Franklin Square boys set to play in World Series

After the Franklin Square Little League Junior Boys team fell to Rhode Island 19-9 on Aug. 9, the players had one chance to redeem themselves for an Eastern Regional championship. The team shook off the defeat and focused on taking on the same team in a rematch. The boys knocked off Rhode Island 10-8 in the second matchup of the day, and with that clinched a spot at the Junior League World Series in Taylor, Mich.

Before the Franklin Square team set foot in New Jersey for the Eastern Regionals, it had to first capture the New York State title. The boys were the first team from Franklin Square to win the state title. Their success didn’t come as a surprise to manager Jimmy O’Connell. “We always had the potential,” he said. “We always had a really good team.”

The majority of the boys, who are 13 and 14, have been playing together since they were 8. The team, which consists of All-Stars drawn from the Franklin Square Little League, has also played together on the travel team, the Franklin Square Colts, which O’Connell also coaches. That depth of experience and level of friendship among the boys is key to their success, O’Connell said. “They’re all friends. They all hang out together,” he said. “They have a really good camaraderie.”

Franklin Square Little League President Richard Oliver echoed O’Connell’s thoughts. “They’re like one big family,” he said, adding that the boys’ ability to handle difficult situations reflects a high maturity level for such a young team. “They’ve been through the ups and downs,” Oliver said. “The way they handle it and respond to it is well beyond their years.”

The ability to not buckle under pressure paid off in the most important game of their young lives. The team managed to put the big loss to Rhode Island behind it and focus on the one game that separated it from the Junior League World Series. Early mistakes and sloppy plays in the field led to the 19-9 loss, but the team was able to get back to its typical relaxed style of play, O’Connell said.

“They completely forgot about that other game,” he said. “They really wanted to go to the World Series and they blocked it out.”