"It was unreal," Western Branch manager Bubba Horan said. "I was a player with the same organization. I have been trying to get to the World Series for 31 years, since I have been playing Little League. I am now 38 years old. I have never made it as a player. And now to make it with my son, in his final year of eligibility, is absolutely a dream come true."
Western Branch held an 11-10 lead heading into the bottom of the fourth inning before Ben Horan's slam provided a five-run advantage. Kidd added his two-run shot in the fifth as Western Branch pulled out to a 17-10 lead.
"Hard work and batting practice every day was the key to our offensive production," Bubba Horan said. "My offense has been phenomenal throughout the tournament. I feel very fortunate to beat a quality team like Hagerstown."
Chase Marchetti and Tyler Manugo also homered for Western Branch, while Jordan Long and Manugo collected three hits each. Long went 9-for-11 for an .819 batting average in the Zone tournament with two home runs, five RBI and six runs scored.
Hagerstown (2-2) didn't go down without a fight, scoring five runs in the sixth to move within two runs of the lead. A.J. Jamison, Cody Nelling and Tyler Stevens belted solo homers and Andrew Duff added a two-run single, but Hagerstown could move no closer.
Hagerstown made its presence felt early in the game as Stevens hit a two-run homer and Adam Chambers hit a grand slam. Stevens finished the tournament 6-for-12 with five home runs and 10 RBI.
"The kids came out fired up and they played hard," Hagerstown manager Mark Koontz said. "They just came up a little bit short at the end. We take our hats off to Western Branch. They just hit the ball a little bit better. They were able to put the ball in play a little more consistently."
Hagerstown reached the championship round on Saturday when Nelling had a two-run homer and a two-run single in a 9-8 win over Bergen Beach (N.Y.). Seth Poffenberger and Duff added two hits each for Hagerstown.
