SB Foresters denied 4th straight NBC title as Monarchs beat them in championship game
WICHITA, Kansas. - You can't win them all!
The Santa Barbara Foresters suffered their first loss at the NBC World Series since 2019 as the Hutchinson Monarchs of Kansas captured the championship with a 6-3 victory.
Santa Barbara was trying to become the first team to ever win four straight championships at the National Baseball Congress World Series.
The Foresters had won 20 straight games at the NBC World Series including 5 consecutive games in this year's tournament to reach the title game.
But the Monarchs scored two runs each in the fifth, sixth and seventh innings to grab a 6-1 lead and they held on to win the 89th edition of this tournament.
Cole Toureau dominated on the mound for the Monarchs as he pitched 7 1/3 innings, allowing just one run on six hits while striking out 6.
Toureau gave up an RBI single in the seventh inning to Will Rogers but he pitched of a one-out jam by stranding runners on the corner.
Foresters starting pitcher Carson Turnquist of Paso Robles matched Toureau for awhile but after four scoreless innings the Monarchs scored two runs in the fifth inning on a 2-out, 2-run double off the bat of Will Edmunson.
Hutchinson added two more runs in the sixth inning off of Foresters reliever Zach Erdman.
After the Foresters cut the deficit to 4-1 in the top of the seventh inning, the Monarchs answered back in the bottom of the 7th with a 2-run home run by Jaden Gustafson who touched up Westmont College hurler Sean Youngerman.
The Foresters did not go down without a fight as they scored two runs in the top of the 8th to cut the deficit to 6-3.
Miguel Santos had an RBI groundout and Max Belyeu added a run-scoring single.
But with two runners on, the Monarchs got the final out of the inning as Will Rogers struck out against reliever Derick Johnson.
Santa Barbara was retired in order in the ninth inning as the Hutchinson Monarchs of Kansas celebrate their first NBC Championship in their first trip to the finals.
The Foresters, who have won an NBC World Series record 10 championships, finish runner-up this time and end another sensational summer with an overall record of 35-11.
