5 things to know about Irmo SC Little League World Series team
A team from South Carolina is in the Little League World Series for the first time since 2015 and for only the fourth time in history.
Its coach, 12 players and a growing group of supporters are soaking in the historic moment.
The Irmo All-Stars, winners of the Little League’s Southeast Regional, play New England Regional champion Braintree American at 3 p.m. Thursday at Lamade Stadium in Williamsport, Pennsylvania. The game will air on ESPN and be streamed on the ESPN App.
“This is the premier, marquee event for Little League, and just the fact we can represent South Carolina and Irmo Little league has been fantastic,” Irmo manager David Bogan told The State.
The 2025 Little League World Series uses a double-elimination format and features 10 United States teams and 10 international squads. The U.S. and international championships will be played Aug. 23, with the winners meeting for the title on Aug. 24.
Irmo defeated defending Little League World Series champion Lake Mary (Florida) 5-4 on Wednesday in dramatic fashion, scoring five runs in the bottom of the sixth to win the game. Brady Westbrooks had the game-winning three-run double for the walk-off victory in the game played in Warner Robins, Georgia.
The team boarded a plane to Newark, New Jersey on Thursday and took a three-hour bus ride to Williamsport. They will spend almost a week in Williamsport before playing their first game but will have various events to attend as well as media obligations.
The players will receive new uniforms, shoes, gloves, bats and catching equipment that the Little League World Series provides. Irmo and the rest of the teams in the field also will attend the MLB Little League Classic game between the New York Mets and Seattle Mariners on Aug. 17 at Historic Bowman Stadium in Williamsport. The major-leaguers will meet with the Little League teams during the day before the game.
“They are excited, really gelled as a group and they are having fun. How could you not love it?” Bogan said. “Our motto has been ‘Nothing given, everything earned.’ The boys have worked really, really hard and taken that to heart and worked for everything they have gotten.”
Here are five things to know about the team that will represent South Carolina in this year’s Little League World Series.
Who’s on the SC team
The 12-member squad is made up of players who are all 12 years old. All the partcipants in the LLWS are between the ages of 10 and 12 years old. The S.C. squad players are made of players from Richland and Lexington counties who were on the various teams in the Irmo Little League. (The Irmo community is located about 15 miles northwest of Columbia, the state’s capital city.)
Of the 12 players, four attend Chapin Middle School, three are at Dutch Fork Middle, two at Gray Collegiate, one at Meadow Glenn Middle in Lexington, one at Ben Lippen and one at Gilbert Middle.
The team’s roster, with jersey numbers:
- 2 — Ethan Bennett
- 4 — Jacob Gibson
- 5 — Brody Miller
- 6 — Sutton Gravelle
- 11 — Andrew Bogan
- 16 — Ryder Tillitz
- 18 — Brady Westbrooks
- 24 — Jake “Bubba” McQuilkin
- 33 — Palmer Steele
- 50 — Joe Giulietti (pronounced Julie-Eddie)
- 55 — Preston Ware
- 99 — Brayden Gerard
About the coach
Dave Bogan, 48, is the team manager and has been a part of Irmo Little League since moving to South Carolina 12 years ago.
Bogan’s day job is as vice president of human resources for Novalex food packaging company, and he’s using his saved-up vacation hours to take time off of work.
Bogan is in his fourth year of managing the all-stars and was chosen by Irmo Little League president Bobby Jensen. All Irmo All-Star coaches are picked by Jensen.
During the regular season, Bogan is the manager of the Red Sox squad in the Irmo Little League.
Bogan is assisted by Mike Beckworth and Pat Gravelle. Beckworth has been with Bogan for the last four years and Gravelle the last three.
Bogan’s son Andrew is the starting catcher for the team. His oldest son Jake plays baseball and basketball at Dutch Fork and was a member of Irmo’s Senior Little League World Series runner-up squad in 2024.
How did the Irmo All-Stars team get formed?
Bogan is responsible for picking the team’s players. He had the tough task of choosing the squad from a pool of about 60 players in the league.
“That creates stress and strife, but I said I am going to pick the best 12 players. I took these 12 and I don’t regret it. They are good kids and good families,” Bogan said.
Once the team was picked, the Irmo All-Stars competed in the S.C. state tournament where they went 4-0 and defeated Northwood 11-2 in the championship game July 14 in Florence.
Irmo won its first two games in the Southeast Regional before losing to Lake Mary, 14-0. The team bounced back and defeated Virginia, 5-4, before knocking off Lake Mary in the thrilling championship game.
Big summer for Irmo Little League
The Irmo All-Stars’ trip to Williamsport is part of a successful summer for Irmo Little League, which includes eight different divisions and around 800 players.
Five different teams from Irmo Little League won state championships, with four advancing to their division’s world series. In addition to the team going to Williamsport, Irmo’s junior softball team as well the league’s intermediate and senior baseball squads played in their respective world series.
“That’s probably unheard of,” Bogan said of the league’s success this summer.
Fan following and local reaction
Irmo’s win has created quite a buzz around the Midlands, in the state and across the country.
The win over Lake Mary led ESPN’s 11 p.m. “SportsCenter” show on Wednesday.
South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster, U.S. Sen. Tim Scott, USC football coach Shane Beamer, the USC baseball team, the Columbia Fireflies minor league baseball team and former Dutch Fork/Clemson two-sport standout Will Taylor were among those posting congratulatory messages about the team on social media following the victory.
Bogan said he received about 200 text messages following the win, including from Dutch Fork baseball coach Darren Jones and basketball coach Bret Jones. Irmo baseball coach Bruce White sent the team a video they watched when they arrived in Williamsport.
Parents and family members are making plans to travel to Pennsylvania and cheer on the team in the LLWS. Each team receives an allotment of 50 tickets for the game.
How to Watch Irmo in LLWS game
What: Little League World Series, Irmo vs. Braintree American
When: Thursday, 3 p.m.
Where: Williamsport, Pa.
TV/Streaming: ESPN and ESPN App
