He was talking about the West Side Little League All-Stars after their runner-up finish in the 2021 Little League World Series, but he could have been analyzing the impact of two-time Olympic gold medalist swimmer Zach Apple from Trenton, two-time judo gold medalist and undefeated professional fighter Kayla Harrison from Middletown, two rowers who qualified to compete in coastal rowing championships for Team USA and sisters from Hamilton set to appear on The Voice.
‘They represented us in the best way possible’
West Side, made up of players 12 and younger from Butler County, played in its fifth World Series in the organization’s history and the second place finish was the best for any Ohio team.
On Sunday, West Side lost the championship game 5-2 to Taylor North (Mich.) on national TV. The team played seven games, going 5-2, all shown on ESPN.
“People who may never have heard of Hamilton now have a better idea,” Archiable said. “Those kids elevated us to a level we may not have got to without them. They represented us in the best way possible.”
The team was greeted by family and friends Monday night after returning home from South Williamsport, Pa. Five Wilson Middle School seventh-graders, all West Side players, were given a “red carpet return” reception Tuesday morning when they started their school year two weeks after their classmates.
Wilson’s first-year Principal, Kristin Yordy said she watched the LLWS and was impressed by how the players performed under such intense pressure.
“These kids are the real deal,” she said. “That’s a testament to the parents, coaches and community.”
Then a community rally and parade was held Thursday night as the players rode in vintage cars from the West Side Little League Fields to the RiversEdge stage at Marcum Park.
Harrison one win from $1 million — again
Harrison, who grew up in Middletown before moving to Boston to continue her judo training, says she fights “out of Middletown,” though she lives in Florida where she has custody of her niece and nephew.
Last month, Harrison, 31, pummeled Genah Fabian with a first-round TKO in the women’s lightweight semifinal of the Professional Fighters League tournament broadcast on ESPN from Hollywood, Fla.
With the victory, she advanced to the finals and faces Taylor Guardado Oct. 27 at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino. The winner receives $1 million. Harrison won the 2019 PFL title and last year’s was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic.
After her semifinal win, she was asked about the finals: “I told you: One by one, they’re all gonna fall. So doubt me now, but I’m gonna show you how great I am.”
‘Oh my gosh, we did it’
The TV ratings for the 2021 Summer Olympics had to have spiked in Butler County on a late Sunday night in July.
Apple, a 2015 Edgewood High School graduate who later starred at Auburn University and Indiana University, swam the anchor leg in the 4x100 relay and 400 medley relay as the American relay teams won two gold medals in Tokyo.
Apple’s former coaches, teammates, his family and friends and fans of Olympic swimming cheered him on as he led the U.S. to the gold in the 400 relay.
In the finals, Apple posted the fastest time, finishing in 46.69 seconds.
Back home in Trenton, a billboard was erected honoring the 24-year-old for qualifying for his first Olympics. Businesses throughout the city painted their windows to support of Apple and an ice cream shop created a special dessert called the “Zapple.”
Apple’s cousin, Joseph Blust, who was there at the start of Apple’s swimming career at Walnut Grove Swim Club in Trenton, watched with a group of their high school friends.
“We have a small group chat with our former teammates all together,” Blust said, “and we all were just talking during the race, and then Zach jumps in the chat and says, ‘Oh my gosh, we did it!’”
‘Wild cousin of flat-water rowing’
Two athletes, one from Butler County and members of the Great Miami Rowing Center, have qualified for Team USA to compete in coastal rowing championships near Lisbon, Portugal.
Cassidy Norton, a Ross High School graduate who will row for Robert Morris University in Pennsylvania, qualified with fellow Great Miami rower Chris Bak, 25, of eastern Cincinnati in single-person boats.
“Coastal rowing is kind of the wild cousin of flat-water rowing,” Norton said.
Before those championships, Coach Marc Oria will take them to his hometown of Barcelona, Spain, this month so they can train three weeks in the waves of the Mediterranean Sea.
‘We are thrilled and excited’
Two sisters from Hamilton could hardly wait to tell the world they would appear on NBC’S The Voice.
“OMG,” they wrote on their Facebook page. “It has been so hard to keep this secret!!!! We are so thrilled and excited to finally be able to announce...”
The Cunningham Sisters, Macie and Marie, are expected to appear during the season premiere Sept. 20. Earlier this year, they told the Journal-News they sing to “uplift people,” and thrive off the energy they receive from their audiences, at churches and other venues.
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