WACO, Texas – Boerne Little League will not return to Waco for a regional championship game tonight and is instead preparing for the Little League Baseball World Series in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, sources close to the situation told News 4/FOX San Antonio. Sources say Boerne has the full backing of Little League International’s legal team and will not be in Waco for the game that was expected to determine the southwest region champion. News 4 San Antonio Sports Director Don Harris reported on X that Boerne Little League and Little League League International has no intention of complying with the temporary injunction. According to Harris, Little League International believes it has full authority to make decisions regarding player eligibility and forfeitures and is prepared to defend its decision. Meanwhile, Boerne is preparing to leave for Williamsport later this week and is expected to begin play in the Little League World Series on August 21. It’s the latest dramatic turn in a whirlwind 24 hours for a Boerne team that went from celebrating a regional championship, to being told it would have to play again, to now preparing once again for Williamsport. night believing he had won the Southwest Region championship and punched his ticket to the Little League Baseball World Series. Boerne defeated Louisiana’s Ascension Parish Little League 4-1 on Monday in what had become the de facto Southwest Region championship after Tulsa’s National Little League was eliminated from the tournament. Little League International announced Monday that the Tulsa National 12U baseball team had been disqualified from the Southwest Region Tournament after determining that a player participating on the team was ineligible. But hours after Boerne’s victory, the situation changed dramatically. Tulsa National parents and players challenged the disqualification in court with the support of the league. Judge Ryan Luna of the 414th District Court granted a temporary restraining order on Monday, according to a statement issued by representatives supporting Tulsa National. The ruling appeared to return Oklahoma to the tournament and initially set up another championship game between Boerne and Tulsa National at 6 p.m. Tuesday in Waco, with the winner expected to advance to Williamsport. That created an immediate logistical and on-field challenge for Boerne. Many of Boerne’s players had already left Waco after Monday’s apparent championship victory and would have been forced to return for Tuesday night’s game. The team would also have had to adjust its throwing plans after using some of its key pitchers on Monday against Louisiana. Now, sources close to the situation say that game will not happen and Boerne will not return to Waco. Instead, the team is preparing for the World Series and has the backing of Little League International’s legal team, according to sources. Tulsa National had said after the court ruling that the decision would give its players a chance to settle the regional championship on the field. field where it should be decided,” Tulsa National’s statement said. For Boerne, events have produced an extraordinary emotional shift in less than a day: from celebrating what appeared to be a Southwest Region championship, to facing the prospect of another must-win game, to preparing once again for a trip to Williamsport. News 4 San Antonio continues to follow the rapidly developing situation.
