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Jon Gerardi on Little League: When back is against the wall, Milton majors keep fighting

By Jon Gerardi 4 min read

Milton beat Loyalsock on Wednesday, 8-6, in a very close game with little room for error to win the Section 3 championship game at Berwick's Ber-Vaughn Park. Winning close games isn't anything new for Milton, and winning an elimination game isn't either.

Milton's win on Wednesday was the team's fourth straight win in as many days, battling through the elimination bracket at sectionals to stay alive. And each time, Milton delivered. The wins may have been stressful at times, and fans may have been on the edge of their seats in up-and-down contests, but nonetheless, Milton won and is now competing at the state tournament for the first time in 25 years.

"I wish I could tell you we're never in that situation, but every single game we play we're in that situation and it breaks me. I am so used to it that I'm good with it that people who watch us say 'how do you do it?' We do it all the time, I wish we didn't. We always talk about putting teams away, we have a hard time doing that, and I think it's us showing our youth," Milton manager Garrett Shnyder said. "These kids are 12. They don't really set in on putting teams away and stepping on pedal. But being there and doing it and never breaking stride, never faltering, just keeping the same even attitude just allows us to make that comeback and go."

A big part of that as well is the fact that Milton's coaches never show their nerves or worries. They stay calm and it helps the players stay calm themselves, focus and play well.

"I think they feed off the coaches energy though. They don't see me get upset," Shnyder said. "I'm not down on myself, they're not down on themselves and they're like OK, we're good, lets roll. That's just the energy I feel they feed off of."

And it's been working.

Winning one or two games in the elimination bracket is tough enough, but four in a row in as many days is just as tough, especially when it comes to pitching. It becomes a chess match with how long to throw a pitcher, counting the pitches to make sure you can use him again in a few days if the wins keep piling up.

But regardless of what pitcher has stepped up on the mound through sectionals, they keep delivering against quality teams, including back-to-back wins against a very strong Loyalsock team in the Section 3 championship game.

"Battle tested, I mean you gotta know how to perform with your back against the wall," Shnyder said. "We've performed with our backs against the wall time and time again. I think that's gonna show a lot of states that hey, we have a never-quit mentality and even if something doesn’t go our way, there's still another at bat to be had. Let’s put our best foot forward. I think it will prove we belong there and show dividends when we get there that something can happen at the state tournament."

In the first game against Loyalsock on Tuesday, Milton threw Weston Sumner and Max Shnyder on the mound as the two combined to hold off Loyalsock through six innings. On Wednesday in the rematch, it was the combination of Jordan Brown and Cohen Knarr who limited a talented Loyalsock team to just five hits.

Those pitchers stepped up against Loyalsock and others in the elimination bracket and Shynder and his team have confidence now going forward. They know, with their backs against the wall in a win-or-go-home scenario, they can win and keep moving forward.

"When we go to the state tournament, I'm not there to just be there, we're there to win," Shynder said. "We're there to win the state tournament and that's our mindset."

Jon Gerardi is the sports editor at the Sun-Gazette. He can be reached by email at jgerardi@sungazette.com. Follow him on Twitter/X at @JonGerardi.

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