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Sports Aug 11, 2022
La Verne's Laila Washington speeds toward home plate to help her team advance in the Little League Softball World Series. | Photo courtesy of Little League International
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The all-star team from the La Verne Little League avoided elimination Thursday in the Little League Softball World Series, scoring six runs in the sixth and final inning to break a tie in a 7-1 victory over the team’s counterpart from the Issaquah Little League of Issaquah, Washington.
La Verne combined two errors, two run-scoring fielder’s choices, singles by Katie Coldiron and pinch-hitter Zoey Colburn, an intentional walk to Ryan Torres and a sacrifice fly by Kylie Chavez for its runs in the sixth inning.
La Verne will next play at 7 a.m. Pacific Daylight Time Friday against the all-star team from the Pitt County Girls Softball Little League, an 8-0 winner over its counterpart from the Guayama Softball Little League of Guayama, Puerto Rico, the Latin American champion, later Thursday
La Verne defeated Pitt County, 9-2, Tuesday in the opener for both teams in the 12-team tournament being played in Greenville, North Carolina. Pitt County, based in Winterville, North Carolina, is the North Carolina champion and earned a spot in the World Series as the host region champion.
Friday’s game will be streamed on ESPN+.
Issaquah, the Northwest Region champion, opened the scoring in the bottom of the first when Hadlie Delucchi tripled with two outs and scored on a throwing error by Colburn, the La Verne right fielder.
Coldiron limited Issaquah to two hits for the remainder of the game, a third-inning single by Shaelyn Erickson and a sixth-inning single by Giorgia Graham. She struck out four and walked three.
After Erickson retired each of the first nine La Verne batters, the West Region champion tied the score in the top of the fourth.
Laila Washington led off with a single. With one out and Torres at the plate, Washington stole second, advanced to third on a passed ball two pitches later and scored on the next pitch when Torres hit a line drive that went off the glove of first baseman Shaina Starnicky for a single.
La Verne was relegated to the elimination bracket in the modified double-elimination tournament after losing 6-1 Wednesday to the all-star team from the Chesterfield Little League of Chesterfield, Virginia, the Southeast Region champion.
La Verne is attempting to become the fourth team from Los Angeles County to win the World Series, and the first since 1990 when the all-star team from the Foothill Little League in Glendale won. Los Angeles County’s other two champions were also from Glendale.
The tournament is set to conclude Monday.
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