The 2026 Maryland Little League 10-12 Baseball state championship tournament at Halfway National opened with three winners bracket quarterfinals on Saturday, July 18. Here’s what happened:
Berlin 8, Brunswick Railroaders 7 (7 innings)
AJ Nelson scored on a passed ball in the bottom of the seventh inning, giving Berlin the victory in an entertaining extra-inning opener.
Berlin rallied from four runs down early to take a two-run lead, then survived Brunswick’s sixth-inning surge.
Brunswick took a 1-0 lead on Jack Rhodes’ sacrifice fly in the first innings, and doubled the advantage on Brayden Mobley’s RBI single in the second inning.
Gus VanKlompenberg’s sac fly in the bottom of the second inning got Berlin on the board.
Brunswick went up 5-1 on Rhodes’ three-run home run in the third inning.
Berlin rallied, chipping away to take the lead. Corbin Derr’s RBI single cut the deficit to 5-2 in the bottom of the third.
Berlin hit a trio of RBI singles in the fourth, by Jackson Howell, Declan Soares and Jonah Isett. Isett’s single tied the game, and the go-ahead run scored on an error.
Cooper Smith extended Berlin’s lead to 7-5 in the fifth with an RBI single.
The first two Brunswick batters in the sixth inning walked. They later scored on wild pitches to tie the game.
Maryland Little League Tournament schedule
- Game 1: Winners bracket quarterfinals, Berlin 8, Brunswick Railroaders 7
- Game 2: Winners bracket quarterfinals, Dorchester vs. North East, July 18, 11:30 a.m.
- Game 3: Winners bracket quarterfinals, South Baltimore vs. Hughesville, July 18, 7 p.m.
- Game 4: Winners bracket semifinals, Hub City vs. Berlin, July 19, 9 a.m.
- Game 5: Winners bracket quarterfinals, Game 2 winner vs. Game 3 winner, July 19, 11:30 a.m.
- Game 6: Elimination bracket first round, Game 2 loser vs. Game 3 loser, July 19, 7 p.m.
- Game 7: Elimination bracket quarterfinals, Game 6 winner vs. Game 4 loser, July 20, 5:30 p.m.
- Game 8: Elimination bracket quarterfinals, Brunswick Railroaders vs. Game 5 loser, July 20, 8 p.m.
- Game 9: Winners bracket final, Game 4 winner vs. Game 5 winner, July 21, 5:30 p.m.
- Game 10: Elimination bracket semifinal, Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner, July 21, 8 p.m.
- Game 11: Elimination bracket final, Game 9 loser vs. Game 10 winner, July 22, 7 p.m.
- Game 12: Championship round, Game 9 winner, vs. Game 11 winner, July 23, 7 p.m.
- Game 13 (if necessary): Championship round, Game 12 winner vs. Game 12 loser, July 24, 7 p.m.
When does the Maryland state champion play next?
The Maryland state champion will advance to the Mid-Atlantic Tournament in Bristol, Connecticut, which begins Aug. 9. The Mid-Atlantic champion will play in the Little League World Series in South Williamsport, Pennsylvania, beginning Aug. 19.
This article originally appeared on The Herald-Mail: Berlin tops Brunswick in extra innings to start Maryland state tourney
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