ONLINE FIRST: Coquitlam claims Little League crown

So that's why they're called the Coquitlam A's.

The hosts earned near-perfect grades Thursday –– and all tournament, in fact –– as they thumped the Medicine Hat Moduline Mets 10-6 to win the Canadian Junior Little League national crown at Blue Mountain Park. The victory advances the A's to the World Series for 13- and 14-year-old players starting Sunday, August 9 in Taylor, Mich.

Coquitlam reliever Jeff Heidema got Medicine Hat's Connor Young to strikeout swinging at an off-speed pitch for the game's final out in the top of the seventh inning and the A's reserves and coaching staff spilled from the dugout to join their teammates in a raucous infield celebration, with gloves and hats being flung through the warm evening air up toward a darkening, star-lit sky.

Several members of the Coquitlam Junior Little League national-champion team of 1999 –– the last time were on hand to present the current players with victory caps. Later, A's players scampered around the diamond packing their victory banner, greeted by hoots and applause from their large gathering of fans, many of whom were stacked four-high on aluminum bleachers around the infield and stood three deep around the outfield fencing during the contest to cheer the locals on. A myriad of red and white balloons were unleashed and sent soaring high above the centre field fence as A's players joyously paraded past.

Thursday's win marked the third time the A's beat the Prairie representatives in the six-team affair and by a staggering 29-9 aggregate, with Coquitlam's only loss in the event coming via a 1-0 defeat to their vaunted B.C. rivals, Whalley, in round-robin play last Sunday. Coquitlam won all five of their other games and gained a bye in the final, while the Mets eliminated Whalley 5-3 in Wednesday's semifinal.

In the final, the A's overcame an early 3-0 deficit by exploding for 10 runs on seven hits in the bottom of the third inning, with a three-run rainbow shot over the left field fence by catcher Brian Nicholas keying the rally. The Mets managed two runs in the next inning and another in the top of the sixth but Heidema and the A's fielders shutting them down the rest of the way.

"It feels great. This was a long time coming for these boys," raved Coquitlam coach Larry Park. "Medicine Hat is a great, great team. We couldn't take them lightly. We knew that going in."

Junichi Swope and Tyler Yorko both lashed two-run doubles during the A's offensive outburst in the bottom of the third frame.

"This is a dream come true," the third baseman Swope said later. "When we were down 3-0, we knew we had to get it back and we did. We settled down defensively and did the job."

But, again, it was Nicholas's three-run dinger that sparked the rally, boosting Coquitlam to its first lead at 5-3 –– one they'd never relinquish.

"It felt great," Nicholas said of his home-run rocket. "I made good contact. It felt nice and easy."

Medicine Hat manager Kevin Friesen said allowing the A's to score double-digits in the bottom of the third inning was a crushing blow for his squad.

"We had the one bad inning and allowed 10 runs and that did us in," Friesen said. "Coquitlam beat us three times. They're very deserving champions. I'm sure they'll represent Canada well [at the World Series]."

Quebec's Notre Dame de Glace Lynx were chosen the tournament's Most Sportsmanlike Team.