The boys from Connecticut who won a David vs. Goliath Little League World Series title

When Dave Galla tells people he’s from Trumbull, Conn., they know they have heard that city name before. They don’t always immediately remember why.

Then it comes to them: Little League.

Galla played second base for the Trumbull Little League team that won the Little League World Series in 1989. It was the first Little League championship for a United States team in six years, and it put Trumbull on the map.

Tom Galla, Dave’s father and the head coach of that championship squad, said mentions of his title-winning team continue to pop up in conversations weekly.

“It was almost every day,” Tom said. “It's slowed down quite a bit over the years. It's been a long time.”

It has been 37 years, but the memories of what Trumbull Little League accomplished live on in the minds of many. Not just because they won it all, but because they weren’t supposed to win it all. Heck, they weren’t really even expected to make it to Williamsport, Pa.

Their success is an underdog story about how a group of 15 boys from small-town America achieved international acclaim.

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Tom Galla knew he had a good team heading into the East Regionals in Bristol, Conn., but Trumbull was definitely not the favorite to make it out of that single-elimination tournament. People in the know thought that was the team from Massapequa, N.Y. Then that title was bestowed upon Cherry Hill, N.J., after it eliminated Massapequa in the quarterfinals, setting up a matchup with Trumbull in the semis.

“They had three outfielders that were over 6 feet tall at 12 years old, and they were pretty intimidating guys,” Dave said of the Cherry Hill team. “So we felt a little pressure when that came to it.”

That pressure didn’t show up in their play. Thanks in part to back-to-back-to-back-to-back home runs in the fourth inning, Trumbull blew out Cherry Hill, 18-6. The next day, they breezed past the team from Brandywine, Del., 15-5. Overall, Trumbull outscored its four opponents in the East Regionals 51-14.

The kids from a town of about 32,000 people were headed to the Little League World Series and Lamade Stadium, which can hold more than 40,000 spectators.

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In the championship bracket of the LLWS, Trumbull bested Davenport, Iowa, 4-3, and then beat Long Beach, Calif., 6-3, to be crowned national champions.

Just one game stood between Trumbull and immortality. What also stood in its way was the team representing Taiwan, which was the LLWS champion in 1986, ‘87 and ‘88. Taiwan was expected to four-peat in ‘89. Hall of Fame pitcher Jim Palmer, who was part of the TV broadcast for ABC, asked Tom during a pregame interview if he thought his team could win the game.

“What did he think I was going to say? ‘No, we’re just going to roll over and let them kill us?’” Tom said years later. “‘Yeah, I think we have a chance.’”

Dave and his teammates were confident as well, and they were not overwhelmed by the moment. Well, at least not for long.

“It's awe-inspiring when you come down out of the Little League compound, down the stairs, and 40,000 people are chanting ‘USA! USA!’ It runs chills through you,” Dave said. “It takes a little while to settle down. But the nice thing was we were well-coached. We were poised. We knew we had a good team, and after the first-inning jitters rolled away, I think everybody settled in, obviously.”

Chris Drury was Trumbull’s starting pitcher for the championship game. A decade later, he would be named the NHL’s Rookie of the Year and ultimately enjoy a decorated, 13-year career on the ice. But on this day, Aug. 26, 1989 -- which was also Tom's 41st birthday -- Drury was on the mound. He would proceed to give what Tom later wrote was “the most important, gutsiest performance that many people could remember seeing.”

Drury limited Taiwan to two runs, and he drove in as many on a crucial single with two outs in the fourth inning.

Final score: Connecticut 5, Taiwan 2.

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Tom said no one on the team really grasped the meaning of the victory until they returned to Trumbull. The conquering heroes were met with a police motorcade and greeted by hundreds upon hundreds of cheering locals as they were driven through the town. That night, Tom estimates that about 10,000 people showed up for a celebration at the local high school.

“It was incredible. Just incredible,” Tom said. “So then we realized what a big deal it was to everybody back home.”

That win is still a big deal, 37 years later.