The Guilford Little League Softball 12-year-old All-Stars have certainly garnered the attention of the State of Connecticut as it gets ready to play in the 2025 Little League Softball World Series.
Back home, the town of Guilford is certainly buzzing over their Girls of Summer.
For those who want to meet up with other Guilford fans to enjoy Sunday’s 7 p.m. tournament-opener, Bishop’s Orchards Farm Market is slated to host a “watch party” on Sunday.
The party will be held from 6-9 p.m. with food and drinks available.
Bishop’s has been staunchly supporting the team this summer and has an on-going Guilford Grand Slam Sundae fund-raiser going on to help the team cover costs to get to Greenville, N.C., and take part in the LLSWS.
“Bishop’s Orchards is ingrained in Guilford lore,” said Vitad Pradith, a Guilford parent whose daughter Addy plays for Guilford, and has been the CT Softball Blog’s official photographer following the team during its late-summer run. “It’s definitely one of those ‘If you know, you know’ kind of places.”
Bishop’s is located at 1355 Boston Post Road in Guilford.
For those who don’t want to or can’t make the trek to Bishop’s, the game will be streamed on ESPN+.
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Milford Coaches Reach Out To Guilford
The team hadn’t been in Greenville for 24 hours when Guilford manager Andrea Klein’s phone rang with a familiar foe on the other line.
The coaching staff from Milford Little League—the six-time defending state LL champs at 12 years old, who were dethroned earlier this summer—had made the trip before and were just checking in to offer help.
“The Milford coaches reached out to me unsolicited, which I was grateful for,” Klein said. “They were like, ‘ We did this a few years ago, so if you have any questions, reach out.’ They were just so awesome with their tips and everything.”
If anything, the call shows not just what a classy organization Milford Little League is, but also that the whole state of Connecticut is behind the Guilford team as game-time approaches.
• • •
The View From A Mother’s Eyes
The Little League Softball World Series got a bit of negative press (thanks, of course, to social media) before a team even showed up in North Carolina.
During the Mid-Atlantic Regional championship game last weekend between Delaware and Pennsylvania, Delaware coach Shani Benson was caught on camera by ESPN placing a finger to her daughter Shai’s lips to quiet her down during a moment where the player was upset and showing some unsportsmanlike behavior.
Because social media is what it is some people far from being in the know saw it as a “physical confrontation” between an adult and a child that should not happen.
Guilford manager Andrea Klein, however, saw no problem with a mother being a mother in that situation.
“I am familiar with it, and I did read about it,” Klein said. “You know what? I’m a big believer in discipline and to be totally honest with you, the fact she stood up to her kid and said ‘This is unacceptable’ is fine. She didn’t hit the kid—and I’m certainly not about violence—but it was her daughter. I truly don’t have an issue with it. What mom hasn’t shushed their kid, or tried to teach them a life lesson in the moment, be it on the field or off.”
Benson did apologize for her actions and was issued “an official warning” from Little League.
Delaware was eliminated by the Pennsylvania team, which will face Guilford in its first game on Sunday.
• • •
The International Appeal Of The LLSWS
The Guilford squad found itself sharing a bus with the Canadian champs this week, albeit with a twist.
Or as they say in Repentigny, Quebec, “Avec une touche.”
While much of Canada speaks fluent English, our neighbors to the North entry into the LLSWS hails from the predominantly French-speaking Repentigny, Quebec.
“One of the highlights was being on the bus with Canada,” Klein said. “They had a party for us at an indoor kind of arcade, zip line, laser tag, all that, and we were on the bus with Canada, and they speak French. Some of the coaches spoke English, but we were doing a sing off where they knew the songs, but they sang ’em in French and we sang ’em in English. It was just hysterical.”
The Quebec team did have one request of the American girls, however.
“They asked if we knew (Miley Cyrus’ song) ‘Party in the USA,’ and of course we all sang that in English,” Klein said with a laugh.
The Guilford group has also tried to help teach members of the Team Japan squad what it was eating for American cuisine in the dining hall.
Other International teams competing include Praque, Czechia and Sao Paula, Brazil.
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