WILLIAMSPORT — Carter Nelson made local headlines ahead of the Little League World Series for his family connection to McKean County.

After a week in Williamsport, however, Nelson and Wylie Little League made national headlines after advancing deep into the tournament.

Nelson and his teammates hail from Abilene, Texas, but Nelson’s father, Brandon, grew up in McKean County and played his Little League ball for Mt. Jewett. The World Series’ proximity to the elder Nelson’s hometown provided a rare opportunity for his family to watch Carter play.

“I remember walking up to Lamade Stadium with my dad,” recalled Brandon Nelson, who recently retired from the United States Air Force. “I’ve been around the world and I’ve seen a lot of cool things, but I said, ‘Dad, this is by far the coolest thing that I have ever seen or done.’”

While coronavirus restrictions prevented the general public from attending the tournament, each family from each team was provided with a set of game passes.

The Nelsons took full advantage of their allotment.

“I think I had on average around 15-20 family members there every other day,” Brandon Nelson said. “I had cousins come down that I hadn’t seen in 20-something years. For them to show up and support my kid and his baseball team, it was awesome.”

Wylie LL finished 3-2 in the tournament’s double-elimination format, notching wins over Washington, New Jersey and Nebraska while dropping a pair of games to eventual-champion Michigan. Nelson was at the core of Wylie’s roster, batting third each game while making two pitching appearances.

He went a combined 6-for-12 at the plate, scoring four runs while drawing four walks and driving in one run. Nelson reached base in 10-of-16 plate appearances, producing a .625 on-base percentage.

“He’s a very confident kid, there’s no doubt about that,” Brandon Nelson said. “He doesn’t get rattled, he doesn’t lose focus and it’s hard for anyone to get him down. He just perseveres through everything. Going through this, I knew he’d be strong-willed and all the cameras wouldn’t get to him.”

Carter made a relief pitching appearance against New Jersey, striking out two while walking one, before throwing a complete-game shutout against Nebraska in which he allowed two hits and two walks while striking out nine.

In his start on the mound, Nelson featured a deceptive fastball with which he found success up in the strike zone. With a hook curveball that drifted away from right-handers, he kept opposing batters off balance.

While off the field, Carter made plenty of friends out of his opponents. That is, when ESPN wasn’t hunting him down for interviews.

“We had this little play area, and every team was super nice and would always talk to us,” he said. “The competition was super good; some of the best teams we’ve ever faced.”

Wylie formed a friendship in regionals with the team from Lafayette, Louisiana, which represented the Southwest region alongside Wylie.

“Louisiana (players) were our best friends since regionals,” Carter Nelson said. “They were in the dorm right next to us, and we’d always talk on the balcony. We got each others’ numbers, too.”

Wylie’s elimination from the World Series meant a trip back to reality for Carter Nelson, who began 7th grade on Monday. However, he returned to Abilene with memories he won’t forget.

“It was super cool,” Nelson said. “Knowing that we just made it to the Little League World Series and seeing all of the ESPN people asking us questions and everything was a super cool experience.”

The team enjoyed a parade through its school, but the big welcome home celebration is planned for Sept. 11. The local high school football stadium will host a commemorative party featuring local congressmen, senators and more.

With baseball season over until the spring, Carter will now focus on football.

“Knowing that this was the best baseball experience I’ve ever had, bringing that back to Little League and playing intermediate next year for baseball, it taught me a lot of stuff,” he said “Never let your guard down, always play your hardest and no matter what happens, always play your best.”