There's no quit in Texas

Rally heaven: Pearland pulls off a stunning comeback to advance to U.S. titlegame in Little League World Series

Pearland is two wins away from winning it all at the Little League World Series.
Pearland's All-Stars are in the U.S. Championship Game now.

Fouling off pitch after pitch after pitch, Mason Van Noort just wouldn't quit. He was down to his last strike, but after Pearland had come back from dead in an elimination game in the Little League World Series, he wasn't going to let the rally end.

So on the sixth pitch he saw with two strikes, Van Noort smashed a home run over the left center field wall, putting Pearland up for good, putting the team from Texas into the U.S. Championship Game in Williamsport, Pa — otherwise known as kid baseball heaven.

Pearland 7, Auburn, Washington 5.

Tell the Pearland moms that they're going to need some new outfits for ESPN. Pearland moves on to play the Hawaii-Georgia winner for the U.S. title on Saturday afternoon. The winner of that game will play the International bracket winner for the World Championship on Sunday afternoon.

The team with Texas power (Pearland hit two more home runs this afternoon) is now two wins away from capturing the Little League World Series title. This on a Thursday afternoon when the dream often seemed all but done.

Down 4-0 after three innings and 5-3 going into the sixth inning (the last inning in a regulation Little League Game), Pearland just wouldn't quit. Blake Toler singled in one run, speed demon Chris Leger scored to tie it on a groundout by Jorge Gutierrez.

Then, Van Noort stepped in.

On a day when his arm wasn't always there for him (Van Noort pitched all six innings as well, giving up eight hits and striking out five), this Little Leaguer turned to his bat to deliver true team redemption.

Washington had jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning off Van Noort, collecting five hits — including a triple from Isaiah Hatch, who might be the most talented player in Williamsport.

Just when Pearland looked completely out of it — having not scored a single run in six innings over two games, an eternity for a team known for its power — pinch hitter Jaron Roblyer send a jolt into the Texas dugout. With two strikes on him, Roblyer (whose nickname is Big Country) sent a breaking ball over the wall and suddenly Pearland's mojo was back. Leger manufactured another run, singling to center, stealing third and scoring on a wild pitch. JGutierrez singled in another run.

Suddenly, it was a 4-3 game. And Pearland was only getting started with its Texas-sized rallies.

After taking that 7-5 advantage, Pearland needed to squash an attempted Washington comeback in the bottom of the sixth. These All-Stars did it with defense. Beau Orlando made a great backhanded stop at shortstop and threw out a lead runner at third. Then, Matthew Bettencourt gunned down another Washington runner at third — from centerfield.

Soon, the Pearland players were jumping around the mound with Van Noort once again in the center of it all.

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Thanks, Queen Bey

Pop icon Beyoncé donates $100,000 to University of Houston Law School

Photo by Erza Shaw Getty Images

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Pop megastar Beyoncé Knowles-Carter has donated $100,000 to the University of Houston Law Center Criminal Justice Clinic through her BeyGOOD Foundation. The gift will allow the clinic to hire fill-time faculty to head it, benefiting the students who study there.

“I am delighted that the BeyGOOD Foundation has made this very generous gift to the UH Law Center,” said Leonard Baynes, dean of the UH Law Center. “Not only will this funding help establish a full-time criminal justice clinic that provides pro bono legal services in our community, but it will also supercharge our already excellent criminal law and justice programming.”

The clinic is one of nine at UHLC. It helps students learn to navigate the criminal justice system, especially on behalf of clients that are underserved by skilled attorneys. People of color are affected disproportionately by a lack of good, ethical representation.

Beyoncé, the most decorated artist in Grammy history and easily the biggest musical star native to Houston, has a long history of advocating for criminal justice reform. She was a staunch supporter of the police reform following the deaths of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile, asking law enforcement to “stop killing us” in a web post. In 2020, she penned an open letter to the Kentucky attorney general asking for justice in the death of Breonna Taylor.

Through her BeyGOOD Foundation, established in 2013, Beyoncé has focused mostly on expanding the prospects of Black-owned business and offering education opportunities to students. Forwarding the cause of legal representation in Texas while also helping out marginalized communities compliments her other philanthropic work.

“At UH Law, we envision a legal profession where ‘everyone has the opportunity to prosper,’ as BeyGOOD envisions, and we will achieve this vision by providing access to strong and effective legal representation in criminal proceedings,” Baynes said. “And together, through this gift, the BeyGOOD Foundation and UHLC will shepherd the next generation of criminal justice attorneys in the city of Houston, the state of Texas and the nation.”