Rangers Defeat Giants, Win 10U Club Championship

By Colin Murphy

With a thrilling, 6-5, come-from-behind victory over the Giants on the turf at Kinder Park on June 11, the 10U Rangers completed a spirited run through the playoffs to win the Green Hornets 10U Baseball Club Championship. The win was the second consecutive come-from-behind victory in the playoffs for the Rangers, who saw contributions from every player on the team during their championship run.

Head Coach PJ Horgan was proud to see his team come from behind and beat a strong and equally-deserving Giants team. “Each team deserved to win,” said Horgan. “It was just a really well-played game.”

The night before the championship, the Rangers came close to seeing their title hopes disappear, falling behind 5-0 in the top of the first of their semifinal matchup against the Orioles. The contest was suspended due to lightning, forcing the Rangers to complete the game the next night, with the championship game to follow.

“You could see the boys get a little nervous,” said Horgan of the difficult first inning the night before. “But they came all the way back.”

The Rangers dug themselves out of the hole and went on to win, 11-9, clinching a spot in the championship game, which they began playing just moments later.

“Emotions were running high after the semifinal,” said Horgan. “We grabbed a quick bite on the sidelines and then started the next game.”

Playing the championship match without standout performers Ben Tatterson and Jack LaBeau, the Rangers again faced an early deficit, as the Giants jumped in front 2-0 in the top of the first. The Rangers’ Matthew Simms quickly recovered the lead in the bottom half of the inning, belting a three-run homer to put the Rangers on top, 3-2. Joshua Horgan held the lead intact through the middle innings, pitching two scoreless innings while striking out five. With the score tied at five in the top of the fifth inning, Logan Lee, who had four stolen bases in the game, scored to give the Rangers a 6-5 lead.

In the bottom of the fifth, Michael “The Closer” Cavil took the mound for the Rangers and set down the first two Giant batters on strikeouts. The Giants refused to go down easily, however, and their next two batters reached safely. With runners on first and third and the championship hanging in the balance, Rangers third baseman Matthew Beagan made a sensational diving stop of a hard grounder to his left, rose to his feet and threw out the runner to end the game and clinch the championship.

Stephen Horman, Braden Conway, Connor O’Neil, Xavier Rolan, and Trevor Dearborn joined their teammates in a celebration on the mound, and the Rangers received their championship trophies shortly thereafter.

While the victory was a great accomplishment for the Rangers, Coach Horgan was likewise greatly appreciative of the experience enabled by the work of the Green Hornets Baseball program. “The Green Hornets did such a great job improving the fields this year, and it made for such a great atmosphere for baseball,” said Horgan. “[Giants Coach] Dave Colebrook has a great attitude and did a fantastic job with his team. It was just a really well-played game by both teams.”