CENTERVILLE — For family and friends, it mattered less that Warner Robins American repeated as Little League Softball World Series champions than that they got there again.
OK, it mattered a little bit at Meldino’s Pizza on Wednesday night as about 50 supporters huddled amid the remnants of hot wings, pizzas and soft drinks and gasped with each slap of the bat and slug of the ball.
“This is four years in the making for us. We pretty much didn’t have softball,” said Steve Stout, a volunteer with WRALL. “We went door-to-door and recruited all the help and players we could. Now, they are in Portland playing the best they ever have.”
The game was almost an anti-climax, amid all the shouts of “Show ’em Georgia” and “Warner Robins.” Family and friends felt the 8-6 win against California long before the dust settled on the playing field.
“I don’t even have to wait until the end,” said Joey Stella, whose brother and niece — manager Roger Stella and second baseman Sierra Stella — were on display on a dozen TVs while he chatted away. “I know they are going to win. Roger lives this game. Those young ladies are the best in the world to us.
“Nobody will forget that.”
As the California score ticked up two runs with two outs in the final inning, most every adult in the room leapt up holding their breath, willing the final out from almost 3,000 miles away. The last strike brought a sweep of shouts and cheers to an almost silent room.
When the team comes home the celebration will begin in Houston County. On Friday, the girls will take a bus tour through the city starting at about 6:30 p.m. at Tractor Supply on Watson Boulevard. The bus will wind through the city on its way to the WRALL fields at the Flint Energies Sports Complex on Snellgrove Drive. The team will be honored at a public ceremony there at 7 p.m.
“I’d be behind them and throw ’em a party, win, lose or draw,” said Mike Black, owner of Meldino’s. “It’s all about the girls and the team and the families that make up this. ... We won’t soon forget their efforts.”
To contact writer Shelby Spires, call 744-4494.
