The only difference is the name of the title sponsor.
The Pony League World Series begins this afternoon at 4:30 p.m. with Mon Valley, Pennsylvania, taking on Palmview, Texas, in the first game of the 10-team tournament, which is in its 72nd year this year and the 61st time the championship has been played in Washington.
Washington has hosted the tournament every year since 1984.
There were concerns about the future of the tournament in Washington at Lew Hays Pony Field after title sponsor Dick’s Sporting Goods pulled out last winter. However, Printscape, Inc., a printing and graphics company based in Southpointe, took over as title sponsor. The announcement was made on June 20 with the tournament’s official name: The Printscape Pony League World Series.
The tournament includes international teams from Chinese Taipei, Mexico and Spain, the US territory of Puerto Rico, and teams from California, Michigan, New York and Texas.
Washington County, which finished second last season, automatically qualifies as the host team and Mon Valley has earned the title of host area champion.
Long Beach, Calif. manager Matt Paige had a hectic 72 hours after winning the West Zone title on Sunday.
“We arrived around 12:30 in the morning and since we were three hours behind schedule, it was a pain to get the kids to bed,” Paige said. “They kept telling me it was 9:30 at home. It was already an incredible experience for our kids. Two of our kids were on their first flight and some were excited to be in a hotel room without their parents.”
After finally convincing his players to get some sleep, Paige was able to get his team into the batting cages to work.
Despite all the difficulties, Paige is confident that his team can compete with anyone in the tournament after 20 games in the last six weeks.
“Off the top of my head, I think we were 17-3,” Paige said. “We’ve been going to tournaments every weekend, which I think will help our team a lot. To advance, we had to play another Long Beach team, and they were as good as any we’ve played. Our guys are resilient and ready to go. I think we came back from behind in about four or five games and won.”
Long Beach has scored 38 runs in five games in the zone tournament, but Paige knows she needs adequate pitching depth to survive.
“Our pitching depth is one of our strengths,” Paige said. “We have seven guys that I trust to throw innings. We’ve played with the pitch count and kept guys fresh so they can come back 2-3 days in a row. That’s what got us out of the last three tournaments.”
Bronx, NY, defeated Hagerstown, Maryland, 6-5 in the all-important championship game to win the East Zone championship.
Coach Wilson Gutierrez’s team will first play against Gijon in Spain on Saturday (2:30 p.m.), with the winner facing Washington County on Sunday afternoon.
Gutierrez’s son Jeffrey spoke for his father, who is not fluent in English.
“These kids have been playing together since they were eight years old,” said Gutierrez, who is an assistant coach for the Bronx. “It’s been a great experience for the kids. We drove there, but it wasn’t too bad, only about six hours. We have the right tools. The kids just need to focus and think about what’s happening in the moment.”
Jeffrey Gutierrez wanted to thank Belkis Lora, who founded the league for teams in the Bronx, and his mother for helping with all the logistics of the league.
Up to 10 games will be televised by SportsNet or SportsNet+ and all games will be streamed live. WJPA Radio will broadcast every game.
