Sports

Burlington Little League falls just short of Williamsport

Burlington’s historic run ends one game from Little League World Series

The Burlington 12U Little League state champs and regional runners-up are (Back row, left to right) Coach Mike Wallace, Zach Wallace, Markus Thomsen, Mason McIntyre, Manager Scott Safar, Ethan Safar, Cody Carlson, Dylan Minnich, Coach Troy Ketterhagen. (Front) Joe Zuleger, Kyle Hackbarth, Keenan Kramer, Chase Ketterhagen, Kale Dietz.
The Burlington 12U Little League state champs and regional runners-up are (Back row, left to right) Coach Mike Wallace, Zach Wallace, Markus Thomsen, Mason McIntyre, Manager Scott Safar, Ethan Safar, Cody Carlson, Dylan Minnich, Coach Troy Ketterhagen. (Front) Joe Zuleger, Kyle Hackbarth, Keenan Kramer, Chase Ketterhagen, Kale Dietz.

 

By Mike Ramczyk

Sports Editor

After a month of district, state and regional tournament action, it all came down to Saturday afternoon for a confident Burlington Little League 12U All-Star team.

And in a matter of minutes, the promise of the city’s – and state’s – first-ever trip to the Little League World Series was shattered with one swing of the bat.

Clearly unfazed from the beating Burlington handed them two days earlier, the Bowling Green, Kentucky team posted a second inning grand slam, totaled 11 hits and routed Burlington 13-0 in four innings.

It was a taste of its own medicine for Burlington, which won both its games in Indy by a margin of 10-0, including beating Bowling Green Aug. 13.

Burlington became only the second Little League team in state history to advance to the regional title game, but will still have to wait to make the elusive Little League World Series.

It took a bit for the kids to get over the loss, said Burlington coach Scott Safar, but he said it’s easy to focus on the fun journey and historic run the team enjoyed.

“The loss will sting for awhile, because we had a taste of Williamsport, but in the end, we will remember how far we went,” Safar said. “Being only the second Wisconsin team to make it to the championship in the history of our little league was huge. The success was more than I could have hoped for.”

That success wasn’t exactly new. The Burlington 12U team has advanced to Indianapolis with a state championship each of the past six summers.

Players’ family members and friends have routinely made the trip down to Indianapolis to show community support, and the Burlington Little League Board was there to help every step of the way.

It is truly a family feel for a group of 12-year-old kids that have the work ethics of adults. Most Burlington players play on traveling tournament teams all spring and summer and participate in offseason workouts.

The success is no fluke, and a Little League World Series is creeping closer to reality.

“BLL has owned Indy for the past six years,” Safar said. “The program can improve, but with that track record, BLL is doing a lot of things right. I think the Titan tournament team program has helped give an option for players to supplement league play with competitive tourney play on a 50-70 field, and this has helped many of the kids develop over the years.”

“The kids still talk about league play at school and have fun with it. During our Indy run, some of the high school coaches volunteered to run practice with pitchers and catchers – they are always willing to help out when asked, and they make the program stronger.”

In the grand scheme of things, it’s about the kids’ experience and not necessarily winning. Though winning allows for more success and fun, Safar says it’s important kids learn the real-life values of teamwork, work ethic and positive reinforcement.

Last weekend’s championship game wrapped up a season of more than 60 games for a lot of players. Safar hopes the daily grind and long-term commitment has helped teach the kids more than just the game of baseball.

“During the Indy run, the team learned that if you set your mind to something, anything is achievable,” Safar said. “Being able to make a positive difference in a kid’s life is why we do this.”

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