Big Bats Bring Rally But Jackson's Holbrook Team Falls In Little League World Series Opener

WILLIAMSPORT, PA — The last time the Holbrook Little League all-star team lost a game this summer, it was hailed as an upset, a huge victory for the other team.

The New Jersey state champions and Mid-Atlantic Region representatives at the Little League World Series in Williamsport this week lost that July 5 game to Manchester 7-6, as a rally to come from behind fell one run short.

After that loss, however, Holbrook picked themselves up, dusted themselves off ... and proceeded to win the next 18 games.

After Thursday's 7-6 loss to Connecticut, the New England Region champion, in the teams' Little League opener, the kids from Jackson will need to summon that energy again.

Holbrook trailed 7-2 going into the bottom of the sixth inning Thursday against Connecticut. That kind of deficit might be a mental stumbling block for most teams, but for Holbrook, offense has not been a problem this summer. After losing to Manchester in the double-elimination portion of the District 18 tournament, Holbrook put up 18 runs on them twice, winning the rematch 18-12 and then taking the District 18 championship with an 18-5 victory over Manchester.

So it was no surprise when the kids from Jackson rallied behind their big bats. Mike Arent, whose diving catch on a blooping fly ball into left saved a run in the first inning, drew a four-pitch walk. Andy Osmond hit a ground ball that moved Arent to second. Then Garrett Drew hit a ground ball that caromed off the foot of the Connecticut third baseman and wound up behind the field tarp, scoring Arent but limiting Drew to a double. Tai Mann, who homered in the first inning to make it 1-1, singled back up the middle to drive in Drew for the second run of the inning, then Chris Cartnick, who's been one of Holbrook's biggest bats, smacked a shot over the center field fence for a two-run home run, closing the gap to 7-6 with just one out.

After a ground ball out, Connecticut manager Mike Randazzo changed pitchers, and though Tyler Bauer hit J.R. Osmond with the next pitch, he was able to close out the game with a strikeout to secure Connecticut's victory.

Holbrook fell behind 1-0 in the top of the first when Bauer doubled up the middle to drive in Matthew Vivona. After Mann's homer tied it in the bottom of the inning, Connecticut took a 2-1 lead in the top of the second when its aggressive base-running prompted an errant throw. Connecticut then added two runs in the third on a pair of sharply hit balls for a 4-1 lead.

Holbrook made it 4-2 in the bottom of the third when Cartnick scored on a wild pitch. But Connecticut added two more runs in the top of the fourth on a triple by Vivona to go ahead 6-2, then tacked on a run on a single by Bauer in the top of the seventh.

While Connecticut was getting timely, solid hits, starting pitcher Ethan Righter was frustrating Holbrook's batters,

Holbrook now moves to the elimination bracket, where the team will face the all-stars from Grosse Pointe Woods-Shores Little League of Michigan, the Great Lakes region champion, on Saturday at 3 p.m.

Photos courtesy of Little League Baseball and Softball