BILLINGS — The Portland Barbers had to do it the hard way, but they won the program's first American Legion Northwest Regional tournament on Sunday at Dehler Park, punching a ticket to the World Series later this week in North Carolina.
The Barbers lost their opening game of the tournament before battling back through the loser's bracket. They eliminated both the Billings Royals and Missoula Mavericks before meeting Idaho Falls in Sunday's championship game, needing to beat the Bandits twice to advance.
Portland fell down 8-1 after the first inning in Game 1 but battled back to tie it in the top of the sixth inning and pouring three across in the top of the seventh to force a decisive Game 2.
Trailing 3-2 in the top of the third inning of Game 2, Carter Stewart hit a two-run home run to dead center field, giving Portland a lead it wouldn't relinquish. The Barbers would win 13-5 to complete the marathon weekend.
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"We've seen the ball all year. We're hitting .371 as a team. We broke a team record for team batting average," said Portland head coach Joe Duran. "We have some really talented players and we've been seeing the ball well all year long. That's been our strength. Wherever we play, whoever we play against, we're the most offensive team."
The Barbers will play Texas in the opening round of the World Series on Thursday.
