At the start of the Southern California Division III championship tournament being played in Mission Viejo, Sweetwater Valley 12U all-star manager Ward Lannom said his team would need to win four games if it stayed in the winners bracket to advance to the West Region tournament in San Bernardino — one step removed from the 2019 Little League World Series in South Williamsport, Pa.
Lannom added that it might take more than four wins to advance to the regional tournament if his team did not remain in the winners bracket.
It ended up taking six wins — five of them consecutive — after navigating the precarious waters of the elimination bracket.
“Couldn’t be more happy for the boys,” Lannom said succinctly after his team punched its ticket to this weekend’s West Region tournament with a commanding 9-1 victory Monday against Section 1 champion Moorpark.
“The boys showed how much they really wanted this. To come out of the losers bracket and win five games in a row and force the ‘if’ game, what more can you say?
“We played seven games the last 10 days or so, five games in the last six days, that’s a great testament to the boys and shows we have a pitching staff to go with that.
“The coaching staff is so proud of this team. They have no idea what awaits.”
Sweetwater Valley advances to the coveted West Region tournament, scheduled Aug. 4-10 with exposure on national television, with a 13-1 record and a five-game winning streak.
Game on
The reigning California District 42 and Section 7 champions won their opening game in the 10-team divisional tournament but dropped their second game to fall to the elimination bracket, with one more loss dashing hopes of reaching their final goal.
Sweetwater Valley responded well to the adversity by racking up five consecutive wins while sending four teams home for the summer.
Once thought an unlikely journey after the team’s 4-2 loss to Santa Margarita National on July 23, Sweetwater Valley went right to work rather than throw in the towel with back-to-back elimination game victories against Section 2 champion Sherman Oaks Southern (6-4 on July 24) and Section 4 champion Manhattan Beach (8-1 on July 25).
Sweetwater Valley got one day of rest while awaiting its next opponent on Saturday. As fate would have it, that opponent would be Santa Margarita National after the Section 10 champions dropped a 6-5 decision in eight innings to Moorpark.
The light at the end of what might have seemed like a very long and dark tunnel at one point earlier in the week suddenly became much brighter after Sweetwater Valley defeated Santa Margarita National, 7-1, in Saturday’s elimination game.
Santa Margarita lost, 6-5, to Moorpark in Thursday’s winners bracket semifinal to draw a rematch with Sweetwater Valley in Saturday’s elimination game.
Sweetwater Valley did not hold anything back in gaining a measure of revenge against the Section 10 champions.
Sweetwater Valley took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the third inning but SMN rallied with a run of its own in the top of the fourth inning to tie the game at a run apiece. However, Santa Margarita National could not respond in like manner after Sweetwater Valley poured across six runs in the bottom of the fifth inning to lead 7-1.
The game ended in Sweetwater Valley’s favor as SMN failed to score in the top of the sixth inning. Sweetwater Valley made the most of its seven hits in the game while limiting the Section 10 champions to just three hits. Both teams committed one error.
Andrew Arnce pitched a complete game for Sweetwater Valley, throwing 13 first-pitch strikes and fanning three SMN batters in six innings.
Joey Castillo and Daniel Sanchez both had two RBI to lead the victors. Castillo and Josh Hughes both had two hits.
Lannom said his team came through in the key areas required.
“It was a great game for Sweetwater Valley Little League,” the SVLL manager said. “The game was won on solid defense and the best pitching performance I have seen to date. The boys played lights out baseball and executed in all aspects of the game.”
Sweetwater Valley’s spirits soared even more after topping previously unbeaten champion Moorpark, 7-2, on Sunday to set up Monday’s winner-take-all championship game in the double-elimination tournament.
Moorpark needed to win just one more game to advance to the regional tournament while Sweetwater Valley needed to win twice.
The SVLL monster, now unleashed and hungry, kept devouring unsuspecting opponents.
Sweetwater Valley was the visitor in Sunday’s match-up and did not waste time in setting the tempo in the game. The Section 7 champions scored once in the top of the second inning before tacking on four more runs in the top of the third inning to take a 5-0 lead.
Moorpark answered with one run in the bottom of the third inning to trail 5-1. But Sweetwater Valley added two more runs in the top of the fifth inning to lead 7-1.
Moorpark scored once in the bottom of the sixth inning but it was too little, too late for the Section 1 champs as they finished on the wrong end of the scoreboard by five runs.
Sweetwater Valley racked up 10 hits in the must-win game while minimizing the damage against Moorpark, which collected nine hits and committed one error.
Lannom said the key to success was continuing to play “good old-fashioned baseball.”
“Small ball — bunts in the game went for two singles,” the SVLL manager enumerated. “Using counts to our advantage and timely hitting.”
Solid pitching from starter Ethan Otero and reliever Adrik Sanchez was once again pivotal to Sweetwater Valley’s success.
Otero pitched five and two-thirds innings, zeroing in on the plate with 22 first-pitch strikes and seven strikeouts in the game. Sanchez was credited with two strikeouts in his partial inning of duty.
Arnce led the Section 7 champions with two RBI while Adrik Sanchez and Ryan Garcia were both credited with one RBI.
Daniel Sanchez, Hughes and Arnce all collected two hits while Leo Mondragon, Nyenati Snoh and Castillo all reached base on walks.
Sweetwater Valley delivered the KO punch against Moorpark in Monday’s championship game.
Sweetwater Valley wasted little time in taking a 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning, then added another run in the top of the third inning to extend its lead to 2-0.
The Section 7 champions poured four runs across in the top of the fourth inning, highlighted by two-run home runs by Cristian Jimenez and Daniel Sanchez to go on top 6-0.
Garcia hit a home run in the top of the fifth inning to make the score 7-0 and tacked on two more runs in the top of the sixth inning on throwing errors.
While Sweetwater Valley’s offense proved unstoppable, its pitching was even more ferocious. Starter Kapono Nakanelua took a no-hitter into the fifth inning. He reached the maximum 85-pitch count after pitching to two batters in the inning and left the game with a runner on base.
However, it only took reliever Adrik Sanchez one pitch to get out of the inning as the first batter he faced hit into an inning-ending double play.
Moorpark managed to score its lone run with two out in the bottom of the sixth inning.
Nakanelua pitched four-and-two-third innings with eight strikeouts while yielding one hit.
Garcia, Daniel Sanchez and Jimenez all finished the game with two RBI. Hughes led the Southern California champions with three hits while Garcia and Daniel Sanchez both recorded two hits.
Garcia and Arnce both reached base on walks.
The District 42 champions racked up nine hits in the game while taking full advantage of five Moorpark errors.
Mason Charles pitched four innings for Moorpark, striking out five hitters while throwing 19 first-pitch strikes.
Moorpark fielded just 11 players for Monday’s game.
Nakanelua was interviewed by KUSI-TV after the game.
“It was great, it was awesome,” he told the station’s news crew. “There was a lot of pressure until we started scoring.”
Hear them roar!
And we have a winner!
Next level
Sweetwater Valley will meet Central East Maui (Hawaii) in its opening game at the LLWS West Region tournament, scheduled Sunday, Aug. 4, at 7:30 p.m. Northern California champion Maidu (Roseville) and Nevada champion Paseo Verde (Henderson) will open the six-team tournament at 9 a.m.
The Utah and Arizona champions will play Monday against the winners of Sunday’s games. Utah’s Washington Little League will test the Nor Cal-Nevada winner while Arizona’s Sunnyside Little League from Tucson will meet the SoCal-Hawaii winner.
Elimination games follow on Tuesday, Aug. 6, and Wednesday, Aug. 7, followed by the winners bracket semifinal on Thursday, Aug. 8.
The challenger bracket final is scheduled for Friday, Aug. 9, followed by the championship game on Saturday, Aug. 10.
The latter three games are all scheduled at 6 p.m. PDT. All games in the tournament are scheduled at Al Houghton Stadium, 6707 N. Little League Drive, San Bernardino.
The opening seven games in the tournament will be streamed on the ESPN+ service while the last three games will be telecast on the main ESPN platform.
The Northwest Region tournament will take place concurrently with the West Region tournament in San Bernardino and feature teams from Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming and Alaska.
All games in the tournament are scheduled at Al Houghton Stadium, 6707 North Little League Drive, San Bernardino.
The opening seven games in the tournament will be streamed on the ESPN+ service while the last three games will be telecast on the main ESPN platform.
The Northwest Region tournament will take place concurrently with the West Region tournament in San Bernardino and feature teams from Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming and Alaska.
West Region Qualified Teams
Hawaii – Central East Maui Little League (Wailuku)
Arizona – Sunnyside Little League (Tucson)
Nevada – Paseo Verde Little League (Henderson)
Utah – Washington Little League (Washington)
Northern California – Maidu Little League (Roseville)
Southern California – Sweetwater Valley Little League (Bonita)
Northwest Region Qualified Teams
Alaska – Sitka Little League (Sitka)
Idaho – Coeur D’Alene Little League (Coeur D’Alene)
Montana – Billings Heights National Little League (Billings)
Oregon – Sprague Little League (Salem)
Washington – North Bothell Little League (Bothel)
Wyoming – Gillette Little League (Gillette)
Sweetwater Valley Smashers Coaching Staff:
And the rest of the 2019 Sweetwater Valley 12U All-Stars …
Get ready to party!
Almost famous: Eastlake 11U all-stars wrap up runner-up SoCal finish
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 Sunday’s championship game.
Eastlake battled previously unbeaten Huntington Valley toe-to-toe in the game, which Eastlake needed to win to force a double-elimination game on Monday.
But Huntington Valley came up with the dramatic win on a sixth-inning walk-off home run to punctuate their championship game.
Huntington Valley finishes as this year’s Southern California champion while Eastlake finishes second.
It was an otherwise outstanding postseason run for the Section 7 champions.
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 responded to the challenge by winning three consecutive elimination games to draw a rematch against Huntington Valley on Sunday.
Eastlake defeated Section 6 champion San Carlos, 6-1, in Saturday’s elimination game.
Huntington Valley topped San Carlos, 10-5, in Friday’s winners bracket game to reserve a berth in what proved to be Sunday’s season finale.
Eastlake finished summer all-star play with an overall 10-2 record, winning its opening seven games.
Chula Vista American’s 10U all-stars, who ended their season with a loss in the Division III tournament earlier this weekend, finished 8-3 through three postseason tournaments.
Southern California Division III Championship Tournament
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 8, Northridge 7
Semifinal game (winners bracket): Huntington Valley 10, San Carlos 5
Saturday, July 27
Semifinal game (challenger bracket): Eastlake 6, San Carlos 1
Sunday, July 28
Championship game: Huntington Valley 7, Eastlake 6
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
