Is Urbandale Still Alive in Little League Baseball World Series?

Urbandale’s trip to the Little League Baseball World Series ended Monday with a 6-5 final inning loss to a team from Sammamish, WA.

The Midwest Region champions lost their first game in the series in Williamsport, PA, won their second and opened play Monday in what they hoped would be a three-game streak to the championships, the Des Moines Register reported.

Monday’s loss ended a post-game season the Urbandale All-Stars have been dreaming about since they were barely old enough to swing a bat, manager Robert Ball said in an interview with Patch.

Win or lose, he said, the 14 Little League players have learned valuable lessons in character building, cooperation and appreciation for diversity. Half of the 16 teams, winnowed from 6,600 at the beginning of post-season play, are from countries other than the United States.