WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. – After a dominant 9-0 win over the Mid-Atlantic team from Newtown, Pennsylvania, the Boerne Little League players and coach discussed their win on Thursday night.
Boerne received a jolt thanks to Kole Newson’s grand slam in the top of the 5th inning. In the middle of his at-bat, Newson said position and swing adjustments made all the difference.
“It was really cool because, like, the pitch before I just, like, dipped my shoulder,” Kole Newson said. “But then, I just flattened my swing out and just, like, saw the ball really good and hit it hard.”
Newson’s dad, Justin, is also Boerne’s head coach. Justin Newson shared the perspective of watching his son and player break the game open with a grand slam.
“It takes to another level for sure. It was fun to see,” Justin Newson said. “I think that was his first grand slam ever, so to do it on this kind of stage is, really cool. Really cool to see in a tight game.”
Julian Hurst was phenomenal on the mound, striking out 10 batters in just four innings of work. Hurst kept the Mid-Atlantic team at bay.
“It was a great experience,” Hurst said. “I mean, I’ve always loved pitching since I started playing baseball, and to do it at this stage, it’s a great experience. But I just focused on keeping the ball in the zone and inducing contact.”
Another big slugger in the game against Mid-Atlantic was Doc Mogford, who hit a grand slam in the regional tournament to help get the Boerne team to Williamsport.
Mogford followed that up with a solo home run Thursday in the 5th inning to push the Boerne lead to 9-0. After the victory, Mogford discussed his approach at the plate.
“My approach at the plate is just trying to hit the line drives, trying to be (a) tough out,” Mogford said. “I’m just trying to put it in play, make the fielders do the work. But if you hit a line drive, sometimes, you get under it and it could go far. I mean, just trying to hit line drives is what you want. Ground balls line drives, so you make sure to let the defense work.”
The Boerne team will have the weekend off before taking on the winner of the Southeast vs. Northwest matchup at 6 p.m. Monday.
You can listen to the full Boerne postgame press conference by clicking this link.
More Boerne at the Little League World Series coverage on KSAT: