Lamar, which opens Little League World Series play on Wednesday, had kids and parents that stuck with the Little League system because they believed that Williamsport was in their future.

The Little League team from Needville in Fort Bend County won its first four games in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, in 2023 before finishing fourth in the tournament. A team from Boerne also placed fourth last August.

Devlin, 72, a retired teacher and coach from Higganum, was an outfielder on the 1965 Windsor Locks team that defeated Waco, Texas 1-0, in Game 2 of the Little League World Series en route to winning the world championship, only one of four Connecticut teams to do so.

The Braintree Little League team suffered its first loss of the summer Thursday, falling 13-0 to Irmo, South Carolina in Williamsport, Pennsylvania.

In total, 20 teams will take part in this summer tradition that concludes on Aug. 24, with the final two squads left standing competing for the championship. Pitcher Luca Pellegrini and Connecticut got the best of Shane Grawe and Texas in the final game of the day.