For the third consecutive year, the River Forest/Elmhurst 14U baseball team has reached the Junior League World Series, held in Taylor, Michigan.
Last week, the team took the Central Region in impressive fashion, winning five games by a combined score of 55-0. They then opened the World Series, Aug. 3, with a 1-0 victory over Santa Rosa, California. Patrick Boeh allowed two hits over six innings for the win. Elliot Buchner gave up three hits in the seventh but was able to escape the jam and post the save. Charlie O’Neill’s fielder’s choice RBI in the second inning was the game’s only tally.
On Aug. 4 against Wilmington, Delaware, River Forest/Elmhurst jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the top of the first inning. But Wilmington rallied for four runs in the third, then scored twice in the sixth to take a 6-4 lead.
River Forest/Elmhurst rallied in the top of the seventh to tie the game and force extra innings. But they left a runner stranded at third in the top of the eighth, and Wilmington scored in the bottom half for a 7-6 victory.
Calvin Lee scored twice and Levi Ardell had two RBI for River Forest/Elmhurst, which fell into the consolation bracket of the double-elimination tournament with their loss. The team faced a must-win situation versus Needville, Texas on Aug. 5, after deadline.