Livonia Franklin defeated Westland John Glenn 12-2 in five innings to win the 2026 baseball district championship on May 29, 2026. The Patriots secured their fourth district title in five seasons with the victory at home.

Earlier that day, Livonia Franklin opened district play with a 1-0 win over Taylor in the semifinal. An error at shortstop allowed Brody Burgess to drive in Robert Keskitalo for the game’s only run. Senior pitcher Logan McLaughlin threw a complete game, striking out 10 while allowing one hit and no walks. McLaughlin threw 105 pitches to the 21 batters he faced, with 62 strikes.

Against Westland John Glenn, Cooper Scholz pitched for Livonia Franklin, striking out five while allowing two earned runs on six hits. The Patriots’ offense broke open the game early, with Jake Kotrych hitting a two-run line drive to right field in the second inning that scored Keskitalo and Brody Gross. Connor McBride and Ryan Davis each had two hits, while Scholz and Konnor Cavazos added one apiece. In the fourth inning, Nick Cox grounded into a fielder’s choice that brought home Burgess and McBride, and Cox later sealed the win with a walk-off single in the fifth.

“I actually love when the game is closer because it's more fun for me, honestly. I know the guys have my back, so there's nothing to worry about when the ball's in my hand. It's just about attacking, staying aggressive and not backing down,” McLaughlin said.

McLaughlin, a Madonna University signee, also reflected on the team’s motivation after losing the 2025 Division 1 regional final to Woodhaven 2-1 on a sixth-inning run. “It's awesome because we put a lot of work in during the offseason and then had a long grind throughout this season, so it's nice to get a trophy out of it. Losing to Woodhaven last year, that was a tough one, especially losing by one run when they scored in the bottom of the sixth to go up 2-1. It was crushing, so we just knew we had to get back this year,” he said.

Coach Matt Fournier praised his pitchers. “That's why we have him where he's at, and that's why he's going to throw well at Madonna. He wanted the ball. He wanted to put the team on his shoulders, and that's what you look for out of a senior leader, and Cooper did the same thing, putting the team on his back and pounding the zone in the second game,” Fournier said. “These guys set this as their goal as soon as our season ended down in Woodhaven. The goal was to come back, have a strong season and win districts to see if we could get another shot at this. We started talking with the juniors who were going to be seniors right away after that loss, so it's fulfilling to see these guys do what they said they wanted to accomplish.”

Livonia Franklin finished the 2026 season with a 22-8 record and will face the winner of the Saline district in the regional opener on Wednesday at 4:30 p.m. Before the handshake line, Gross and McBride grabbed two Gatorade buckets, and Brendan Bache and Davis doused Fournier in celebration.