LOYAL. LOCAL. COMPLETE.
For the 10U Paris Little League All-Stars, the quest for a state championship came to a premature end on Tuesday, July 16 after a 12-2 loss at the hands of top-seeded Hinsdale. Fans of both teams packed the stands and crowded the fences at Frost Field to catch the game.
According to Paris head coach Rowdy Brown, the loss stings, but he still admires the effort of his players.
“I'm super proud of them. They battled. They worked their butts off today,” he explained.
Brown and Co. faced an uphill battle against Hinsdale – a deep and talented team.
“That's a good team – hats off to those guys… I'd say they have a good chance of being the state champion,” Brown said.
Ultimately, Hinsdale proved Brown right, conquering Mendota 7-3 later that evening to claim the 10U Little League state title.
Hinsdale scored early and often against Paris. Paris’ Carter Wallen started strong from the mound, notching a strikeout against the second batter he faced after walking the first. Hinsdale responded, loading the bases on a fielding error and single.
A second walk from Wallen allowed the first Hinsdale run to cross home plate. The next batter grounded out to second baseman Easton Englum, but not before another runner slipped home. Finally, Englum picked up another assist to end the inning.
Paris kept the contest close in the bottom of the first. Englum, Kaelan Brown and Kanon Keys all found their way on-base with only one out early in the inning. Jordan Janis cranked a line drive to left field, scoring Englum and cracking the scoreboard for his team. The run was the only one Paris would claim in the first, as a strikeout and a fielder’s choice promptly ended the inning soon after.
With the first inning in the books, both teams settled in and locked down on defense. Any attempt to generate offense at the plate was stifled until the fourth inning when Hinsdale opened the floodgates.
The visiting team loaded the bases with no outs before embarking on a frontal assault at the plate, knocking in six straight runs to make the tally 8-1. Paris never recovered from the onslaught, allowing two more runs in the fifth. Nevertheless, they continued to fight to the bitter end.
Paris’ Nick Ford smacked a deep ball down the left field line, pulling his teammate Kaysen McManus across home plate.
Hinsdale planted the final nail in the coffin with a pair of runs in the top of the sixth inning – one resulted from a wild pitch by Janis and a second came after a bases-loaded walk.
Offensively, Englum led the charge for Paris, tallying three of his team’s nine hits and scoring a run. Keys recorded two runs, while Ford and Janis notched one RBI on one hit a piece. McManus and Henry Gilbert also made contact with the ball.
Wallen opened the game with three strikeouts, allowing three hits and six runs (four earned) in three innings of action. Janis pitched two innings, allowing five hits and four runs, all earned, while recording three strikeouts.
Brown allowed two earned runs in a brief stint on the mound.
The loss, combined with their previous record, placed the 10U Paris All-Stars squarely in third place, above Olney and below Hinsdale and Mendota.
According to assistant coach Zack Janis, third place is impressive for a team with as much youth as Paris.
“Most of them are eight, nine and some ten (year-olds), and to do what they did, it’s crazy,” he said.
Janis explained the difference in resources between Paris and other teams can impact games, but the effort of his players is a source of pride for him.
“That coach told me they all have professional hitting coaches and pitching coaches… and they (Hinsdale) recruit from a big area,” Janis said. “Here we are in the little town of Paris, Illinois and, you know, they did it – (third) in the state. So we’ll be back next year and I’m super proud of them.”