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17

Jul, 2024

Fairfax Nationals 10-12 Majors Win District 10 Title

Thanks to AP Sports Writer Ben Nuckols for the following recap.
Ryan Rawlings finally got to pitch with a lead, and there was little doubt he would hold it.
Grayson Marcinko provided the big hit Ryan and the Fairfax National 10-12 Majors All-Stars needed in the bottom of the fifth inning, a two-run single that broke a scoreless tie. Then Ryan returned to the mound to finish what he started in the District 10 championship game against SYA on Saturday, July 13 at Patriot Park North.
Through five innings, Ryan gave up no hits and faced one batter over the minimum. SYA broke up his no-hit bid with a one-out single – only the second ball that Ryan allowed to reach the outfield. Four pitches later, the game was over. Second baseman Henry Speidell fielded two grounders and Fairfax National was the District 10 champion.
The 2-0 win for manager Jeremy Boeing’s Big Red Machine gave Fairfax National its fourth Little League district title in the past six tournaments. It also completed Fairfax National’s first-ever sweep of the District 10 tournaments in the three Majors divisions – 10-12, 9-11 and 8-10. The sweep was the third in district history and first in 15 years: SYA East did it in 2007 and Chantilly American in 2009.
Many of the same Fairfax National players had fallen short in prior years as Fairfax American won the district title at the 9-11 level last year and at the 8-10 level in 2022. This year, the Big Red Machine got past their rivals and will continue to the state tournament, which begins on July 19 in Louisa County.
Fairfax National’s unbeaten five-game run through the district began on July 8 with a 17-0 win over Coles. Ryan began on the mound but only pitched one inning as Boeing kept his players’ arms fresh by restricting pitch counts. Ryan combined with Carter Boeing and Elliot Bartoletti on a three-inning one-hitter, but this game was all about the Fairfax offense.
Elliot went 3-for-3 with two doubles and four RBIs. Chuck Mathias also went 3-for-3, Sean McLane went 2-for-3 with a double and two RBIs, Ryan tripled and drove in two runs, and Jack Lynch had two hits. Grayson and Michael Borszich also contributed doubles as Fairfax scored five runs in the first inning, one in the second and a whopping 11 in the third to bring the game to an early conclusion.
Fairfax National had a much tougher victory the following night against Fairfax American at Chilcott Stadium, coming through thanks to some aggressive baserunning, solid defense and timely hitting.
Elliot came through with the tiebreaking run in the bottom of the fourth inning when he led off with a single, quickly stole second and, with one out, stole third on a fake bunt play. Four pitches later, Elliot zipped to the plate on a wild pitch to give Fairfax National a 5-4 lead.
That held up with Michael on the mound. He allowed one hit in three scoreless innings of relief, did not walk a batter and threw 24 of 34 pitches for strikes. And he got some first-rate defensive plays behind him. Shortstop Carter backhanded a grounder deep in the hole and threw to first baseman Connor Bartick for the final out in the fifth. In the sixth, with the potential tying run on second, center fielder Ryan made a leaping catch of a deep fly ball for the second out. Michael closed it out by inducing a grounder to second baseman Henry.
Fairfax National got some clutch hitting, too. Ryan singled with two outs in the first and came home on a single by Chuck.
In the third, the Big Red Machine trailed 2-1 when Connor led off with a single and Nathan Goodwyn followed with a base hit. An RBI grounder by Carter tied the game, and Fairfax National again came through with two outs. Ryan lined a single to center to make it 3-2, and Chuck drove him home with a double.
Fairfax American cut the deficit to 4-3 in the top of the fourth when Michael came in to pitch with no outs and runners on first and third. He retired the next three batters, with the tying run coming in on a fielder’s choice, and that set the stage for Elliot’s savvy baserunning in the bottom half of the inning.
Ryan, Chuck, Elliot and Nathan each went 2-for-2, with Nathan also contributing a double in the sixth.
The Big Red Machine posted a thorough and methodical 9-1 win over SYA in their final pool play game on Thursday, July 11 at Burke Field. The outcome hardly appeared in doubt after Fairfax wore out SYA’s pitchers to take a 4-1 lead through two innings, and Fairfax added one run in the fourth, two in the fifth and two in the sixth.
Jack, Carter, Chuck, Grayson and Henry had two hits apiece, and Carter drove in two runs. Pitchers Elliot, Jack, Henry and Michael combined to allow one unearned run on five hits and three walks.
Fairfax National picked up another machine-like victory the following night, 6-1 over Annandale-North Springfield in the district semifinals at Patriot Park North. Ryan got through 2 2/3 innings on 21 pitches, allowing one unearned run, and Carter went the rest of the way, giving up one hit and striking out five in 3 1/3 innings.
ANSLL took a brief lead on an error in the first inning, but it was erased in the span of three batters when Jack and Carter singled and Ryan ripped a double to center to score them both. Elliot added an RBI single to make it 3-1. The Big Red Machine padded their lead on an RBI double by Michael, an RBI single by Carter and a bases-loaded walk by Ryan.
Carter finished 3-for-3, and Elliot and Connor each went 2-for-2.
In the title game against SYA, Fairfax National put runners on base in all but one of the first four innings before finally coming through in the fifth.
Elliot led off with a single and Jack Hetzler lofted an opposite-field double to right, putting runners on second and third with one out. A bunt by Sean resulted in Elliot getting tagged out at the plate, but Sean alertly took second on the play. On the next pitch, Grayson singled to center and Sean followed Jack to the plate.
Shortly thereafter, Fairfax National was celebrating on the field and turning its thoughts to a state title run. Boeing and his assistants, Bill Marcinko and Jason Mathias, will be seeking the second-ever Little League state title for Fairfax and the first since Fairfax Dominion in 1973. Fairfax has been a tough out in recent tournaments, with the 2022 squad reaching the state semifinals.

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