Photo: Mike Bahr
The 2020 Think Again Little League State Championships finished in exciting fashion on Friday as the Eastern Phantoms, Western Suns and Northern Metros won their respective grand finals in the Little, Intermediate and Junior League. Baseball WA thanks Healthway, the West Australian Health Promotion Foundation, for sponsoring the tournament. “We’ve had a fantastic week at the 2020 Think Again Little League State Championships, and it’s been wonderful to have baseball back in WA,” Baseball WA CEO Lachlan Dale said. “We greatly appreciate Healthway’s partnership and support, ensuring the event was still possible even after the challenges of COVID-19. We are also grateful to Morley Eagles Baseball Club and its volunteers for stepping up to host the tournament, and making the most of the winter weather. "It's great to see the baseball community pull together to give kids the opportunity to play their beloved game and see the smiles on their faces as they make memories with friends and teammates," Dale added. Check out all the action from day five and follow Baseball WA on Facebook and Instagram for photos, videos and more. LITTLE LEAGUE Grand Final: Central Firebirds 0 v Eastern Phantoms 9 The Phantoms have won their second straight Little League title, complimenting their back-to-back championships from 2008 and 2009. Dropping just one game in the regular rounds, the Phantoms had everything clicking offensively and defensively this week. In each of their finals, they claimed a shutout win, beating Southern Titans 11-0 in the semi-final yesterday. The Phantoms utilised the same pitcher-catcher combination of Eita Samukawa and George Calverley. In six innings, Samukawa threw 71 pitches to get the job done. Central Firebirds tried to help their defense, using three pitchers throughout the game. Kazuki Mochida threw 66 pitches with back-up from Aiden Brannan and Jasper Smith, the latter overcoming an injury sustained in yesterday’s semi-final. Congratulations to the Phantoms and well done to the Firebirds! Northern Metros 10 v Southern Titans 12 The Metros fell just short of a win to finish their 2020 campaign with this hard-fought battle. The Titans took care of the five-time Little League champions by two runs, in an effort led by pitcher Dylan Chapman, in the middle for 78 pitches as Xavier Olsen helped get into the zone with 29 pitches. For the Metros, Quinn Fatai saw time on the mound that lasted 51 pitches, with 29 pitches from Riley Hay. Cameron Bahr threw 30 pitches too in the team's final game of the tournament. The Titans finished third with the Metros in fourth place. Southern Hills Warriors 1 v Coastal Bay Sharks 7 The Sharks enjoyed exciting wins on Thursday and Friday over the Warriors, with today's game ending with the same six run margin. The Sharks relied on three pitchers, Noah Robinson hurling the ball 39 times while Tyler Fraser and Koby Trousselot each threw 27 and 25 pitches respectively. Catcher Jett Marchesano did well behind the dish for the Warriors as Aden Lynn threw 71 pitches and Shante Anderson handled 20, with both teams showing plenty of strong teamwork and potential for the future. INTERMEDIATE LEAGUE Grand Final: Western Stars 2 v Western Suns 12 Western Suns won their maiden Intermediate League title after a commanding 10-run victory over Western Stars in the grand final. The Suns enjoyed an unbeaten Intermediate League campaign while Western Stars made up for a first-up loss to secure a spot in the grand final. Lucas Santich pitched just shy of 100 pitches for the Stars while Kristian Hauseler threw 20, but it was no match for the brute force of the Suns bats. Rowan Edwards spent the most time on the mound for the Suns, throwing 68 pitches, receiving help from Riley Oliphant for 16 pitches. Congratulations to the Suns on winning the championship and the Stars on a strong second-place finish! Western Meteors 1 v Western Comets 12 On the back of some heavy losses, last year’s Intermediate League champions Western Comets got a big win of their own in this game against Western Meteors. It was a completely different scoreline to the last time these two teams battled, the first game of Intermediate League competition ending 22-6 the way of the Meteors - their only win of the competition. The Meteors handed the ball to Caleb Johnson for most of the game as he threw 50 pitches with Kurt Van Der Graaf pitching 34 balls and strikes. Ethan Horn and Hudson Moraweic chipped in from the mound too. It was smooth sailing for the Comets pitchers – Arden Bridson throwing 32 pitches as Lochlan Farrell took the ball for 22 pitches. Jayden Hinchcliffe took his turn on the mound as well as the Comets cruised to a quality finish. JUNIOR LEAGUE Grand Final: Northern Metros 10 v Western Comets 2 The Metros have taken out back-to-back Junior League titles, and their third overall as they enjoyed an eight-run victory over the Comets, a team that came into the grand final undefeated. The Metros dropped their only game to the Comets earlier this week so a good contest was always on the cards. Jack Angeloff was the standout pitcher for the Metros, throwing 96 pitches from the middle while Rhys Kelly contributed with 13 pitches. Cruze Brendon threw 81 pitches for the Comets while Campbell Froude worked the pitch count to 59 as they tried to keep the Metros under control. Congratulations to the Metros and well done to the Comets on a great performance and second-place finish. Western Meteors 7 v Western Suns 8 The Suns edged the Meteors by one run, giving them a nice reason to celebrate as they finished the tournament on a high. Four Suns shared the duties on the mound, each seeing considerable time in the middle. Jacob Davila lead the way with 46 pitches, Felix Kingston threw 40 pitches while Kade Grow had ball in hand for 39 pitches. Taj Egan saw time in the middle with 38 pitches but also behind the dish for three innings of play. The Meteors' Leah Cornish was geared up behind the plate for seven innings in support of five pitchers. Keelan Murray threw 47 pitches, Cody Van Der Graaf pitched the ball 43 times while Denver Needle contributed 39 pitches. Jai Hewitt and Lachlan Mitcheson-Brown also found themselves on the mound. Comments are closed.
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