The team from Cumberland, Rhode Island lost to a team from Illinois 8-7 Monday night, ending their trip to the Little League World Series. This left coach David Belisle with the unenviable position of having to talk to a group of despondent kids, who just had their dreams crushed in a tight loss.
He made the best out of it, to say the least.
"I'm gonna bring back with me and the coaching staff are gonna bring back and you guys are gonna bring back something no other team can provide but you guys, and that's pride. Pride. You're gonna take that for the rest of our life, what you provided for a town in Cumberland. You had the whole place jumping. You had the whole state jumping. You had New England jumping. You had ESPN jumping. You know why? Because they like fighters.
And it ended with a group hug. Losses aren't always bad! Teaching those kids how to handle a loss with pride and dignity is probably more important than any actual, you know, baseball coaching that went on.
And great job by ESPN to get a mic and cameras on this touching moment.