BERLIN- The Berlin Little League 11-12 All-Stars last weekend captured the Maryland state championship to advance to the Mid-Atlantic Regional tournament with a potential berth in the Little League World Series on the line.
Berlin beat Chesapeake City, 6-0, in the state championship game last Sunday to capture the title. Berlin scored early and rode a dominating pitching performance, along with timely hitting and impeccable fielding to the shutout in the championship game.
With the state title in hand, the Berlin 11-12 All-Stars advanced to the Mid-Atlantic Regional Tournament. Should Berlin succeed in the regional tournament, it could punch a ticket to the Little League World Series in Williamsport, Pa. with many of the games televised on ESPN.
Berlin starts its regional tournament action on Sunday against the Delaware state champion in Bristol, Conn. The tournament is double-elimination and Berlin will face New Jersey in its second-round game on Monday. Of course, sending the Berlin team to the regional tournament and ultimately the world series takes a lot of money and in the days since the state championship win on Sunday, an aggressive fundraising campaign has been launched to offset travel expenses.
Dozens of donations large and small have poured in from the local business community and private donors all week. The Berlin 11-12 All-Stars will have a big send-off party and fundraising event on Friday evening at the Northern Worcester Athletic Complex from 5-8 p.m.
The event will feature a charity five-person wiffleball tournament, food vendors and snowball stands, 50-50 raffles and other raffles. The team will officially be sent off around 7:45 p.m. and will travel to Bristol at the crack of dawn on Saturday for begin preparing for Sunday’s regional opener.
