Bonney Lake/Sumner Little League players thought they must be dreaming.

As the Bonney Lake, Washington all-star team’s Northwest championship game against Oregon approached, players witnessed photos they had trouble comprehending. No way were the Seattle Mariners wearing Bonney Lake/Sumner Little League jerseys as they warmed up that day. Were they?

Indeed, it was true. Most of those players are heroes to the Bonney Lake players who reside a short drive from Seattle, but on this day, it was the Mariners looking up at them. A pregame video several players sent the same day also had these players seeing stars.

“That was amazing,” Bonney Lake/Sumner Little League president Alexis Ramos said. “I’m not sure they understand the impact they’ve made when your Major League home team is watching your Little League game in the clubhouse, wearing your jerseys and wishing you well.”

And that about sums up how big Bonney Lake has become this summer. This is a small-town team with a big league following.

A league which had never won a 12U state championship before 2022 now is at the Little League World Series for the second time since that year. Bonney Lake, with a population near 23,000, played its first Series game Friday at Lamade Stadium and has captivated its region … again.

“Our community is absolutely amazing. There were so many watch parties going on and places that were packed,” Ramos said. “To see the community come together is inspiring for these families and players. I’m at a loss for words because it’s just been a remarkable experience.”

From the players’ perspective, it does not get much better than seeing the Mariners wearing their jerseys, watching their games and wishing them well. But the dream will really hit home Sunday when those same Mariners come to Williamsport and play the New York Mets at Bowman Field. At both Lamade and Volunteer Stadiums during the day and Bowman Field at night, those teams likely will get some time together.

The only question there might be, which team is more excited to meet the other? At this point it feels like a reciprocal relationship because as Bonney Lake heated up this summer, so did the Mariners who went from looking at a steep climb to going neck-and-neck with the Houston Astros in the American League West Division.

“I think when the kids saw the Mariners doing what they were doing and sending them videos and wearing their jerseys, it just gave them that much more momentum,” Ramos said. “I think it really lifted them to another level.”

And that’s mighty impressive because Bonney Lake has played at a Seattle Space Needle level all summer. The Northwest champions entered the Series undefeated, going 11-0 and pummeling opponents by a 142-50 margin. That run included navigating a strong District 10 field which included defending regional champion South Hill an bulldozer-like run through regionals when Bonney Lake scored 43 runs in three games.

There are some new faces this season, including manager Scott Seibert. But there also is a level of familiarity not just among teammates but among Series experiences with Hiatt Seibert, Cole Sehlin having brothers who played on the 2022 Bonney Lake Series qualifier.

All the pieces have fit and Bonney Lake has again captivated its community. And, yes, the winning is nice, but fans also salute the players for who they are away from the field as well.

“This is an incredible group of kids. They love and support each other,” Ramos said. “They are constantly trying to lift each other up. They’re such great kids and it’s incredible to watch their dreams come true.”

The Series felt like some distant dream just a few years earlier for Bonney Lake. The league produced some excellent teams over the years, but Washington features a loaded state tournament field and none could have find their way past it.

That 2022 team changed everything and tore down that long-standing wall. The impact that team made immediately was felt not just in the form of showing aspiring players that it’s OK to dream the biggest dreams, but also in sheer numbers. After enrollments had grown stagnant for a few years, Bonney Lake saw a spike in participation. There was a rapid bounce in 2023 and numbers kept growing from there.

Expect another boom this upcoming spring because it’s not just the adults caught up in this team’s success, but more importantly for the league, future Little League players.

“That 2022 team was phenomenal and it helped set a foundation,” Ramos said. “It’s a good program we have here the community we have involved has been amazing. I think it comes down to the coaching and the development that we pour into all the kids.”

Fundamentally-sound players have complemented their skills this spring with a lot of hustle and grind. There was a feeling among many in the league that this team could make a long run this summer, but players knew it could not happen on talent alone.

“It goes all the way to the beginning of the spring. They’ve poured countless hours into practice and development,” Ramos said. “Our coaches have been amazing, too, and I can’t speak highly enough of them.”

The Mariners cannot speak highly enough of this team either. Sunday presents an opportunity for the Little League and Big League standouts to share experiences and stories. The Mariners story continues into next month but Bonney Lake is writing its final chapter now.

And this whole story reads like a fine novel.

“I hope they remember this for the rest of their lives and I think they will. They’ll look back and go, ‘Gosh, we were one of the 10 best teams in the United States,” Ramos said. “That should make them even more confident going forward and push them to be better every day. That is something they can pass onto the next generation that comes through here.”