After an historic run through the PONY World Championship, the Long Beach PONY (Protecting Our Nation’s Youth) team that captured the world championship in August will be honored Thursday night with a parade down Pine Street and party on the rooftop of Smooth’s Sports Grille.  LBPOSTSports.com is teaming up with Smooth’s and Big Red Bus to celebrate the Long Beach Pony All-Stars, and inviting the whole city to join in!  

Starting at 6:00pm, the Big Red Bus will take the team from 7th & Pine to Ocean Boulevard and then back to Smooth’s for the celebration, hosted by the writers of LBPOSTSports.com.  Parents, friends, fans and anyone else who would like to personally send their congratulations are welcome to join in the fun!

“It was an honor for us to represent the city of Long Beach,” said the team’s manager, Ken Jakemer.  “The skill and quality of baseball in Long Beach has always been so high, and its great to bring the championship back to the city.”

The PONY team, aged 13 and 14, defeated Victoria in Fullerton to earn a berth into the PONY World Series, then proceeded to win their next three games on their way to the championship match against a team from Taiwan.  Down by one in the final inning, with the world title on the line, pinch-hitter Oliver Van Buskirk smacked a two-run walk-off home run over the centerfield fence to give Long Beach PONY a 3-2 victory and the PONY World Series Championship.

“It was a crowning achievement for the kids, coaches and anyone involved,” Jakemer said.  “It’s a feeling that can never be taken away from them, and they’ll remember it for the rest of their lives.”

We hope to see you out on Pine Avenue on Thursday night, rooting for the PONY World Champions!

The team was honored at the Long Beach City Council meeting two weeks ago, and both the Dodgers and Angels congratulated them on their championship.

Congrats to manager Ken Jakemer, and coaches Rick Romo and Victor Merill, and all of the All-Stars:

Chase DeJong, Avery Flores, Thomas Walker, Soloman Williams, Cody Elder, Brett Harper, Irie Elizalde, Matt Maccarrone, Oliver Van Buskirk, Daniel DeWolf, Jake Hardy, Matthew Heavin, Victor Martinez, and Ty Provencher.

Disclosure: Smooth’s is an advertiser of the lbpost.com.