Chris Davis fields his position during the Junior League World Series in Heritage Park, Mich. Chris’ team, Southwest, defeated Central, 7-0, on Monday. Courtesy Photo A Chandler teenager has traveled with his East Texas teammates to Michigan to play in the annual Junior League World Series in Heritage Park.

Chris Davis’ story begins in the eighth grade, when after one game of football, he sustained a devastating injury. He tore his anterior cruciate ligament, ending his season. His recuperation included much therapy and hard work and, for an athlete, sitting out was tough.

But Chris persevered, family friend Tonya Morrison said.

“He worked really hard and was released to play summer league baseball,” Morrison said. “Later, Chris was picked up to play on the All-Star team with the Tyler Rose Capital East League.”

His mother, Jennifer Moore, said more than just football makes her son who he is.

“Not only is Chris an overall athlete, but is also an honor student, in the top 10 in his class, vice president of the Student Council, and a member of the FCA. He’s a great kid, but then again, I might be just a bit prejudiced, as I am his mother.”

This group of 13- and 14-year-olds has gone undefeated in their last five games. In Michigan, teams have come from 27 states amd four Canadian provinces, and from Mexico, Puerto Rico, Belgium, Saudi Arabia, the Czech Republic, Germany, Guam, Poland, Venezuela, Saipan, Russia, and The Netherlands and Indonesia, which debuted in 2006 after winning the regional tournament for teams from the Asia-Pacific region.

At 8 p.m. today, Chris’ team, Southwest, is scheduled to play the East team. The championship game with the international champion vs. the U.S. champion will air on ESPN2 on Saturday, at 4 p.m.

Follow online at juniorleagueworldseries. com.