MEDIA, Pa. (CBS) — The Media, Pa. U12 baseball team fell short against Needville, Texas, 2-1, in the first game of the Little League World Series in South Williamsport on Wednesday night.
The game was scoreless until Texas took a 2-0 lead in the top of the fourth inning.
Media got on the board in the bottom of the fifth to cut the deficit to 2-1 after Christian Nunez scored following a triple. But that’s as close as the Delco squad got.
In the bottom of the sixth inning down to their final out, Media had the tying run at second base. But they were unable to even the score and force extra innings.
Gene J. Puskar / AP
Overall, Media had three hits and committed two errors in the game, while Texas had five hits and one error.
Texas will face Midwest (Fargo, North Dakota) in the next round.
Media will now head to the elimination bracket with its season on the line.
Media will face the loser of the Northwest (Seattle) and New England (Gray, Maine) game on Saturday.
But back home in Media, the town was cheering on the local squad.
With the bustle of Dining Under the Stars and a friendly game of cornhole as the backdrop, State Street in Media morphed into a giant watch party for the little leaguers who put their town on the map
“We’ve watched every game. It’s amazing, it’s so fun to watch the community is so supportive,” Katie Karsh said.
Earlier, Delco held a send off pep rally for residents traveling to Williamsport – complete with signs, T-shirts and a farewell from the Phillie Phanatic.
As game one got underway, fans packed restaurants and crowded around TVs – not wanting to miss a moment of the action.
“This is a once in a lifetime thing for the whole community,” Bill Hagan, the former president of the Media Little League, said. “I’m a fifth generation Media person, I think in 1957 we won the state championship. We never made it to Williamsport.”
While many businesses like Iron Hill Brewery are donating a portion of Wednesday night’s profits to the team, they admit this World Series run has benefitted the bottom line.
“It’s been a huge boost to the entire community, especially us, we’re seeing a 20, 25, 30 percent increase in sales,” Steve Vreelane, manager of Iron Hill, said.
Ted and Jennifer Bojarski came out to watch with their son who plays baseball.
“He played 10 years old this year for our league in Delaware and hopefully we’ll be doing the same thing two years from now in Williamsport,” Ted Bojarksi said.
And no matter the final score, fans in Media say Wednesday night is a win.
“We cant lose, it’s already a win for the kids for everybody and if they come home tomorrow they are still champions in our book,” Hagan said.
Residents say they’ll be back to cheer them on for game two.
