The Mathews County Little League Minor Softball All-Star Team rode triumphantly into Mathews last Thursday evening after winning the state championship for their 9- to 10-year-old division that morning. Pockets of admirers waited on street corners to wave at the cavalcade of cars driven by family members and led by a fire truck and sheriff’s office vehicles.

The team took the top spot in Virginia on a 2-1 victory over McLean, the defending state champs. It’s the first time any Mathews Little League team has won the state championship, said team manager J.J. Ashberry. He said his girls scored two runs in the first inning and gave up one run in the fourth inning.

“We played tremendous defense,” he said.

After spending the better part of a week in Woodstock in western Virginia, the team headed to Richardson’s on Main Street for supper, where supporters waited with a large sign celebrating the victory.

“We sa...