A little league softball team from Virginia has been disqualified from the nationally televised championship game at the Junior League World Series in Kirkland, Washington, thanks to a photo posted on Snapchat.
Following Atlee's victory over Kirkland in the semifinal game, one of the players posted a picture on Snapchat featuring multiple players giving the middle finger with a caption, “watch out host.”
According to reports, Little League spokesperson Kevin Foundation says the team was in “violation of Little League’s policies regarding unsportsmanlike conduct, inappropriate use of social media, and the high standard that Little League International holds for all its participants.”
The 12-14 year old girls from Atlee were disqualified right before the championship game and Kirkland participated in their place.
President of Atlee Little League, Jamie Batten, released the following statement regarding the incident and the team's DQ.
“We are deeply disappointed this social media post did not reflect the core values of Little League International or Atlee Little League. We expect Little League International will take the time to fully investigate the matter, and we will comply with this investigation by providing all information about unpleasant interactions including the social media post and the time leading up to that event – not all of which were on the part of those on the Atlee softball team. We desire to protect all youth who are recipients of inappropriate behavior both on and off the field, as we take very seriously our charge to impart the value of good sportsmanship.”
Check out the report below.