Goodlettsville Advances to LLWS Championship in Thriller

Goodlettsville's Lorenzo Butler celebates one of his three home runs he hit in his team's 24-16 win over Petaluma. (AP Photo) 

The Goodlettsville (Tenn.) Little League All-Stars appeared to be moments away from a berth in the Championship Game of the Little League World Series. With a 15-5 lead over Petaluma (Calif.), they were just three outs away from the huge win. However, the boys from Petaluma refused to go down. They slowly chipped away at the lead. When Danny Marzo flied out to center field for the second out, Petaluma still trailed 15-11. The next batter, Bradley Smith, came up with a clutch RBI double. The clutch hitting wasn't over for Petaluma. Kempton Brandis crushed a two-run bomb to pull Petaluma to within one run. The incredible comeback was completed when Hance Smith hit a solo shot to tie the game up 15-15. The game was suddenly headed to extra innings.

Despite blowing their ten-run lead, Goodlettsville wouldn't let themselves get discouraged. Their first six batters reached base to score five runs before they even got one out. Goodlettsville scored two more runs before Jayson Brown hit a two-run homer to cap off their offensive explosion in style. In total, they combined for nine runs on seven hits to take a 24-15 lead. In the bottom half of the inning, Logan Douglas got a run back on an error by Goodlettsville. A murmur could be heard from the crowd as they wondered if Petaluma had another improbable comeback in them. It turns out they did not as Bradley Smith struck out for the final out, sealing Goodlettsville's 24-16 win.

As if the game wasn't amazing enough, one player in particular had an extraordinary, record-setting game at the plate. Goodlettsville would not have won the game if had not been for Lorezo Butler's incredible performance. Butler hit a trio of three-run home runs to lead the way for Goodlettsville's offensive barrage. His nine RBIs set a new Little League World Series record, and his three home runs tied a single-game record of its own.

The game was superb in every way. Well unless you were one of the pitchers. Regardless, the players from both teams should be proud. They showed great heart and desire to win. The teams' combined 40 runs set another new LLWS record. Butler's performance on this kind of stage was phenomenal. In fact, his day at the plate was so big that he was even trending on Twitter during one point in the game. Goodlettsville now advances to play Tokyo, Japan in the Championship Game. If that game is anything like this one, we are going to be in for a treat to be sure.

Ugandan Youths to Play in Little League World Series

The Little League team from Lugazi, Uganda will become the first African team ever to play in the Little League World Series. (AP Photo) 

Children from Africa don't often get to come to the United States of America, especially not to play baseball. That will change Friday when a team from Lugazi, Uganda will play their first round game against Panama in the Little League World Series held in Williamsport, Pennsylvania. The road to this grand honor has been long and difficult, but so rewarding in the end. The two coaches of the Lugazi, Uganda team were happy to tell the amazing history of baseball in Uganda, which they both were a crucial part of from the beginning.

Henry Odong is one of the pioneer players in Uganda. As a teenager, he was taught the game by Christians missionaries, who he was very close with. Odong, nicknamed the Bouncer because of his size, is always eager to show people his tattered photo album of Ugandan baseball history and wants to thank everyone involved in making his dream a reality. The other coach is Richard Stanley, who is a 69-year-old chemical engineer. Known as the game's primary benefactor in Uganda, he built a baseball complex and village near Mpigi, a town west of the capital city of Kampala. Stanley also fully funded the travel expenses to send the nation's delegated team to Kutno, Poland to play in the Mideast and Africa Regional tournament. He had done this each of the past three years, costing him about $30,000 per trip.

The Ugandans first had to endure some heartache in their journey to America. In 2010, the boys from the Kampala ghetto of Nsambya thought they had earned a spot in the championship game, only to find out they missed out based on a complex tiebreaker. Last year, the same team knocked off the perennial favorites from Daharan, Saudi Arabia in the title game to earn what appeared to be Africa's first spot in the Little League World Series. However, they were denied visas from the State Department based on several inaccurate birth certificates that were possibly forged. Organizers were concerned that several of the children were older than 13 years old, which is the maximum age allowed to play in the tournament. Therefore, the team was sadly disqualified from the competition.

The disqualification turned out to be a blessing in disguise. News quickly spread through the media about the disqualification of the Ugandan team. People from around the world sent money and supplies to support the growth of baseball in Uganda. More than $130,000 and piles of bats, balls, gloves, shoes, and helmets poured into the country. In January, a group of Major League Baseball stars traveled to Uganda to support the cause of building baseball in the country.

Now, the boys from Lugazi, Uganda have arrived in Williamsport, Pennsylvania. It doesn't matter that their last real game was a month ago, they only have 11 players, and they have never played in front of a crowd before. You see because regardless of how they play, they have already won by making it this far. They've become the first Little League from Africa ever to play in the Little League World Series. That is inspiring not only to the people of Uganda, but to many African children around the continent. With hard work, people who care about you, and the grace of God, the impossible soon becomes possible. Who knows, maybe we aren't too many years away from our first African player in Major League Baseball.