With a record-breaking crowd of nearly 12,000 fans, the Little League Western Regional Tournament has come to an end. Central East Maui overcame Eastvale with a score of 2-1 to secure the title of Little League West Region Champions.
In a brief conversation with the Eastvale manager, Corey Tatum, he explained that no matter the outcome, he knows that the Inland Empire is still proud of the team. He knows that the team is disappointed, but they had an excellent season.
Central East Maui will now be moving forward to the Little League World Series in Williamsport, Pennsylvania. We spoke to Evan Tavares, the team's starting pitcher, about how he and the team felt going into the championship.
“I felt good, and my entire team was pumped in the hotel room. I felt super good.”
Tavares led Maui to victory with thirteen strikeouts, and in two of his previous games, he struck out fourteen and fifteen players. Manager Daniel Bolduc claimed that Tavares’s performance was nothing unusual. After facing devastating fires in the past year, we questioned Bolduc about how he and the team felt to represent Maui.
“We’re doing this for the people of Maui. The support they’ve given us is unreal. I mean look at [the crowd], this is amazing in California.”
The team's fans celebrated at the end of the game with a Maui chant to show their support. Nevada from the Mountain Region and Washington from the Northwest Region will also be joining Maui in the Little League World Series.
