Grosse Pointe Park 12s Win Monday's Game in Extra Innings

Grosse Pointe Park 12s International Team was down by six runs early in Monday's game—their fourth at the Great Lakes Regional in Indianapolis—but came back with strong defense and strong hitting. 

The win means they will advance to a semifinal game within the tournament—getting them one step closer to the 2011 Little League World Series, Grosse Pointe Park Little League Board President Marty McMillan said.

The semifinal game is scheduled to begin at 11 a.m. Wednesday and will be televised on ESPN2. The Park will play LaGrange, KY, which is ranked second in the tournament standings. Meanwhile, Ohio and Indiana will play at 3 p.m. Wednesday—they are the fourth- and first-ranked teams. 

The winners of those games will advance to the Great Lakes Regional Championship game on Aug. 13, which will also be televised. 

The Park has played four games during the tournament. They won 2 and lost 2 and are ranked third in the Great Lakes Regional Standings.

The outcomes:

• Friday vs. Burlington, WI, the Park lost 7-1.
• Saturday vs. Rock Falls, IL, the Park won 8-2.
• Sunday vs. Evansville, IN, the Park lost 22-0.
• Monday vs. Hamilton, OH, the Park won 7-6

"You've got to give the kids credit for keeping their heads high," McMillan said Monday, noting their mercy loss earlier in the week. "You get beat 22-0 ... it's easy to feel defeated just taking the field."

The team is celebrating tonight and all of the teams in the tournament are taking Tuesday off as a day of rest, McMillan said.

He watched the Park's win on Saturday in Indianapolis and described the whole tournament as unbelievable. From the volunteers to the umpires to the tournament officials and even the maintenance of the fields, McMillan said it's such a great experience.

The competition of the other teams is also a sight to see, he said. "The competition is incredible. There are very few mistakes and if there is one, someone capitalizes on it."

The Grosse Pointe Park Little League had a team advance to the Great Lakes Regional in 1993 but they did not advance beyond it, McMillan said. The last time Grosse Pointe players were at the Little League World Series after taking the Great Lakes Regional championship title was in 1979, when a team from the Grosse Pointe Woods-Shores Little League won. That team did not win in the World Series.