The busy and long baseball summer playoff season ended for the Arlington Babe Ruth Storm Black 10-under All-Stars with a score of 4-2 at the World Series in Crown Point, Indiana.
Arlington finished the group stage 3-1 and the championship round 1-1. In the quarterfinals, the team from Muscle Shoals, Alabama, was eliminated 0-1 in a walkoff in the second half of the 13th inning, with the decisive point coming from an error.
“The whole game was high drama with incredible defense and an epic battle,” said Arlington manager Dave Juza. “Our guys were super mentally strong the whole time.”
Arlington had six hits and 10 walks in the loss but failed to score. The team loaded the bases in the 10th inning and left two runners on the bench in the first and 12th innings.
“We didn’t get the decisive goal,” Juza said of the need to score one or two more goals.
On defense, Arlington made four double plays and Juza said catcher Bryce Donnelly did a good job of slowing down and controlling Muscle Shoals’ aggressive baserunning game. The team had 17 baserunners but managed just one run, the fewest in the series.
Donnelly was named to the Gold Glove Defensive Team of the Tournament.
Matthew Ryan and Bruce Buczek each had two hits for the Storm Black, Christian Tallent had three walks and Ryan Potter and Teddy LeCompte had two walks. Chase Langley and Donnelly also had hits.
Tallent started on the mound and pitched six innings. Langley pitched the next four innings, while Flynn Juza pitched the last 2 1/3 and was the unlucky loser.
“We made it to the last eight,” said Juza. “We presented ourselves well and were in talks with each of those (eight) teams. It was a great week. The attitude of our players was great all week.”
The Storm Black won their first playoff game in walkoff fashion against New Canaan, Connecticut, 7-6. Donnelly had the game-winning hit in the sixth inning. Hudson Wilkins and Langley also had hits in the sixth inning, when the team scored three runs on two errors.
To start the win, Juza had an RBI groundout, Wilkins hit a double and a single, and Ryan and Donnelly hit singles.
The Storm Black’s two losses in the series were against the two finalists, Muscle Shoals and Southeastern, Kentucky. The loss to Southeastern came during group play. Southeastern was the top seed in the group stage, but Muscle Shoals won the World Series with a 7-2 victory in the final.
“These two teams give you nothing and don’t make any mistakes,” said Juza. “And you can’t afford to make any mistakes against them.”
Arlington was one of 25 baseball teams competing in the Cal Ripken Division of this series.
Prior to the World Series, the Storm Black won the Southeast Region tournament 5-0. Prior to the regional tournament, the team finished 5-1 and placed second in the state tournament.
Including World Series games, the Storm Black achieved an overall record of 25-14 against all tournament competition this year.
Visit www.gazetteleader.com for a report on the Storm Black’s four pool games.
