In a show of force and respect, three teams once again represented California District 42 Little League at this year’s Southern California Division III championship tournaments.
The state-level tournament marks the end of summer all-star play at the 10U and 11U levels and serves as a qualifier for the 12U Little League World Series West Region tournament — the last leg on the road to the 2019 Little League World Series.
All three teams represented themselves well.
Sweetwater Valley won the 12U championship in grand comeback fashion while Eastlake Little League finished runner-up in the 11U finals. Chula Vista American Little League tied for fifth place in the 10U tournament.
Additionally, Park View Little League concluded a top six place-finish at the Junior Division state tournament in Anaheim.
The rampant success has not been lost on anyone connected to the district; it continues a trend established by teams from South San Diego County in recent years.
The district qualified teams at the 10U, 11U and 12U levels at the divisional tournament last year. Eastlake Little League entered teams in all three age groups in 2017, winning the 11U state title while finishing second in the state at the 10U and 12U state levels.
Overall, two of the three District 42 teams competing at this year’s Division III level came home with wins over the opening weekend of July 20-21.
Sweetwater Valley began its run to the championship by shading Section 6 champion Allied Gardens, 1-0, while Eastlake defeated Section 4 champion Torrance, 10-5, to remain in the winners bracket. Chula Vista American dropped a 14-4 decision to Section 3 champion Claremont American to drop to the elimination bracket in the double-elimination tournament.
It was a busy week from there for all three teams, two of which survived to compete in the final weekend of play.
The three District 42 teams combined to play a total of 17 games in the three age-group divisions, including 12 games in the elimination bracket.
The season continues for at least one more week for Sweetwater Valley’s 12U all-stars as they attempt to follow in the footsteps of the 2015 SVLL team that marched its way to a third-place finish in the United States division at the Little League World Series.
Almost famous
Eastlake Little League’s 11U all-star team came ever so close to matching Sweetwater Valley’s intrepid run through the elimination bracket after dropping a 7-6 contest to Section 10 champion Huntington Valley in the championship game July 28 at Eastvale Little League.
Eastlake battled previously unbeaten Huntington Valley toe-to-toe in the game, which Eastlake needed to win to force a double-elimination game the following evening.
But Huntington Valley came up with the dramatic win on a sixth-inning walk-off home run to punctuate their championship game victory and end the season for Eastlake.
Huntington Valley finished as this year’s Southern California champion while Eastlake finishes second.
It was an otherwise outstanding postseason run for the Section 7 champions. Eastlake finished summer all-star play with an overall 10-2 record, winning its opening seven games.
Both of Eastlake’s losses in the Division III tournament were to Huntington Valley. The Section 10 champions defeated Eastlake, 11-4, in a winners bracket game on July 24.
Eastlake opened tournament play on July 21 with the win over Torrance. Eastlake opened scoring in the first inning with one run, but Torrance responded by scoring three runs in the second inning.
Jordan Gomez started on the mound for Eastlake, allowing three hits and three runs in two innings.
Eastlake racked up 10 hits in the game. Josh Alo, Noah Cook and Armando Mendivil each collected multiple hits. Alo went 3-for-4 at the plate to lead the District 42 champs.
The comeback victory advanced Eastlake to a winners bracket game against Huntington Valley, which won by seven runs to drop the Section 7 champions to the elimination bracket.
Eastlake responded to the challenge by winning three consecutive elimination games to draw a rematch against Huntington Valley in the championship game.
Eastlake defeated Section 1 champion Goleta Valley, 5-0, in an elimination game on July 25.
Chewy Flores started the must-win game on the mound for the Section 7 champions. He pitched five and two-thirds innings, giving up three hits, zero runs with three strikeouts and no walks. He threw a total of 51 pitches.
Flores and Noah Cook both had two hits in the game while Armando Mendivil stroked a two-run double in the bottom of the fifth inning.
“Our players bounced back well from the loss against Huntington Valley,” Eastlake manager Adam Villarreal explained. “Chewy really pitched incredibly well. His efficiency was incredible — 51 pitches after five and two-thirds innings.
“We’re going to need more players stepping up if we plan to grind out the rest of these games. We have the players to do it; we just need to execute. It’s one game at a time.”
Eastlake wasn’t ready to exit the tournament after topping Section 2 champion Northridge, 8-7, in an elimination game on July 26. Eastlake’s spunky 11U all-stars continued to just say no to the competition after recording the dramatic walk-off win.
Eastlake had to battle back to remain in championship contention after Northridge jumped to an early 4-0 lead.
Eastlake’s bats eventually came alive, helped by a three-run home run shot by Hazma Hatahet in the fifth inning to tie the game. Eastlake rolled across five runs in the frame to eventually take a one-run lead.
Northridge managed to tie the game in the top of the sixth inning. The Eastlake defense’s ability to hold Northridge to just one run proved key in determining the outcome of the game.
In the bottom of the sixth inning with runners on first base and second base, Noah Flores’ RBI double brought in the winning run.
Hatahet finished the game with four RBI while Flores went 3-for-4 with two RBI. Josh Alo went 3-for-3
“This was a great win for these boys,” Villarreal said. “They competed to the very last out and found a way play another day.”
The District 42 champions had little time to celebrate their dramatic victory, however, as they met Section 6 champion San Carlos the next morning in the challenger bracket semifinal game after San Carlos dropped a 10-5 decision to Huntington Valley in a winners bracket game on July 26. The winner of the Eastlake-San Carlos game would earn a berth opposite Huntington Valley in the championship game.
Eastlake eliminated San Carlos, 6-1, to draw the championship rematch with Huntington Valley.
Hatahet singled in one run in the first inning to get the offense going against San Carlos.
Sean Flemming started on the hill for Eastlake and pitched four innings, allowing three hits and one run while striking out two batters.
Eastlake collected seven hits, with Flemming and Jake Serrano both recording two hits.
Due to the double-elimination aspect of the tournament, Eastlake would need to defeat Huntington Valley twice to win the state championship title, while Huntington Valley needed only to win one game.
Eastlake made it close to forcing the second game after dropping the one-run decision in the rematch.
Huntington Valley, which out-hit Eastlake 14-7 in the final, finished its state championship all-star run with a perfect 12-0 record.
Jason Dunham finished the championship game with four hits and three RBI, including the game-winning home run. Dunham had three hits in the earlier win over Eastlake while Flores had three RBI.
Hatahet led Eastlake with two hits and two RBI in the championship game loss.
Joining Villarreal on the bench were coaches Tom Alo and George Flores.
“I’m really proud of what we accomplished this post season,” Villarreal summed up. “Huntington Valley is a very good team and we were extremely close to forcing the next game. But that’s baseball.”
This year’s second place finish builds on last year’s top six place-finish by the Eastlake squad at the 10U level. The 2018 Eastlake unit finished 2-2 at the divisional tournament, posting a final 9-2 overall all-star record.
“We made strides and improved upon last year’s run,” Villarreal noted. “Hopefully our 12-year-old season will be our year.
“These boys are committed to get better this offseason. They’re still hungry for that state title. Until next season . . . GO EASTLAKE!”
Making the grade
Chula Vista American’s 10U all-stars finished 8-3 through three postseason tournaments, finishing 2-2 at the Division III tournament.
The District 42 champions were able to bounce back after their first loss at the state tournament by defeating Section 6 champion Allied Gardens, 8-3, on July 22 behind strong pitching from ace Reece Madden and great relief work from Jack Daniel. Madden pitched four innings, striking out six batters while only allowing two hits; Daniel came in and shut down the Section 6 champions by allowing only one hit in the two innings he pitched.
The team combined with timely hitting and clutch hitting from Daniel, in particular.
Chula Vista American continued its winning streak by defeating Section 5 champion Tustin Western, 6-0, on July 23.
CVA again had great pitching from 9-year-old Gerardo Covarrubias, who pitched a six inning complete game while allowing four hits and striking out one batter. Covarrubias was helped by a great defense, from a Mario Medrano diving catch in left field to a game-ending double play turned by Xavier Gutierrez and Madden.
The pair of must-win contests advanced CV American to the next round of elimination games in Long Beach.
Section 1 champion Thousand Oaks defeated Section 10 champion Ocean View, 5-2, in a winners bracket game on July 24 to drop Ocean View to an elimination bracket game against Chula Vista American on July 25.
Ocean View defeated Chula Vista American, 4-3, to advance in the challenger bracket against Claremont on July 26, leaving four teams still in contention for the championship.
Chula Vista American and Section 4 champion Torrance tied for fifth place to secure a top six finish in the 10-team tournament.
In subsequent games, Claremont American eliminated Ocean View (20-4 on July 27) and Sherman Oaks (7-5 on July 28) to meet Thousand Oaks in the championship game on July 29, with Thousand Oaks emerging with this year’s state championship following a 10-6 victory.
Thousand Oaks finished summer all-star play 10-0.
After winning district and section championships, the season finally came to an end for CV American after playing 11 games. It was an all-star odyssey matched by few teams from the league in recent years.
To put CVA’s top six place-finish in the state tournament in perspective, more than 430 teams competed in the age division.
“Chula Vista American had a great year,” CVA league president Martin Gutierrez underscored.
“Thanks to a lot of volunteers we made many improvements to the fields and we had great managers and coaches step up this season, and had a great competitive and fun year,” added Gutierrez, who served double duty as the 10U all-star team manager.
“CVA had a great showing in the TOC tournament by winning the Majors TOC, 6U TOC and the 7U TOC won it again to make it back-to-back championships for that team.
“Our all-stars had a great showing as well as the 12s and 11s fell a little short, our intermediate had a great year and also fell short in the championship game by losing to Eastlake Little League. Our 10s had a great all-star run from playing great at the district tournament and beating Sweetwater Valley to going undefeated at sectionals and beating Rancho de Oro to win the Section 7 championship.
“We played great at the state tournament (Division III) but fell short to Ocean View and Claremont. As a recap, CVALL had a great year overall; the league hasn’t had this much success in many years. We owe this success to our great volunteered coaches, team moms, board members, parents and lastly, the most important, the boys and girls of CVA.”
Monkey business
Sweetwater Valley Little League held a pep rally Thursday as a send-off to the West Region tournament in San Bernardino. Fans had an opportunity to watch the newly-christened Smashers take batting practice (and hit a plethora of home runs) while helping support the team financially through snack bar and swag sales.
A live band serenaded fans. San Diego County Supervisor Greg Cox also was on hand to provide encouragement.
Cox has been a supporter of District 42 baseball over the years, helping emcee the homecoming celebration to honor the 2015 SVLL Sweetwater Sluggers squad.
“Another strong team from South County,” he noted.
The 2019 Sweetwater Smashers are not headed to San Bernardino with a blind eye. Manager Ward Lannom has been there before while taking the 2015 SVLL team to the LLWS.
There are no surprises the second time around, he said.
“The experience definitely helps having gone through it,” he said at Wednesday’s practice. “You know what to expect, the heat, sickness, thousands of fans in the stands instead of hundreds, squeezing in meals between practice and games.”
However, despite all the preparations, it still will be a new experience for the players.
“They’ll be playing on possibly the nicest fields they’ve ever played on,” Lannom said. “But I think once they step on that field they will have tunnel vision.”
If the Smashers can successfully navigate through the winners bracket, it will take four wins to advance to South Williamsport. If they drop to the elimination bracket, it could take as many as five games to advance to the 2019 Little League World Series.
For Lannom, the return to San Bernardino’s Al Houghton Stadium will be a magical experience.
“I thought I would never step back on that field again after the season ended at the 2015 Little League World Series,” Lannom said. “To get the opportunity to go out there and coach third base … it’s really exciting.”
Talk to any of the Sweetwater Valley 12s and they’re confident they’ll find a way to send their manager back for a second trip to the LLWS while making a once-in-a-lifetime journey themselves.
“We’re very excited,” pitcher Andrew Arnce said. “Our team has been working hard every single day. We want to go up there, work hard and have fun.”
Lannom said excellent team chemistry is one of the team’s defining attributes. The players obviously feel it as well.
“We have a group that we’re all really friends and get along well together,” Arnce explained. “If you don’t get along together, you won’t have good friendships. When you get along together, you have good team chemistry and it makes it better all around.”
It helps foster a winning attitude.
While the 2015 SVLL team relied on the long ball for much of its success, this year’s all-star squad seems to be built more on small ball attributes.
“Our defense is solid and our hitting is starting to come around,” Arnce said. “We click together. I think we have a good chance. We’ve just got to play hard and stay calm.”
Dante Millan concurred with much of what his teammate said.
“It’s very exciting,” he said. “We’ve been practicing hard every day. The whole team is excited. We try to have a lot of fun and to win, of course. Having fun with this team has been a great experience.”
Sunday’s opening game (7:30 p.m. on the ESPN+ app) will come against Central East Maui, the Hawaii state champion. It should be a challenging contest as Hawaii won last year’s Little League World Series championship.
A win would advance Sweetwater Valley to Monday’s winners bracket game against Tucson’s Sunnyside Little League; a loss would send the Southern California champions to the elimination bracket, with another loss stalling the team’s trip to Pennsylvania’s promised land.
But Sweetwater Valley brings experience in staying alive after winning five consecutive games while facing elimination in last weeks Division III tournament.
“The little things really count — I think we’ve covered them,” Millan said. “It’s a really big deal to get there.”
“We’re like brothers now,” Ryan Garcia piped up. “When I hear the crowd roar, it makes me feel like I’ve accomplished something. It’s a nice feeling.”
All the teams at the West Region tournament will be feeling the heat one way or another.
Batter up
The SVLL manager said all 13 players on the roster are capable of hitting home runs. So far through 14 games, eight players have hit dingers. As a team, the Smashers have launched 26 balls over the fence.
On the mound, the Smashers have been perhaps even more lethal at stopping the long ball. Kapono Nakanelua tops the team with 38 strikeouts in 22.2 innings to go with six wins and a 2.38 earned-run average.
Ethan Otero has logged 18 strikeouts in 20.1 innings with four wins to his credit and a 0.59 ERA. Arnce follows with 11 strikeouts in 17.1 innings and two tournament wins (both big ones).
Josh Hughes has struck out 11 batters with one save in five games while Adrik Sanchez has one win and six strikeouts to his credit in four games.
Southern California Division III Championship Tournaments
10U All-Stars
July 20-30 at Long Beach Little League
Saturday, July 20
Claremont American (Section 3) 14, Chula Vista American (Section 7) 4
Sherman Oaks 1(Section 2) 2, Newmark (Section 8) 1
Thousand Oaks (Section 1) 10, Eastvale (Section 9) 2
Torrance (Section 4) 8, Allied Gardens (Section 6) 5
Monday, July 22
Eastvale (Section 9) 5, Newmark (Section 8) 0 (elimination game)
Chula Vista American (Section 7) 8, Allied Gardens (Section 6) 3 (elimination game)
Ocean View (Section 10) 3, Claremont American (Section 3) 0 (winners bracket)
Sherman Oaks (Section 2) 6, Tustin Western (Section 5) 1 (winners bracket)
Tuesday, July 23
Claremont American (Section 3) 5, Eastvale (Section 9) 3 (elimination game)
Chula Vista American (Section 7) 6, Tustin Western (Section 5) 0 (elimination game)
Wednesday, July 24
Thousand Oaks (Section 1) 5, Ocean View (Section 10) 2 (winners bracket)
Sherman Oaks (Section 2) 4, Torrance (Section 4) 2 (winners bracket)
Thursday, July 25
Ocean View (Section 10) 4, Chula Vista American (Section 7) 3 (elimination game)
Claremont American (Section 3) 2, Torrance (Section 4) 1 (elimination game)
Saturday, July 27
Elimination game: Claremont American (Section 3) 20, Ocean View (Section 10) 4
Semifinal game (winners bracket): Thousand Oaks (Section 1) 6, Sherman Oaks (Section 2) 1
Sunday, July 28
Semifinal game (challenger bracket): Claremont American (Section 3) 7, Sherman Oaks (Section 2) 5
Monday, July 29
Championship game: Thousand Oaks (Section 1) 10, Claremont American (Section 3) 6
11U All-Stars
July 20-29 at Eastvale Little League
Saturday, July 20
Goleta Valley (Section 1) 13, Upland Foothill (Section 3) 3
Huntington Valley (Section 10) 16, Golden Hill (Section 5) 1
Sunday, July 21
Citrus (Section 8) 5, Orangecrest (Section 9) 3
Eastlake (Section 7) 10, Torrance (Section 4) 5
Huntington Valley (Section 10) 16, Northridge (Section 2) 5
San Carlos (Section 6) 3, Goleta Valley (Section 1) 2
Monday, July 22
Orangecrest (Section 9) 3, Golden Hill (Section 5) 1 (elimination game)
Upland Foothill (Section 3) 6, Torrance (Section 4) 2 (elimination game)
Tuesday, July 23
Northridge (Section 2) 6, Upland Foothill (Section 3) 5 (elimination game)
Goleta Valley (Section 1) 5, Orangecrest (Section 9) 4 (elimination game)
Wednesday, July 24
San Carlos (Section 6) 14, Citrus (Section 8) 12 (winners bracket)
Huntington Valley (Section 10) 11, Eastlake (Section 7) 4 (winners bracket)
Thursday, July 25
Eastlake (Section 7) 5, Goleta Valley (Section 1) 0 (elimination game)
Northridge (Section 2) 9, Citrus (Section 8) 0 (elimination game)
Friday, July 26
Elimination game: Eastlake (Section 7)8, Northridge (Section 2) 7
Semifinal game (winners bracket): Huntington Valley (Section 10) 10, San Carlos (Section 6) 5
Saturday, July 27
Semifinal game (challenger bracket): Eastlake (Section 7) 6, San Carlos (Section 6) 1
Sunday, July 28
Championship game: Huntington Valley (Section 10) 7, Eastlake 6 (Section 7)
12U All-Stars
July 20-29 at North Mission Viejo Little League
Saturday, July 20
Tustin Western (Section 5) 6, Temecula (Section 9) 1
Sweetwater Valley (Section 7) 1, Allied Gardens (Section 6) 0
Santa Margarita National (Section 10) 8, Sherman Oaks Southern (Section 2) 1
Moorpark (Section 1) 8, Claremont American (Section 3) 3
Sunday, July 21
Santa Margarita National (Section 10) 7, Manhattan Beach (Section 4) 0 (winners bracket)
Tustin Western (Section 5) 6, Hesperia National (Section 8) 2 (winners bracket)
Sherman Oaks Southern (Section 2) 10, Claremont American (Section 3) 6 (elimination game)
Allied Gardens (Section 6) 4, Temecula (Section 9) 1 (elimination game)
Monday, July 22
Manhattan Beach (Section 4) 5, Allied Gardens (Section 6) 1 (elimination game)
Sherman Oaks Southern (Section 2) 15, Hesperia National (Section 8) 0 (elimination game)
Tuesday, July 23
Moorpark (Section 1) 9, Tustin Western (Section 5) 6 (winners bracket)
Santa Margarita National (Section 10) 4, Sweetwater Valley (Section 7) 2 (winners bracket)
Wednesday, July 24
Sweetwater Valley (Section 7) 6, Sherman Oaks Southern (Section 2) 4 (elimination game)
Manhattan Beach (Section 4) 6, Tustin Western (Section 5) 5 (elimination game)
Thursday, July 25
Semifinal game (winners bracket): Moorpark 5, Santa Margarita National 4 (8 innings)
Elimination game: Sweetwater Valley (Section 7) 8, Manhattan Beach (Section 4) 1
Saturday, July 27
Challenger bracket semifinal: Sweetwater Valley 7, Santa Margarita National 1
Sunday, July 28
Double-elimination game: Sweetwater Valley 7, Moorpark 2 (double-elimination game)
Monday, July 29
Championship game: Sweetwater Valley (Section 7) 9, Moorpark (Section 1) 1
LITTLE LEAGUE WEST REGION TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE
All games at Al Houghton Stadium, San Bernardino
Sunday, Aug 4
Northern California (Maidu/Roseville) 3, Nevada (Paseo Verde/Henderson) 0
Southern California vs. Hawaii (Central East Maui) 4, Southern California (Sweetwater Valley) 2
Monday, Aug. 5
Northern California (Roseville) 17, Utah (Washington) 5
Hawaii (Central East Maui) 6, Arizona (Sunnyside/Tucson) 5
Tuesday, Aug. 6
Elimination game: Arizona (Sunnyside/Tucson) 13, Nevada (Paseo Verde/Henderson) 1
Elimination game: Southern California (Sweetwater Valley) 15, Utah (Washington) 2
Wednesday, Aug. 7
Elimination game: Arizona (Sunnyside/Tucson) 8, Southern California (Sweetwater Valley) 6
Thursday, Aug. 8
Winners bracket semifinal: Hawaii 13, Northern California 3
Friday, Aug. 9
Challenger bracket semifinal: Arizona (Sunnyside/Tucson) vs. Northern California (Roseville), 6 p.m. (ESPN)
Saturday, Aug. 10
Championship game: Hawaii vs. Arizona-Northern California winner, 6 p.m. (ESPN)
Links:
One more time, Sweetwater Valley Smashers …
