IT'S NORWAY! Boys Earn Improbable District Title
Click the thumbnails to see photos and videos, and the Audio buttons to hear from Norway's Eli Rosatti, Zayden Rochon, Owen Cronick, and Miles Langon. Also click to hear the RRN radio broadcast replay.
QUINNESEC---The Norway Major Little League All-Stars (age 11-12) flipped the script on their next-door neighbors Thursday night, posting a 12-5 win over Kingsford to win an improbable district championship, and earn a spot in next week's state tournament in suburban Detroit.
Kingsford had posted a 7-0 win over Norway earlier in the tournament, with its top pitcher Connor Chrisman being tough to hit. And when the two teams met again Wednesday night, Kingsford carried a one-run lead into the bottom of the sixth and final inning before Owen Cronick and Miles Langin came through with big hits to help Norway get the walk-off win.
But Thursday night, Chrisman was on the mound again for Kingsford. The Norway boys weren't impressed, as they pounded the ball for an early 6-0 lead and held off a couple of Kingsford rally attempts behind the pitching of Eli Rosatti. And so, in a span of 24 hours, what was a probable Kingsford trip to Grosse Pointe became a heartbreak for the Maize and Blue.
And, out of the loser's bracket, it's Norway that will play on next week in suburban Detroit.
“It's kind of like what Esky did to us in that 10u tournament (in 2022),” Rosatti said. “We went undefeated and they came back and beat us, and so I guess this is a tradition. My stuff was moving and they couldn't hit me, first round. Second round, they were a little better, and the third round, they were on me.”
And he got plenty of run support this time against Connor Chrisman, the best of the Kingsford pitchers, who had shut down Norway in that 7-0 Kingsford win earlier.
“Last time we faced Connor, we hit it hard, and it went straight to people,” Rosatti said. “This time, we were smoking it, and also making weak contact. But those were to places where they weren't, so we got them through!”
And by the time Kingsford finally got to Rosatti, he and his Norway teammates had a big enough lead to easily hold off the Kingsford rallies. And now, improbably, Norway is headed to the Motor City.
“It sounds like so much fun,” an excited Rosatti said. “My mom is actually going there to spend time with one of her friends, so she gets to watch my games!”
Center fielder Miles Langin played a big part in Norway's huge walk-off win on Wednesday night, and he was even more happy after Thursday's championship win.
“Stay in there and make contact,” Langin said of that Wednesday comeback that forced Thursday's winner-take-all game. “I just hit it out to center field and it was deep enough to tag up and we got the winning run home.”
And what about the championship win Thursday night?
“We had good hits. We had timely hits when we needed them,” Langin said. “Our pitching and our fielding was really good.”
Indeed they were. Rosatti came within two outs of throwing a complete game for Norway, and his teammates made just two errors in the game, while Kingsford made six errors on its defense. And now, a trip of a lifetime awaits these Norway kids.
“I've been down to East Lansing, but I've never been to Detroit!” Langin said.
Norway first baseman Zayden Rochon was also extremely happy with the turnaround, since he is the one who had to pitch in that Wednesday night game that almost sent Kingsford downstate with the District Ten banner. Rochon gave up 14 base hits and all seven Kingsford runs, but did not walk a batter and struck out seven.
“I thought our defense could have been a little bit better, but our hitting was good at the end,” Rochon said, and then added about Thursday's win, “we had nothing to lose. We had the team with the most confidence. Our coaches said that we had 'full house money' or something like that.”
Okay, that's a gambling metaphor that young Rochon is not yet aware of! But, he does know about what it means to be going to Detroit?
“Just spectacular,” Rochon said with a huge grin.
The Norway team is also heading to Grosse Pointe largely because of the play of left fielder Owen Cronick. Cronick delivered the triple that tied Wednesday night's game in the final inning, and then on Thursday, he ended the game with a highlight reel catch of Chrisman's liner to left field with two men on. The throw to third base doubled off a runner, and that's how Norway ended its championship victory.
But first, what about his big hit in Wednesday night's last-minute rally?
“I hit the ball to center and he dropped it,” Cronick said. “I got to third, and I scored Jaxon (Walker). And then Miles hit it, and I tagged up, and I scored! It feels good.”
And what about the mindset coming into Thursday's championship game?
“We came in with confidence,” Cronick said. “We weren't bragging because we won yesterday.”
Cronick was matter-of-fact when describing his championship-clinching web gem.
“So, I was running. The ball was hit, and I just jumped, and I caught it,” Cronick said. “I just threw it to Jaxon, and then he threw it to second. He (Griffin Johnson) didn't tag up, so I guess we got the three outs.”
Kingsford never gave up, even after a nightmare second inning in which Norway scored five times and nothing went right for the guys in Blue and Gold. Dylan Fortier, Johnson, and Will Rice all had two hits for Kingsford. In fact, the Kingsford boys hit the ball hard as the game went on, but the Norway defense always seemed to be in the perfect spot.
Cam Trepanier, wrapping up a great tournament while batting in the #11 spot in the Kingsford batting order, delivered two runs with a base hit in the fifth inning.
But now, less than one month after the Norway High School baseball team made its historic run to the state semifinals at Michigan State University, this group of young Norway boys has a chance to make some noise in Grosse Pointe.
Norway's first game will be on Friday, July 19, at 6:00 p.m. ET. A second Upper Peninsula team, Negaunee, will also play in that 16-team state tournament
