Posted at 7:10 p.m., Saturday, August 23, 2003
Hilo reaches title game of Cal Ripken Series
Associated Press
ABERDEEN, Md. — Hilo and Mexico won today and earned berths in the Cal Ripken World Series (12-year-olds) championship game.Jeremy Crivello’s two-out, two-run homer in the bottom of the sixth and final inning gave Hilo a 5-3 win over West Linn, Ore., in the United States division title game.
Mexico beat Australia 8-1 to win the International division title game and advance to the world championship game tomorrow.
For Mexico, Miguel Rodriguez threw a four-hitter and had three hits of his own to help his team rout Australia.
West Linn surprised Glen Allen, Va., 2-1, in Friday’s semifinal and gave Hilo problems today. The Oregon team scratched out two runs in the top of the first off Hilo pitcher Aisha Sueda, who is the only girl in the tournament and later took a 3-1 lead on Justin Williams RBI double in the fourth.
But Hilo came back, tying the game on Sam Manu-Olevao’s two-run bloop single in the fifth. Crivello then got the game-winning homer in the sixth, hitting a 1-1 pitch from Ryan Barnes far over the right-field fence.
Sueda went the distance and scattered eight hits. She worked out of several jams to get the win.
