Pitcher Aaron Shortridge fired a one-hitter, and earned his second victory of the tournament as his Napa National Little League all-star team blanked Hollister National, 6-0, in the Northern California championship game at Centennial Park in Vacaville.

Shortridge, who manager Kyle Rasmussen pulled after 65 pitches in his team's opening round victory to ensure his eligibility for a potential championship game assignment, struck out six batters and allowed just two baserunners. He also had a pair of hits at the plate, and drove in his team's final run.

Napa National won its first-ever Northern California championship, and advanced to the West Region tournament in San Bernardino, California.

"They worked hard for this night," said Rasmussen. "The hardest thing to do is win when you're supposed to win, and they went ahead and did it."

Napa National had edged Hollister, 4-3, in the winner's bracket final, and broke to an early lead in the championship game following a three-run rally in the second inning. Napa attacked aggressively in the inning, as Dahlan Benere singled on the inning's first pitch and Joe Carepa deposited the next offering well beyond the right field fence for a quick 2-0 lead. After Shortridge singled and Cal Bard followed with a first-pitch, one-out double, Jake Rasmussen added a sacrifice fly that padded Napa's advantage.

Colton Forster added a two-run homer beyond the left center field fence in the fourth inning, before Benere singled and later scored on a Shortridge single in the fifth.

"We couldn't really hit," said Hollister National manager Anthony Sotelo. "I think the five games versus the three games Napa played took a toll on us."

Napa National, which received an opening round bye in the six-team tournament, played just three games to claim the championship, while Hollister faced Tri-City Little League on the tournament's opening night, and later played an additional contest after dropping into the elimination bracket.

Napa's first victory came in a 4-2 win over Section 6 power River Park Little League from Fresno. Shortridge made the most of his time on the mound, working into the fifth inning and exiting with a 4-0 advantage. Gabe Reyes clubbed his fifth home run of the international tournament in the fifth inning, a two-run shot that scored Mike Jankiewicz. In the third, Joe Canepa delivered a run-scoring single, and Reyes padded the lead by stealing home.

Shortridge made the early support hold up, scattering five hits and striking out six before giving way to Reyes. Reyes allowed a run that was charged to Shortridge on Matt Frazier's RBI single, and surrendered Matt Winn's solo home run in the sixth before closing out the win.

"We took a little gamble by taking Aaron out at 65 pitches, just to make sure we have him," explained Kyle Rasmussen. By holding Shortridge's pitch count to 65 or fewer, he would be eligible to pitch again on three day's rest rather than four, making him eligible for a potential championship game assignment. "It's really hard to look ahead and all, but we felt with a four-run lead, Gabriel's been lights-out all year, so that made it kind of an easy decision."

The win lifted Napa National into the winner's bracket final, where the District 53 champions dropped Hollister National into the elimination bracket with a 4-3 victory. Forster retired the first nine hitters he faced, and blanked Hollister into the fifth inning as Napa capitalized on wildness by Hollister's pitcher to build an early lead. A pair of walks and hit batsman loaded the bases for Napa in the fourth inning, before Juan Lopez drove in the game's first run by drawing a four-pitch walk. Jankiewicz then added a run by darting home from third on a wild pitch. Napa scored again in the fifth when Reyes slid under the tag at home after being caught in a rundown, and tallied another in the sixth when Jake Rasmussen scored on Bard's groundout.

Hollister stayed close, plating their first run when Josh Ramos singled and later scored on a wild pitch in the fifth. In the sixth, Nico Lopez walked and later scored on Tyler Biersdorf's grounder, and Hollister further narrowed the deficit when another run scored on a wild pitch. But Reyes entered in relief of Forster and earned his second save by inducing a game-ending comebacker on the only pitch he threw.

Forster allowed just three hits before giving way to Reyes due to pitch count restrictions.

"I thought Colton Forster pitched an unbelievable baseball game," said Kyle Rasmussen. "He was just around the strike zone all night long pouring strikes. The curveball was really good. He was poised. It was just a great thing to catapult us into (the championship) game."

Hollister earned a rematch by winning the next night, as the District 9 champions struck for eight third inning runs in a 12-6 win over Tri-City Little League. But Shortridge kept the Hollister offense bottled up in the championship game, and Napa National advanced to the region tournament for the first time in the league's history.

Napa National won three of its four pool games in the West Region tournament, and advanced to the semifinal round before being eliminated following a 5-2 loss to Southern California champion Ocean View Little League.