'Playing into August:' Glendale Little League teams head to regionals after winning state title



GLENDALE -- In sports, a lot of the time, a team or program’s success is measured on the field. That’s true for the Glendale Little League program, but they don’t just measure success with wins.

“The kids are definitely excited," said Terry Sandee, president of Glendale Little League. "It’s been a fun experience and a fun ride."

By late July, many Little League programs in Wisconsin are over for the season, but Glendale has two teams that won a state title.



Terry Sandee



“It felt great,” said 12-year-old Oliver Scharinck. “I’ve gotten second place a whole lot, and it just felt really nice to get first place.”

Both teams were set to head to Indiana for a regional tournament. This year's success is something that the league has been building toward.

"Last year, the junior program -- which is 13 and 14 year olds -- went on to regionals just like we are following up with this year," said Sandee.

"It's awesome," said 14-year-old Leo Langerman. "We have, I have been waiting for this season my whole life -- playing into August. It's just an awesome feeling."

"The majors, the group that would lead to the Little League World Series, and they have had a run of success," said Sandee. "They were state runners up last year, and this year, they took it on and became champions, so they will be advancing to Indianapolis to hopefully make it to the Little League World Series in Williamsport."



While they are winning on the field, that's not the only thing important for the Glendale program.

"To me, the best thing about Glendale Little League and why I got involved was the community that's been around for a while and the amount of families that we met, my kids have met, and lifelong friends," Sandee said.

"I think it just says that we are a really deep Little League, and that everybody tries," said Scharinck.



"I really like the kids I play with and like, how it's not always like, serious," said Langerman. "Like, you can have fun, too. It's not just for people who are like, super serious about baseball. Like, I love baseball, but I like the loose feeling of it."

Both squads will be playing for a few reasons during regionals.



"Of course I'm looking to win, but I'm also looking to have fun, because our goals have been achieved," said Langerman. "We achieved our goal of winning state, so now we are playing for the love of the game."



Both teams start regional play on Sunday, Aug. 4 in Indiana. The league is raising money to help with travel and lodging for the players and the families.

CLICK HERE if you're interested in helping out.