Davenport LL representing town proudly with success
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Davenport Assumption High School captured the Iowa Class AAA state championship a month ago. Two weeks later, Davenport Central graduate Roger Craig was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
And now, the Davenport Northwest Little Leaguers take the spotlight, winning the Midwest Regional championship and reaching the Little League World Series. What a month it has been for Davenport and what a team Davenport Northwest has become.
Davenport, which played its first game Thursday against California, entered the Series undefeated, won one of the most exciting Midwest championship games this century, and has made its league one of the world’s top 20 this season.
"This town does great things," Davenport Northwest Little League president Bryan Pearson said. "There’s a lot that divides this town between the three public high schools and the four Little Leagues, but once all the dust settles from the competitiveness, it all comes together and it’s pretty inspiring to be here."
Davenport has sure been inspired by its Northwest Little League team this season.
Northwest reached the Series in 2004 and 2005 but had not won a state championship since. That drought ended in emphatic fashion when Northwest routed six state opponents by a 62-11 margin. It was at regionals, though, where this team really put its stamp on league history and community lore.
Davenport won a one-run game against two-time defending champion Sioux Falls, South Dakota before scoring six sixth inning runs and downing Missouri, 11-6 to reach the final. There, a three-run sixth-inning lead became a two-run seventh inning deficit against Wisconsin. Unfazed Davenport stormed back, scoring the winning run before a second out was recorded and celebrated a hard-fought championship.
More than it reaching the Series is how Davenport did that allowed it to take the front page in a town which has produced so much excitement over the last month.
"I have known these kids for a long time and they’ve been down a couple of times. They just don’t quit. It’s a testament to not just them, but their coaches and parents for being rocks for these kids," Pearson said. "They are great people; great coaches. We’re lucky to have a superior group of families that are supporting these kids. It’s hard to beat a team that doesn’t quit and this team keeps coming back and fighting.
"They all have each other’s backs. It’s really special to see what this group has done."
The scary thing is that Pearson does not believe the team has peaked yet. After dropping its second game of districts to Davenport Southeast, Northwest rattled off 11 straight wins and outscored its opponents by a six-run average.
Left-hander Cooper Thissen, whose father coached the Davenport Assumption state champion, overwhelmed regional opponents and a balanced squad produced 113 RBIs through regionals. Every player has done his part and, whether back home or playing in front of millions watching worldwide at the Midwest Regional, Davenport has excelled under pressure; in the biggest moments.
When Craig reached the Hall of Fame, Davenport celebrated his fabulous past. Now it cheers a magnificent present.
"It was amazing to see how the kids responded to the crucible of playing on ESPN and in the championship and coming from behind. But what I keep telling our coaches is they keep getting better," Pearson said. "Once they got together and went through districts and states, they were playing more cohesive and everyone was finding their roles. They have another gear potentially if they can keep this up."
As the team continued heating up, so did the support back home. Players and coaches from those 2004-05 teams have reached out and fundraising has gone through the roof. This is the sixth time a team from Davenport has reached the Series with Southeast doing so four years ago.
The feeling never gets old and, in fact, the excitement seems to only increase every time another Davenport team reaches Little League’s biggest stage.
"To be able to see these kids live this dream is incredible. It’s awesome," Pearson said. "It was a little bit of a perfect storm because it worked out nice with the talent on the field and the coaches on the field doing incredible work and the community rising to the challenge."
Northwest has risen to all the challenges coming its way this summer. It’s not easy leaving an indelible mark upon a league which already had two Series appearances this century. Yet, this dedicated group found a way.
A standard was set decades ago by those 2004-05 teams. Now, the 2026 team has built upon it. It has motivated the younger players and it seems like a strong league will only pull closer following this run.
Eventually this long run which began in mid-May and ends in late August will conclude. The impact this team has made will not.
Those previous Davenport participants still rooting this squad on; still fondly remembering and sharing their personal experiences lets one know how big this is. Time marches on and so will these players onto different avenues of life.
What it won this summer and what it did for Davenport, however, will keep this group forever one.
"I hope whenever they come down from Cloud 9 and get back home and look back a year later or years later or after they finish their baseball careers, they understand how special this is," Pearson said. "What they did as kids for Davenport is really special."