The Chaires Capitola Little League 11-under All-Star team could not have closed out its summer any better, ending its historic postseason baseball run with a national championship.
The outcome could not haven been any more dramatic either.
The team beat Northwood Little League from South Carolina, 7-6, in eight innings to win the the Tournament of State Champions (TOSC) in Wilson, North Carolina, at Southern Bank Stadium July 30.
Chaires rallied from a 6-3 deficit in the bottom of the sixth and final inning in regulation.
It tied the game on a two-out single by Andrew McGee, according to GameChanger. Chaires won it in the bottom the eighth in walk-off fashion with a one-out, bases-loaded single by Jacob Ross to center field.
In addition to the Tallahassee-area representative, the five-day, eight-team tourney featured teams from North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia and Georgia.
Chaires emerged from pool play as a top-4 seed and beat Georgia 5-1 in the semifinals.
The event is an annual Little League Baseball tournament featuring 8-10-year-old and 9-11 state champions.
The 2025 Little League Baseball World Series (12-year-olds) is scheduled to begin on Aug. 13 in Williamsport, Pennsylvania.
Chaires Capitola Little League 11U All-Stars end summer in historic fashion
The Chaires 11-and-under All-Star team became the first Tallahassee team to win a Little League State Championship, according to its social media page.
The team won the state tourney in Brevard County, beating Keystone in the title game and advancing to the Little League Tournament of State Champions in North Carolina.
After dropping its opener in TOSC pool play, Chaires won four consecutive games to win the tournament.
Tied 6-6 in the title game, each team started extra innings with a runner on second base and no outs under tiebreaker rules.
Neither team was able to score in the seventh despite advancing runners to third base. Chaires also had a runner thrown out at the plate attempting to score from second bas on an infield error.
After holding Northwood’s runner at second base in the top of the eighth, Chaires pouced.
It advanced its runner to third base on a sacrifice bunt and loaded the bases on a walk and intentional walk, setting the stage for its dramatic walk-off victory.
Ross followed with the game-winning single. Pitcher Everett Fiore earned the win in relief, allowing just one hit in three innings.
Landon Del Prado went 3-for-3 with three doubles for Chaires. He was also the starting pitcher, throwing 3.2 innings. Kainoa Stephens added two hits and Ross had two hits and three RBI.
Chaires with finished with 10 hits.
Chaires Little League All-Stars
Players: Preston Bikus, Hayden Butler, Hunter Boylan, Kenny Chen, Landon Del Prado, Everett Fiore, Andrew McGee, Harrison Pawelczyk, Oliver Prowant, Jacob Ross, Xavier Schenck, Kainoa Stephens. Coaches: Aleck Del Prado (manager), Matt Prowant, Kyle Pawelczyk, Brad Bikus
This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: CHAMPS: Chaires Capitola Little League makes history, wins national title in dramatic win
Reporting by Jim Henry, Tallahassee Democrat / Tallahassee Democrat
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
