Tournament Results:
Southern California - North Sub-Divisional
Host - Encino (District 40)
Opening Round:
Torrance 7, La Verne 2
Winner's Bracket Semifinals:
Tustin Western 10, Moorpark 0 (5 innings)
Torrance 12, Quartz Hill 6
Elimination Bracket Quarterfinals (five teams remain):
La Verne 12, Moorpark 9 (elim.)
Winner's Bracket Finals:
Torrance 3, Tustin Western 2
Elimination Bracket Semifinals (four teams remain):
La Verne 7, Quartz Hill 6 (elim.) (5:00 p.m.)
Elimination Bracket Finals (three teams remain):
Tustin Western 10, La Verne 7 (elim.)
Championship Series:
Tustin Western 14, Torrance 11
Torrance 9, Tustin Western 4 (7 innings; TITLE)
Southern California - South Sub-Divisional
Host - Clairemont Hilltoppers (San Diego) (District 32)
At Cadman Community Park
Opening Round:
Rancho Santa Margarita 20, Upland Foothill 3
Winner's Bracket Semifinals:
Park View 14, Corona National 4
Rancho Santa Margarita 10, Mission Trails 0 (4 innings)
Elimination Bracket Quarterfinals (five teams remain):
Corona National 18, Upland Foothill 7 (6 innings; elim.)
Winner's Bracket Finals:
Park View 5, Rancho Santa Margarita 4 (7 innings)
Elimination Bracket Semifinals (four teams remain):
Mission Trails 7, Corona National 2 (elim.)
Elimination Bracket Finals (three teams remain):
Rancho Santa Margarita 7, Mission Trails 4 (elim.)
Championship Game:
Park View 16, Rancho Santa Margarita 1 (TITLE)
Southern California Championship Series
Host - Encino (District 40)
Torrance 18, Park View 0 (4 innings)
Park View 7, Torrance 6
Park View 19, Torrance 12 (TITLE)
Summary:
There is no tougher road to the Little League World Series than the trail that begins in Southern California.
Consider: after winning the 2009 Southern California divisional championship, Chula Vista's Park View Little League ran roughshod over the field at the West Region tournament in San Bernardino, California, slamming 37 home runs and outscoring its opponents by a 98-15 margin in six region tournament games. Following this explosive effort, Park View scored eleven or more runs in four of its six games en route to winning the Little League World Series.
Yet against Southern California competition, progress was not nearly as easy. Park View suffered a loss in its district tournament, and didn't reach double-digits in any of its three sectional victories. The eventual Little League World Series champions opened the best-of-three Southern California championship series on the wrong end of an 18-0 decision, and after forcing the tournament to a final game, won the SoCal championship only after rallying from a 6-0 deficit in the decisive contest.
But Park View's offense was firing on all cylinders, and the San Diego County team did rally in that deciding game. Park View overcame the huge early deficit and topped Torrance Little League, 19-12, at Encino Little League's field. The victory, coupled with a 7-6 win in the tournament's second game, gave Park View its second victory in the best-of-three tournament, and advanced the Chula Vista-based league into the West Region tournament in San Bernardino, California.
"There was a lot of offense," noted Torrance manage Manny Olloque, Jr. "You figure if you score twelve runs, you'd win the game."
In every previous Southern California tournament, that was the case: only once before had a team surrendered as many as ten runs while winning the SoCal championship. Moorpark Little League defeated La Puente National Little League, 12-10, in the 1996 Southern California divisional finale.
Torrance jumped to its 6-0 lead in the top of the first inning, but Park View wasted no time, scoring eight of its own in the bottom of the inning to take the lead. The two teams were tied 12-12 through three innings, before Park View scored seven runs in the bottom of the fourth to pull away and claim the league's first-ever Southern California championship in any baseball division. The core members of Park View's Little League World Series-winning team had finished third in the divisional as 9-10 year olds in 2007, and then again as 11-year-olds in 2008.
Park View looked like anything but a championship team in the first meeting with Torrance, managing just two hits while being overpowered, 18-0 in four innings. Austin Reyes, Masata Okawa, and Reid Budrovich all homered for Torrance, and pitcher David Aros struck out eight while keeping the imposing Park View offense off the scoreboard.
Park View's offense struggled early the next day, but finally came to life in the third inning. Isaiah Armenta opened the inning with a ground-rule double to left, and two outs later, Bulla Graft delivered a single to right to produce the game's first run. Luke Ramirez then padded the lead by drilling a full count pitch over the right field fence to extend the lead to 3-0.
Aros sliced the Park View lead with a two-run homer in the fourth, and center fielder Ian Escutia followed by homering on the very next pitch to tie the score.
But Park View reclaimed the lead in the top of the fifth. Reserve Nick Conlin drew a one-out walk, and moved to third when a throwing miscue turned Andy Rios' potential double play grounder into a two-base error. After a pop fly to short, Ramirez walked to load the bases, and Kiko Garcia then cleared the bases by drilling a grand slam on a full count pitch.
Aros' second homer of the day, another two-run shot, helped narrow Park View's lead to a single run in the fifth. Torrance advanced runners to first and third with two outs in the sixth before Garcia registered a game-ending strikeout that sent the series to a final game.
"Today, a couple of mistakes were game-changers," said Olloque after the game. "We had to climb out of a hole."
The next day, Park View needed to dig out of the early deficit before ultimately prevailing. The 19-12 final game linescore marked the highest-scoring SoCal championship game in history, and the most runs ever scored by the winning team in the 53-year history of the divisional tournament.
Park View then re-wrote much of the record book in San Bernardino, and eventually etched its name among the storied teams from the past with their victory in South Williamsport. But none of that later success would have been possible without the steep climb from the initial loss against Torrance. Park View may have taken the most challenging route, but the right combination of fortune, tenacity, and a sheer overpowering offense proved that even the most difficult road can eventually lead to South Williamsport.
Follow Park View at the West Region Tournament -- Click here to view results.
2009 Southern California District Champions and Sectional Tournament Results:
District Champions
in Section 1 |
District Champions
in Section 2 |
D13 - Moorpark
D50 - Arroyo Grande Valley
D63 - Ojai Valley (Oak View)
D65 - Orcutt National
Section 1 Tournament
Host - Moorpark (District 13)
At Chapparal Middle School
Tournament Results:
1 - Moorpark 8, Ojai Valley 0
2 - Arroyo Grande Valley 6, Orcutt National 5
3 - Moorpark 14, Arroyo Grande Valley 1
4 - Orcutt National 6, Ojai Valley 4 (elim.)
5 - Orcutt National 6, Arroyo Grande Valley 4 (elim.)
6 - Moorpark 4, Orcutt National 0 (TITLE)
|
D16 - Crescenta Valley (Montrose)
D17 - Pasadena American
D40 - Encino
D51 - Quartz Hill
Section 2 Tournament
Host - Foothill (Glendale) (District 16)
At Scholl Canyon Field
Tournament Results:
1 - Quartz Hill 7, Crescenta Valley 4
2 - Encino 15, Pasadena American 1
3 - Quartz Hill 12, Encino 6
4 - Crescenta Valley 13, Pasadena American 3 (elim.)
5 - Encino 9, Crescenta Valley 6 (7 innings; elim.)
6 - Encino 11, Quartz Hill 3
7 - Quartz Hill 10, Encino 8 (TITLE)
|
District Champions
in Section 3 |
District Champions
in Section 4 |
D18 - El Monte National
D19 - West Covina National
D20 - La Verne
D60 - Hacienda Heights
Section 3 Tournament
Host - Hacienda Heights (District 60)
At Highlander Field
Tournament Results:
1 - La Verne 9, El Monte National 2
2 - Hacienda Heights 6, West Covina National 3
3 - Hacienda Heights 8, La Verne 0
4 - West Covina National 7, El Monte National 6 (elim.)
5 - La Verne 20, West Covina National 0 (elim.)
6 - La Verne 3, Hacienda Heights 1
7 - La Verne 11, Hacienda Heights 1 (TITLE)
|
D25 - City of Angels (Los Angeles)
D27 - Torrance
D36 - El Segundo
D37 - Westchester
Section 4 Tournament
Host - Lomita (District 27)
At Navy Field
Tournament Results:
1 - Torrance d. El Segundo
2 - Westchester d. City of Angels
3 - Torrance d. Westchester
4 - El Segundo d. City of Angels (elim.)
5 - El Segundo d. Westchester (elim.)
6 - Torrance d. El Segundo (TITLE)
|
District Champions
in Section 5 |
District Champions
in Section 6 |
D29 - Cypress Federal
D30 - Tustin Western
D38 - Long Beach
D56 - Golden Hill (Fullerton)
Section 5 Tournament
Host - Long Beach (District 38)
At Stearns Champions Park
Tournament Results:
1 - Tustin Western 13, Golden Hill 0
2 - Cypress Federal 9, Long Beach 3
3 - Long Beach d. Golden Hill (elim.)
4 - Tustin Western 12, Cypress Federal 1
5 - Long Beach 9, Cypress Federal 3 (elim.)
6 - Tustin Western 7, Long Beach 3 (TITLE)
|
D31 - Carmel Mountain Ranch (San Diego)
D32 - Coronado
D33 - Mission Trails (San Diego)
D70 - Rancho Buena Vista (Vista)
Section 6 Tournament
Host - Clairemont Hilltoppers (San Diego) (District 32)
At Cadman Community Park
Tournament Results:
1 - Carmel Mountain Ranch 5, Rancho Buena Vista 0
2 - Mission Trails 5, Coronado 3
3 - Mission Trails 12, Carmel Mountain Ranch 2
4 - Rancho Buena Vista 13, Coronado 1 (elim.)
5 - Carmel Mountain Ranch 7, Rancho Buena Vista 5 (elim.)
6 - Mission Trails 10, Carmel Mountain Ranch 3 (TITLE)
|
District Champions
in Section 7 |
District Champions
in Section 8 |
D22 - Brawley
D41 - Rancho San Diego (El Cajon)
D42 - Park View (Chula Vista)
D66 - Lemon Grove
Section 7 Tournament
Host - Lemon Grove (District 66)
Tournament Results:
1 - Rancho San Diego 17, Lemon Grove 1
2 - Park View 8, Brawley 5
3 - Lemon Grove 7, Brawley 6 (elim.)
4 - Park View 9, Rancho San Diego 1
5 - Lemon Grove 9, Rancho San Diego 8 (elim.)
6 - Park View 5, Lemon Grove 3 (TITLE)
|
D21 - Ken Hubbs Memorial (Colton)
D23 - Upland Foothill
D49 - Spring Valley Lake
D71 - Deer Canyon (Rancho Cucamonga)
Section 8 Tournament
Host - Rialto Eastern (District 21)
Tournament Results:
1 - Upland Foothill 7, Deer Canyon 5
2 - Ken Hubbs Memorial 12, Spring Valley Lake 0 (4 innings)
3 - Deer Canyon 8, Spring Valley Lake 3 (elim.)
4 - Upland Foothill 15, Ken Hubbs Memorial 5 (4 innings)
5 - Ken Hubbs Memorial 9, Deer Canyon 3 (elim.)
6 - Upland Foothill 6, Ken Hubbs Memorial 5 (TITLE)
|
District Champions
in Section 9 |
District Champions
in Section 10 |
D24 - Orangecrest American (Riverside)
D28 - Temecula Valley American
D43 - Highland
D58 - Yucaipa American
D72 - Corona National
Section 9 Tournament
Host - Highland (San Bernardino) (District 43)
At O'Grady Field
Tournament Results:
1 - Yucaipa American 10, Orangecrest American 7
2 - Highland 7, Temecula Valley American 4
3 - Corona National 10, Yucaipa American 0
4 - Temecula Valley American 4, Orangecrest American 2 (elim.)
5 - Corona National d. Highland
6 - Yucaipa American 3, Temecula Valley American 1 (elim.)
7 - Yucaipa American 3, Highland 0 (elim.)
8 - Corona National 6, Yucaipa American 0 (TITLE)
|
D46 - East Anaheim National
D55 - Laguna Hills
D62 - Ocean View (Huntington Beach)
D68 - Rancho Santa Margarita
Section 10 Tournament
Host - East Anaheim National (District 46)
At Juarez Field
Tournament Results:
1 - Laguna Hills 8, Ocean View 4
2 - Rancho Santa Margarita 12, East Anaheim National 2
3 - Laguna Hills 10, Rancho Santa Margarita 5
4 - Ocean View d. East Anaheim National (elim.)
5 - Rancho Santa Margarita 10, Ocean View 2 (elim.)
6 - Rancho Santa Margarita 11, Laguna Hills 1 (5 innings)
7 - Rancho Santa Margarita 12, Laguna Hills 4 (TITLE)
|
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Last revision: 06/13/2010
