Chicago 365 Playoff Central: We messed with Texas-and we won!

     After squeezing out a narrow victory over Rhode Island, Jackie Robinson West was back in action last night against Pearland East of Texas.  Thanks in part to a Pearland error, JRW jumped out to an early 3-0 lead in the first inning, including a run scored by persistent star Pierce Jones.  Even though Pearland did manage 1 run in the 3rd, Joshua Houston once again was solid as a rock, guiding West to a dominant 6-1 victory, giving Houston a 3-0 record(yeah, that's right; Houston beat Texas) and propelling the boys from the Heights into the United States semifinal.  Afterwards, the parents of the team were breathing much easier than they were during the Rhode Island game, and Manager Darold Butler said he was excited about the team's chances, as well as what they were doing for the city.  As it stands now, JRW is one of 3 U.S. teams remaining in the World Series, with Nevada and Pennsylvania playing each other tonight.  West takes on the loser of that game tomorrow night, and then the winner of that game if they advance. All the luck to our boys, and here's to continued World Series success!