As the 11-12s team battles Little League for a chance to continue playing in the District 23 Tournament, we congratulate the West Side 9-10s Tournament team for reaching the finals in the District 23 games! After a disappointing first loss to Inwood, West Side went on to win the next 5 games, eliminating Kingsbridge, Peter Stuyvesant, Greenwich Village, East Harlem, and just yesterday North Riverdale (in a super fast, tension filled 3-2 game).
West Side gets to face Inwood again tomorrow, Monday July 14th at 5:30 in Inwood. If you have a chance, please go to the game and support the team. They will have to win against Inwood tomorrow, and then play them again (and win) on Wednesday (7/16) to win the District. The Inwood field is located at 218th Street and Indian Road (4 blocks west of Broadway).
The 11-12s tournament team, on the other hand, won the first game against Kingsbridge, and then lost against Next Millennium. With several irregularities with the team Next Millennium fielded, West Side reached out to District Administrators and requested that they that they take a closer look. West Side then went on to play Inwood, losing that game. After finding out last night (after the 9-10s played) that Next Millennium has been disqualified from playing in the 9-10s tournament, West Side President Tatiana Hoover, once again reached out to the District questioning the fact that Next Millennium was still allowed to field teams in other divisions.
It is our contention that Next Millennium should not be allowed to continue playing in the District 23 tournament -- they have been disqualified from the 9-10s, this after having been disqualified two years ago and given a one year ban. We also feel that the teams Next Millennium faced unfairly (Peter Stuyvesant, West Side and North Riverdale) should have a chance to compete fairly in tournament play.
Ms. Hoover has spent the last 2 days trying to get Little League to address the situation. It's our position that a League that has a history of cheating, that has been disqualified (and banned) in the past and yet continues to operate as usual, has as no place in Little League. That League should have all its teams -- in all age brackets disqualified -- and the burden of proof should at some point not rest with the law-abiding leagues. So far Little League has ignored our calls and emails.
Meanwhile, West Side 11-12s have continued to play – facing an Inwood all star team yesterday (winning 12-3) and they’re looking forward to games against Peter Stuyvesant on Wed. and Friday. The team has also entered a tournament in New Jersey later this month.
Check out the photos for all the tournament games in our Photo Gallery!