Snow Canyon Little Leaguers bow out of World Series with 10-2 loss to Midwest

(L-R) Santa Clara, Utah's Preston Threlfall with teammate Brogan Oliverson after they both were introduced before a baseball game against Nolensville, Tenn., at the Little League World Series, South Williamsport, Pa., Aug. 19, 2022 | Photo by Gene J. Puskar/Associated Press, St. George News

ST. GEORGE — The Snow Canyon Little League baseball team from Santa Clara was eliminated from the Little League World Series with a 10-2 loss to the Midwest Region team from Iowa on Sunday.

The game, played at Williamsport, Pennsylvania, started at 11 a.m. local time (9 a.m. Utah time) and didn’t end until nearly six and a half hours later, due to two lengthy weather delays. The second delay, which started before the sixth and final inning was to be played, was more than three hours long, with the contest not resuming until 5 p.m. EDT (3 p.m. MDT).

Midwest, which had a 9-2 lead heading into the final inning, scored one more run in the top of the sixth to make it 10-2. 

That left the Snow Canyon squad, known as the Mountain team in the tournament, with one final at-bat. Although one Mountain batter reached base by getting hit by a pitch, the other three batters got out (one on a pop fly and the other two on strikeouts). Falynn Randall, the only girl on Mountain’s squad, was the final batter of the game.

Among the bright spots for Mountain were six total hits during the contest, with Kolby Lamoreaux, Colton Gainey, and Cody Ruffell all getting two singles apiece.

Mountain, which had fallen behind 3-0 in the first inning, scored its first run of the game in the bottom of the second when Chaz Hickman walked with the bases loaded, scoring Gainey. That put the score at 4-1 with three runners on and only one out. Mountain’s next batter, Dash Avery, hit a would-be sacrifice fly to left, but Midwest’s outfielder caught the ball, then threw out Lamoreaux at the plate for a double play to end the inning.

Falynn Randall fields a ball during the Snow Canyon Little League all-stars game against Nolensville, Tenn., at the Little League World Series, South Williamsport, Pa., Aug. 19, 2022 | Photo courtesy of Little League International, St. George News

Mountain’s only other run came the following inning, when Lamoreaux hit a single to left, scoring Ruffell.

Mountain didn’t commit any fielding errors during the game. Only two of Midwest’s 11 hits were for extra bases, as shortstop Mason McFate belted a double and a triple. He finished 3-for-3 at the plate with 3 RBIs.

The Midwest team, which hails from Davenport, Iowa, had defeated Northwest 6-3 on Saturday. They next play on Tuesday night. Two other games that were scheduled for Sunday were postponed until Monday because of the lengthy weather delays. 

The 20-team, double-elimination tournament, which features the top Little League teams from around the United States and several other countries, continues through the upcoming week and culminates with the championship game next Sunday, Aug. 28. To see the full bracket, click here.

Despite the early exit from the tournament, the Snow Canyon Little League team made history as the first-ever team from Utah to take part in the 75-year history of the Little League World Series. See the related stories links below for St. George News’ recent coverage of the team and its remarkable journey, both on and off the field.

Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2022, all rights reserved.

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