District II Little League Tournament Begins Today

For Little League players throughout Connecticut, the summer-long journey to the Little League World Series in Williamsport, Pa., begins with the district tournaments.
 
The state is broken up into 11 districts, and every one conducts a tournament that runs through mid-July.
 
This is but the first step on the road to Williamsport. The 11 district champions advance to one of two Connecticut  sectional tournaments. The sectional winners than clash in a two-out-of-three series to determine the state champion.
 
The next tier of playoffs is the New England Regional, which takes places annually at the Bart Giamatti Little League Complex in Bristol. The 2010 tournament, featuring the six New England state winners, is set for August 6-14.
 
Eight regional winners from around the country eventually comprise the United States division in the 64th Little League World Series, which begins on August 20. Eight teams from outside the U.S. will form the International division.
 
Two Westport  teams — National and American — will compete in the District II  tournament, which also includes the following Little Leagues: Fairfield National and American, Trumbull National and American,  Easton, Monroe, Stratford and Bridgeport's North End and Park City.

Each Little League sends a team of All-Stars to the district tournament. The players are chosen in a vote among their peers, managers and coaches.

The teams in District II will be divided into two groups or pools, and the top two finishers in each advance to a double elimination playoff. 
  
All games in the District II tourney are set for Bridgeport's Blackham Field. Group play continues through July 10.

Westport National's  first game is Saturday at 1 p.m. against Park City at Blackham Field No. 2  Westport American opens against Stratford at 11 a.m., also at field No. 2  

Considering there are thousands of Little Leagues in the country, the odds of a Connecticut team making it to Williamsport  seem astronomical, but it's not as far-fetched as one might imagine. Shelton National played in the Little Leaue World Series just two years ago.
 
Overall, Connecticut teams have won the Little League World Series four times, tied for the second-most of any state behind California's six.
 
Perhaps the most famous U.S. champion was the 1989 Trumbull team, led by a future National Hockey League star named Chris Drury. That year, Trumbull defeated Chinese Taipei, 5-2, in the final in what is considered one of the bigget upsets in Little League World Series history.
 
Other Connectiuct LLWS winners include Stamford, 1951; Norwalk, 1952; and Windsor Locks, 1965.