Sports

Merrick Softball Clipped by Garden City, Need Help to Stay Alive in Little League State Tourney

Merrick 12-year-olds lose 4-3 to Garden City Sunday.

The Merrick Madness 12-year-old softball team suffered a tough defeat Sunday afternoon, falling 4-3 to Garden City South in the second game of the New York State Little League Softball Tournament. 

On Monday afternoon, though, the Merrick girls will be huge cheerleaders of Garden City, as a victory by their Long Island rivals over Camden would keep Merrick's state title hopes alive. 

On Sunday, Merrick and Garden City battled for three extra innings in Canastota, a town located about 30 minutes outside of Syracuse. The two Long Island teams in the six-team pool tournament held each other scoreless for the first three innings, before they each put three runs on the board over the fourth and fifth innings. 

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Garden City ultimately came away with the victory, though, notching a run in the ninth inning for the one-run win.

Merrick can also snag a berth in Tuesday's semifinal game if Camden beats Garden City by four or more runs on Monday. Merrick beat Camden 3-2 on Saturday.

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Merrick beat North Shore last week to claim the Section 6 divisional Long Island crown.

The top two teams of the six in the tournament will play for the state title on Wednesday. The winner will then advance to the regional playoffs in Albany, with a chance to advance to Portland, Oregon for the Little League Softball World Series.

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