What a showing from our NSW teams at the 2025 Little League Nationals held in Blacktown, Sydney! This year, we couldn’t punch the World Series ticket, but congratulations to silver medallists Ryde Red, with Manly maroon finishing in third place and Macarthur in fifth, overall.
Baseball NSW proudly congratulates Ryde Red on earning their place in the Grand Final. They faced off against Brisbane North in a tough battle for the Gold Medal and a coveted spot at the Little League World Series in Williamsport.
Although they fell short, we are incredibly proud of their effort and achievement in winning the silver medal at the recently concluded Little League Nationals!
Ryde fell on the other end of a complete shutout game from Brisbane’s Braxton Black, who struck out 12 batters and allowed only four hits and two walks.
Still, Ryde’s pesky pitching staff of Miles Powell, Flynn Helliar, and Jenson Koch gave the opposing team major trouble as well. Brisbane only managed three hits all game, resorting to walks, errors, and passed balls to move around the diamond.
Both Ryde and Brisbane dominated Pool A, moving on to the gold medal game having lost only once. Likewise, Manly ruled over Pool B, going undefeated until losing to Brisbane at the semi-final.
Manly followed closely, withstanding a late rally from Gold Coast in the last inning to win the bronze medal 6-4. Charlie Fegan started the game and pitched 5.0 innings, striking out 11 batters.
Strong play from Manly gave them a 6-1 lead into the last inning. However, Chris Hill of Gold Coast led his team all the way back with a three-run homer off the top of the wall, cutting the lead to 6-4.Still, Manly’s early play was too much to overcome. They hit first with three runs deep in the second. Gus Phegan scored on a bases loaded walk while Tyson Storey scored another run on an error. Koen Needs also scored on a sacrifice fly. Congratulations to Manly on a tough fought win for the bronze.
Meanwhile, Macarthur also rode a 4-1 record from Pool A, though they bowed out of the three-way tie to advance to the semi-final. They also withstood another late rally from Southern Titans to secure the 8-6 win.
Like Manly, Macarthur built a huge lead, 6-0, heading into the late innings. However, an Aiden Wieman triple scored three runs for the Titans, making it a game in the last inning. Despite Macarthur’s bats going cold, making only four hits throughout the game, they still found a way to move their runners around. Lucas Falls went 1-1 and walked twice, and he also had two runs with an RBI.
These NSW squads comprise three of the top five placings Nationally, highlighting an unreal strength across the board in our LL division.
Once again BNSW wishes to congratulate all the NSW squads for representing the state with such strength at the Little League Nationals this year! We can’t wait to see what the future holds for these teams!