Fairfield Little League team making waves

CEDAR RAPIDS — The future of Fairfield baseball is looking bright.

While local high school baseball teams battled it out in the postseason, the 10-and-under Fairfield Cougars were getting some experience on the big stage. The Cougars capped their season with a trip to the 2021 United States Specialty Sports Association (USSSA) state tournament.

The Cougars finished third overall in the elite bracket of the state tournament. The Top-16 teams in the state get put in that group.

Fairfield was in ‘Pool E’ in the tournament, which ran July 16-18. The Cougars went 2-0 to win their pool, beating the Solon Spartans 11-2 and the Linn-Mar Red team 10-7.

Fairfield had to battle to reach the semifinals. In bracket play, the Cougars edged Iowa Sticks White, 9-8, to advance to the quarterfinals. In the quarters, the Cougars outlasted the Quad City Heat, 10-8.

The Cougars’ tournament run came to an end in the semis. The Dubuque County Nationals defeated Fairfield 9-1 and went on to win the championship 15-11 over the same Linn-Mar team that Fairfield beat in pool play.

The Cougars are managed by Brandon Coleman. Other coaches for the Cougars are Brad Kite, Justin Guffey and John Adam.

The team said in a statement that they were grateful for all the fans that came to cheer them on throughout the season and to all who sponsored them and wanted to give a special thanks to Nick Vandegriff and Rich Stokes for the extra time they spent with the team.

The Cougars ended the season 15-3 overall. They are currently ranked No. 2 in the state and No. 17 in the nation.