Saratoga Springs Little League Team Wins Second in New York State 

The Saratoga Springs Little League U11 all-stars came back home as New York State Little League Runners-Up. The group traveled to Baldwinsville last week to compete in the New York State Little League 9-11 Championship.

At the end of the spring season, an all-star team of 12 players is selected from the five little league teams in Saratoga. The kids and coaches then practice seven days a week in preparation for the win or go home tournament from late June through July. 

The team first won in the divisional round against Rotterdam both home and away. Then the team traveled to Utica to compete for the Section 2 title. Saratoga completed a clean sweep, beating New Hartford and North Central to attain the Section 2 trophy.

The team then traveled to Baldwinsville to compete against the seven other sectional winners in the championship from Saturday, July 18th through Wednesday the 22nd.

“You were guaranteed at least two games, and then we just kept winning,” Coach Brandon Ture told Saratoga TODAY. “The families just kept extending their stay. Some days we wouldn’t even know if we would be staying until we finished the game at like 8 o’clock at night.”

Saratoga started off their tournament with a walk-off win against Pearl River. Max Annese tied the game 4-4 in the sixth with an RBI single to set up River Bianco to complete the comeback in the bottom of the seventh with another RBI single.

In the second round on Monday, July 20th, Saratoga lost to the eventual winners, Massapequa, sending them to the consolation bracket. 

Later that Monday, the boy’s defense and pitching shined, beating Penfield Little League 2-1 in a cagey affair. Beck Miller and Ryder Pollock combined for an outstanding performance on the mound, allowing just one run while striking out six. Combined with flawless defense, turning a double play and committing no errors, the team advanced.

Then on Tuesday, both teams’ offences showed up to the plate, but a 5-run inning allowed the Saratoga boys to emerge victorious. The final score was 10-7 against the Great Kills. Beck Miller had a standout performance, going 3 for 3 at the plate with a home run, a double, single, and two RBIs.

In the semi-final, the Saratoga all-stars were on a roll and would not be denied a finals appearance, batting in 15 to Smithtown’s 4 to claw back from the consolation bracket. 

Since the tournament was double elimination, Saratoga needed to beat Massapequa twice in a row to win the tournament. As fate would decide, Saratoga finished their outing in Baldwinsville as runners-up, a proud accomplishment and life-long memory.