The ninth Ukraine Little League Championships for orphans and invited New Programs is under way in Kremenets, Ternopil, Oblast, on September 19-22. The California Association to Aid Ukraine (CAAU), a longtime supporter, is sponsoring the event. Teams include Krements, Mizoch, Kyiv and Mykolayiv, with new clubs Horinka and Sloviansk playing exhibition matches.

Ukraine won its first European Under-21 Baseball Championship on August 1-4 in Tel-Aviv, Israel, after Ukraine defeated Russia 7-5. In the lead-up to the final, Ukraine won all of its four matches, having won 10-1 against Lithuania, 3-0 against Russia, and 9-1 against Israel.

Ukraine’s offense was led by catcher Yevhen Zhantaly, who had seven hits in 14 at-bats, and led with five RBIs. Ukraine’s pitcher, Gregorii Hvrytishvily, led with 12 strikeouts, allowing one run, to save the championship game for Ukraine.

On July 19 Ukraine lost against Hungary 9-4 and was eliminated from the European Regional Little League Championships in Kutno, Poland. Along the way to the final, Ukraine’s Little League team from Kirovohrad won 8-1 against Lithuania, and Ukraine was shut out 0-5 against France and won 7-0 against Belarus on July 15. The tournament was run in a double-elimination format.

In the lead-up to the European regional tournament, eight all-star teams (with 93 players age 10-12, including six girls) competed at the 17th Little League tournament in Kremenets at the end of May.

Eleven games were played at the LL tournament in Kremenets with Kirovohrad and Rivne reaching the final on June 1. Kirovohrad won 7-1. The match was played on the local soccer field in the city of Kremenets. The mayor of Kremenets was instrumental in making this happen, as was Volodymyr Mishko, director of the internat (orphanage) and host of the games, who built a portable backstop, portable dugouts and a temporary outfield fence.

In addition to the tournament, players had a chance to compete in the annual pitching contest, with Kirovohrad winning the team title. A lottery was held for the children, who received two prizes each, thanks to the Eastern Regional LL, which donated many of the prizes, and Self Reliance New York Federal Credit Union, which for many years has covered the cost of the championships.

Additional assistance came from the Indian Valley LL near Kerhonkson, N.Y., which raised more than $1,000 to assist the team from Kirovohrad to attend the Championships in Kutno. Entry visas to Poland were found to be “free,” but with the hidden cost of transporting the documents to the Polish Consulate, causing a financial roadblock for many parents whose children were competing. Money was additionally sent to family members and to players to have some spending money while in Poland. The remaining funds were used to ship baseball equipment to Sloviansk, near Donetsk, which had been retaken by Ukrainian forces in the ongoing war in Ukraine’s east.

Off the field, children were led on tours of the school museum and local attractions, including the Pochayiv Monastery.

http://www.ukrweekly.com/uwwp/kirovohrad-ll-and-u-21-baseball-team-win-tournaments/