TAYLOR, Mich. (WGNS) - The Murfreesboro Little League Junior team kept its championship dreams alive on Tuesday (August 11th) by eliminating New Jersey from the Junior League World Series with an 8-4 victory. Facing elimination, the local squad upped its tournament record to 2-1 and sent the East Regional champion, Freehold Township Little League from Freehold, New Jersey, home with a 0-2 record. Rutherford County residents following the action saw a complete team performance that keeps Middle Tennessee in the national spotlight.
Tennessee was led by the key quartet of KJ Taylor, Eli Goodman, Landon Fettig, and Angel Narvaez. Narvaez delivered a phenomenal performance on all fronts. He started on the mound, pitching two shutout innings before shifting to left field, where he halted a fourth-inning New Jersey rally with a spectacular diving catch. Narvaez capped off his day by leading off the bottom of the fifth inning with a massive 335-foot home run to right field. Through the first 10 games of the tournament, only two home runs have been hit—one by Taylor's Khiry Harris and this blast by Narvaez.
Taylor and Fettig sparked the offense with three hits each, including a two-run double by Taylor. Goodman chipped in with two hits to round out the multi-hit performances. Taylor then took the mound in the seventh inning with the bases loaded, stopping New Jersey's final comeback attempt by striking out the last two batters of the game.
With the win, Tennessee advances to the next round of play on Wednesday where they will face an opponent to be determined.
