East Hanover in region tourney: Everything you need to know
East Hanover/Florham Park Little League will represent New Jersey starting with this weekend in the Metro Region Tournament in Bristol, Connecticut.
The Hornets captured their first New Jersey Tournament title on Sunday night when they defeated Holbrook (Jackson), 4-3, in a winner-take-all championship game at Buchmuller Park in Secaucus.
Previously known as the Mid-Atlantic Region, the new Metro Region was introduced by Little League in 2022 and includes the state champions from New Jersey, New York, Connecticut and Rhode Island The winner of the tournament will represent the region at the Little League World Series, Aug. 16-27 in Williamsport, Pennsylvania.
Here's everything you need to know about the Metro Region Tournament.
Metro Region Tournament
When: Aug. 5 - 11
Where: A. Bartlett Giamatti Little League Leadership Training Center, 335 Mix Street, Bristol, Conn.
Teams: New Jersey (East Hanover/ Florham Park), New York (Massapequa Coast), Rhode Island (Smithfield), Connecticut (East Lyme)
How to watch: All games will be televised on either ESPN, ESPN2 or ESPN+
How they got here
New Jersey: East Hanover/Florham Park beat Holbrook (Jackson), 4-3, in Sunday's winner-take-all game at Buchmuller Park in Secaucus. A day earlier, the Hornets defeated previously-undefeated Holbrook, 2-0, in a potential elimination game. East Hanover (18-2), the Section 1 and District 1 champions, is just the seventh Morris County team to capture a Little League state title since the tournament was first held in 1957, and the first since ParsippanyTroy East won it in 2012.
Connecticut: East Lyme, last year's state runner-up, captured its first state title after holding off three-time Connecticut state champion Shelton, 4-1 in Monday's winner-take-all final in Trumbull. The Section 3 and District 10 champion went 3-1 in state-tournament play and outscored its opponents, 25-8.
New York: Massapequa Coast, the defending Metro-Region champion, captured its third-straight New York state title by defeating Section 3 champion East Greenbush Castleton, 4-3, on Saturday in the eight-team tournament at South Shore Little League (Staten Island). Last summe,r Massapequa Coast reached the Little League World Series, becoming the first Long Island team to get there since Rockville Centre in 1978.
Rhode Island: Smithfield needed seven innings to defeat South Kingstown, 2-1, in Sunday's winner-take-all final at Kimberly Ann Rock Memorial Complex in Rumford. The three-time Rhode Island state champion edged South Kingstown, 5-4 a day earlier in a potential elimination game. Smithfield will play in its first region tournament since 1967.
Schedule and scores
Game 1 - Saturday, Aug. 5
New Jersey vs. Connecticut, 4 p.m. on ESPN+
Game 2 - Saturday, Aug. 5
New York vs. Rhode Island, 7 p.m. on ESPN+
Game 3 - Sunday, Aug. 6
Game 1 loser vs. Game 2 loser, 7 p.m. on ESPN+
Game 4 - Monday, Aug. 7
Game 1 winner vs. Game 2 winner, 1 p.m. on ESPN
Game 5 - Wednesday, Aug. 9
Game 3 winner vs. Game 4 loser, 7 p.m. on ESPN2
Game 6 - Friday, Aug. 11 (championship game
Game 4 winner vs. Game 5 winner, 7 p.m. on ESPN