NJ Little League loses to Hawaii, still alive in World Series tournament

The Elmora Little League team from Elizabeth lost its suspended game with defending champion Central Hawaii of Maui 6-0 in World Series tournament play on Monday in Williamsport, Pennsylvania.

The game picked up at the top of the 5th inning after thunderstorms postponed the end of the game on Sunday afternoon.

The Troopers managed only four hits and had five strikeouts against Hawaii, but stay alive in the double-elimination tournament and play New England champion Barrington, Rhode Island on Tuesday night.

Elizabeth Mayor Chris Bollwage is optimistic about the Troopers chances of getting back on a winning track.

"We were down early in the Mid Atlantic Regionals. We won the first game, lost the second  and then went on to win the next four games. Some people on the Troopers think we got 'em right where we want 'em," Bollwage said.

The team's journey to the World Series began by defeating the Holbrook Little League from Jackson to win the 2019 state Joe Graziano State Little League Championship and the Mid-Atlantic Regionals, where Elizabeth only lost one game to capture the championship.

The team takes its name from New Jersey State Police trooper Thomas J. Hanratty, who was killed in 1992 during a traffic stop. He played in the Elmora Youth league as a boy, and members of the Troopers all have Hanratty’s badge number, 4971, on their uniforms. Menbers of the Hanratty family were at the game to cheer on the Troopers.

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