“About four teams came through, and everyone wanted to know how tall he was,” Echelmeier said. “He said ‘About 6-foot-8’ about 40 times in a row.”
He’s still growing, too. Durley only shared the tallest-player designation last year. Series sponsors who shower players with free equipment didn’t have new spikes readily available for Durley, who wears size 19 shoes.
Aaron’s mother, Dana Durley, said her son didn’t understand how much taller he was than most kids until he stayed at the Little League dorms last year.
“He takes it in stride,” she said Sunday night after her son’s team won. “He’s been reared to say that the only thing you can control is your behavior. You can’t control what other people think.”
Aaron, who also plays basketball, isn’t the only tall guy on his team. Durley nearly stands toe-to-toe with his manager and father, James Durley.
Dhahran pitcher and outfielder Michael Knight is 6-foot-3, 190 pounds. Five-foot-8, 226-pound, third baseman Andrew Holden is a dangerous hitter, having homered twice in the series, including a three-run blast against Saipan.
Team followers said it was just coincidence that there were so many tall players on the squad.
Lemont, Ill. 1, Staten Island, N.Y. 0
Staten Island’s Frank Smith broke up David Hearne’s no-hit bid with a single to center, while Peter Sciarillo was on first in the bottom of the sixth. Sciarillo was thrown out trying to advance to third.
Smith moved up to second but then apparently thought there were three outs after seeing Sciarillo called out ahead of him, and started jogging across the diamond to the dugout. The Lemont third baseman threw to first and Smith was tagged out.
Columbia, Mo., 14, Portsmouth, N.H., 5
Beau Burkett scored three runs, Landon Clapp had three RBIs and Columbia rallied from an early 2-0 deficit in an error-filled game. The teams combined for nine errors, two by Columbia (1-1) and seven for Portsmouth (1-1).
Columbus, Ga., 4, Phoenix 1
Kyle Carter tossed a one-hitter and hit a solo homer to lead Columbus (2-0), strengthening the Southeast region winners’ chances to advance to next round. Shaun Chase had the lone hit, a single, off Carter for Phoenix (1-1).
Beaverton, Ore., 9, Lake Charles, La., 1
Jace Fry led off the bottom of the first with a deep homer to right, and Devon Dejardin threw a three-hitter for Beaverton (1-1). Starter Paul Beglis surrendered all nine Oregon runs but also homered for Lake Charles (1-1).
Matamoros, Mexico 11, Moscow, Russia 1, five innings
Jose Segoviano knocked in four runs, and Josue Barron tossed a one-hitter for Mexico (2-0). Dmitry Semenov got the only hit for Russia (0-2) after beating out a bunt. He later scored on an error.
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