Greater Wyoming Area Team Victorious in Hellertown

Victory was a fairytale moment in Hellertown's for a scrappy group of girls from Greater Wyoming Area in northeastern Pennsylvania Sunday afternoon.

The girls--members of a team coached by Steve Mytych--were jubilant after they defeated defending state champion West Point 8-3 to take the crown in the 2011 Pennsylvania 9-10 Year-Old State Softball Championship.

--which was hosted by Hellertown-Lower Saucon Little League--the victory was an especially sweet one, and cheering from dozens of Greater Wyoming Area supporters could be heard blocks away from the park after the game had ended.

A long row of cars painted with messages of support for the team's members lined Constitution Avenue, and parents and friends rushed to the chain link fence around Courtney Jo Achey Field to congratulate the girls after the game's final out was called.

Following an emotional on-field medal ceremony in which both the West Point and Greater Wyoming Area teams were honored, Mytych seemed overwhelmed by what the girls had accomplished.

"It's just awesome," he said. 

The championship is "something they've been working toward," he said, and he credited the members of the team with doing the work that got them to the point of becoming state champions.

"They listen," he said. "They do all the little things that a team has to do to get to this point."

And it's not over for Greater Wyoming Area, either.

On July 30, they will begin play against Little League softball teams from other states in the East Regional Championship in Fleetville, Pa., north of Scranton.

Those in attendance at the tournament in Hellertown raved about the reception they received from HLSLL and local officials during their stay in the Saucon Valley.

"We had a great time," Mytych said.

He added that "the food was great" and said the event was well-run.

After the girls accepted their medals and posed for photos with the banner proclaiming them state champions, they completed a "victory lap" around Courtney Jo Achey Field.

Then it was time for everyone to retreat to the Dimmick Park pavilion for sandwiches, drinks, and of course, some well-deserved cake.