The county Little League 9 to 11 All-Star team will play in the regional tournament after battling back from an early loss to win the Maryland state championship.
The team faces regional play in Beverly, Massachusetts this week. They will compete against state champions from across the Northeast from Delaware to Pennsylvania.
Showing Resilience
Manager Matt Hodges said the team’s championship run was defined by resilience.
“We lost our first game,” Hodges said. “It kind of shook us a little bit. We had a pretty long road to get back to the championship game.”
The team responded by winning every game the rest of the way, including two championship victories to claim the state title.
“Really the message all week was just keep battling,” Hodges said. “Leave it all on the line. Don’t leave this tournament thinking, ‘I should have run harder or I didn’t try hard enough.’”
Learning from Loss
Assistant coach José Sánchez said the opening loss became one of the team’s biggest learning moments.
“That loss initially kind of set us up to learn a great lesson,” Sánchez said. “In life and in baseball, you’re going to get knocked down. You’re going to lose sometimes. But the more you fight, the more you believe in yourself, good outcomes come from it.”
For Sánchez, coaching goes beyond wins and losses.
“Baseball is an amazing opportunity for parents and coaches to teach kids a bunch of life lessons,” he said. “Every time you’re on the field, you can find an opportunity to teach a kid something.”
Courtesy: Dre Kless
“It was really… I was really happy when we won it,” said player Carson Hodges. “We lost the first game and we had to win every single game to make it to the championship. We made it to the last game in the championship and we won it.”
Lucas Sánchez said the coaches helped keep the team focused after the opening defeat.
“Everybody was down on themselves,” he said. “The coaches brought us back up like nothing happened. We had to win every game for the tournament, and we did it.”
Practice, Practice, Practice
James Culliton said preparation and confidence helped the team recover.
“It was an amazing feeling. It was really glorious,” Culliton said. “A lot of practice, mentally and physically. It was about being confident after getting that loss.”
As the team is playing for regionals, the coaches are reminding players to enjoy the experience.
“I think at the end of all of this, when it comes to baseball, it’s about having fun,” assistant coach Brendan Bila said. “This is a once-in-a-lifetime chance to travel with your friends, represent the state of Maryland and play baseball.”
Family Matters
Bila also recognized the commitment families have made throughout the season.
“A lot of the parents make a lot of sacrifices for their kids over the season,” he said. “The team isn’t just the players on the field. It’s your parents, it’s the caregivers, the people that support you throughout this.”
The Road to Victory
The regional tournament will feature 3 state champion teams from across the Northeast. Montgomery County will compete against Delaware, Pennsylvania and Washington, D.C., The top team will win the East Region 9-11 Little League Baseball 2026 Tournament.
Regardless of the outcome, Hodges hopes the players remember the journey.
“We’re really proud of how the boys played,” he said. “They’re a really cohesive group. They like being around each other, and it was fun that we were able to win it and enjoy it together.”
