Thursday, July 27, 2006

Albany's run at Juniors State Championship ends

The run by the Albany Junior Division Little League All-Stars at the Division II (Northern California) state championships ended Wednesday night when they fell to Bear River, 7-4, in Milpitas.

The win puts Bear River in the final of the loser's bracket Thursday against Branham Hills (San Jose). The winner will play Tracy National at 6:30 p.m. Friday. Tracy National only needs to win once to become Northern California champion.
The winner of the division advances to the Regional Tournament in Oregon.

Albany scored two runs in the first inning and two more in the fourth.

Wednesday, July 26, 2006

Albany and North Oakland host 10s-11s State Championship

Albany and North Oakland host the California Division II (Northern California) 10s-11s State Championship, beginning July 27.

Here are the six finalists:

Section 1::District 3 - Novato North Little League
Section 2: District 26 - McKinleyville Little League
Section 3: District 52 - Palo Alto National Little League
Section 4: District 54 - El Dorado Hills North Little League
Section 5: District 12 - Lincoln Glenn Little League
Section 6: District 10 - River Park Little League

Bracket

Tracy National Jrs. advance to state championship title game

Tracy National won the winner's bracket final at the Division II (Northern California) Junior League Championships in Milpitas with a 9-5 win over Branham Hills.

Tracy Press reports on Tracy National's run to the title game:

RESULTS
Winner's Bracket

First Round
Tracy National 11 Cottonwood 2

Semifinals
Tracy National 7 Albany 5
Branham Hills 12 Turlock American 2

Final
Tracy National 9 Branham Hills 5

Loser's Bracket
Bear River 12 Cottonwood 4 (Cottonwood elim.)
Albany 5 Turlock American 4 (Turlock American elim.)
Wednesday-Albany vs. Bear River
Thursday-Branham Hills vs. Albany/Bear River winner

Petaluma Valley wins Little League Section 1 title

Petaluma Valley beat San Francisco American, 4-3, to win the Little League (11s-12s) Section 1 title Tuesday night in Petaluma.

For the second straight year SFA finished to second a Petaluma team after taking it to a second game in the championship. Petaluma National's won the '05 11s title.

Petaluma Valley moves on to Division II (Northern California) championships in Larkspur.

Here are the Northern California finalists:
Section 1: District 35 - Petaluma Valley Little League
Section 2: District 47 - El Rancho Chico Little League
Section 3: District 52 - Palo Alto National Little League
Section 4: District 54 - Woodcreek Little League
Section 5: District 44 - Santa Clara Briarwood Little League
Section 6: District 10 - River Park Little League

Division II Schedule

Tuesday, July 25, 2006

Babitt and Guinn head to Area Code Games

Albany High School’s Zach Babitt and Berkeley High School’s Brian Guinn, both rising seniors, were among the 50 players named to the 2006 Milwaukee Brewers Gray Team for the annual Area Code Games showcase event Aug. 5-10 at Blair Field in Long Beach, Calif.

Jordan Wilder, who attends Berkeley’s St. Mary’s, was one of only three rising sophomores to make it as far as the final California tryout, held at USC.

District 4 tournament photos

Sports photographer and Martinez Little League parent Ed Penaloza was on hand to shoot many of the 2006 District 4 Liitle League All-Star sames.

To view and order from his many albums, go to his web site.

Albany Jrs. win at State Championship

Albany beat Turlock American, 5-4, in a well-played game Monday night to remain alive in the Division II (State Championship) Junior League finals in Milpitas.

Albany faces Bear River in the semifinal round of the loser's bracket on Wednesday in Milpitas.

Tracy National and Branham Hills meet in the final of the winner's bracket on Tuesday in Milpitas.

Tuesday's loser faces Wednesday's winner in the final of the loser's bracket in Thursday in Milpitas.

The championship game will be played Friday with a replay (if necessary) on Saturday.

The state champion moves on to the Western Regionals in Oregon.

RESULTS
Winner's Bracket
First Round

Tracy National 11 Cottonwood 2

Semifinals
Tracy National 7 Albany 5
Branham Hills 12 Turlock American 2

Loser's Bracket
Bear River 12 Cottonwood 4 (Cottonwood elim.)
Albany 5 Turlock American 4 (Turlock American elim.)

Palo Alto National advances to 10s-11s state championship

The Palo Alto National won the Section 3 10s-11s title with a 7-6 win Northgate/Manteca in 7 innings.

Kirby Gee drove in the game-winning RBI with 2 outs in the 7th inning.

Palo Alto National, whose slugging 11s-12s won last year's state title as 10s, move on to the state championship in Albany and North Oakland.

Monday, July 24, 2006

Novato North wins Little League Section 1 10s-11s Title

Winner's Bracket
First Round
Thursday-Petaluma Valley 6 Alameda 5

Semifinals
Thursday-Novato North 6 Benicia 1
Friday-Vacaville Central 2 Petaluma Valley 1

Final
Saturday-Novato North 7 Vacaville Central 3

Loser's Bracket
Friday-Alameda b. Benicia (Benicia eliminated)
Saturday-Alameda 9 Petaluma Valley 0 (Petaluma Valley eliminated)
Sunday-Vacaville Central 14 Alameda 4

Championship Game
Monday-Novato North 12 Vacaville Central 2

(Novato North moves on to state championship in Albany and North Oakland.)

Little League Section I Results (July 24)

Championship Game I
Monday, July 24, in Petaluma

San Francisco American 3 Petaluma Valley 2

Javin Meza hit a two-run homer, and Garen Fabian scored on a passed ball for SFLL's three runs.
Ian Friend homered for PV.
PV had the tying run thrown out at the late in the bottom of the 5th inning.

Championship Game II
Tuesday, July 25, in Petaluma

San Francisco American vs. Petaluma Valley

Sunday, July 23, 2006

Little League Section 1 10s-11s & 9s-10s Results

Section 1 10s-11s

Winner's Bracket
First Round
Thursday-Petaluma Valley 6 Alameda 5

Semifinals
Thursday-Novato North 6 Benicia 1
Friday-Vacaville Central 2 Petaluma Valley 1

Final
Saturday-Novato North 7 Vacaville Central 3

Loser's Bracket
Friday-Alameda b. Benicia (Benicia eliminated)
Saturday-Alameda 9 Petaluma Valley 0 (Petaluma Valley eliminated)
Sunday-Vacaville Central 14 Alameda 4

Championship Game
Monday-Novato North vs. Vacaville Central

(Winner moves on to state championship in Albany and North Oakland.)

Section 1 10s-11s Bracket

Section 1 9s-10s

Winner's Bracket
First Round
Thursday-Petaluma Valley 7 East Vallejo 6

Semifinals
Friday-Alameda 3 Davis American 2
Saturday-Mill Valley National 6 Petaluma Valley 3

Final
Sunday-Alameda 11 Mill Valley National 0

Loser's Bracket
Saturday-Davis American 14 East Vallejo 4 (East Vallejo eliminated)
Sunday-Davis American 12 Petaluma Valley 4 (Petaluma Valley eliminated)
Monday-Davis American vs. Mill Valley National

Championship Game
Tuesday-Alameda vs. Davis American-Mill Valley National winner

Section 1 9s-10s Bracket

Albany Jrs. falls in Northern California opener

Albany LL fell to Tracy National, 7-5, Sunday in Milpitas in the semifinals of the winner's bracket in the Division II (Northern California) Junior League Division.

Both teams gave each other plenty of chances with sloppy play. Albany briefly went ahead 3-2 when it scored two runs on a bases-loaded walk -- the runner from third scored and the runner on second followed him home because of a wild pitch.

Tracy National featured five players from its 2005 Little League (12s) Western Regionals runner-up team.

Albany plays in the loser's bracket on Monday night against Turlock American, which fell to Branham Hills, 12-2, in the other winner's bracket semifinal.

Division II Bracket

North Bay Extreme third at USSSA 13&Under AAA World Series

The North Bay Extreme finished third at the USSSA 13&Under AAA World Series in Michigan.

It finished the weeklong tournament with a 9-2 record.

For complete standings

Greatest game ever played

It will go down as the greatest game in the history of Little League baseball in Northern California.

Palo Alto National, last year’s Northern California 11s champion, beat Danville, 23-22, in 11 innings on Saturday in the Section 3 winner's bracket final.

The game featured:
-- Northern California record 45 runs;
-- 49 hits;
-- 18 extra base hits;
-- 11 home runs.

And that’s only the beginning:
-- In the 4th inning, a Danville batter had another home run turned into an out – a two-run homer became a run – when the batter was ruled to have failed to touch third base!
-- In the 8th inning, a Danville batter was robbed of a two-run homer when a Palo Alto fielder just inserted into center field reached over the fence and caught the ball.

For drama:
-- Palo Alto trailed 4-0 in the first, 11-7 in the third and 17-7 going into the bottom of the fourth and was on the verge of losing due to the tournament's 10-run mercy rule. A two-out two-run homer by made it 17-9, extending the game.
-- Palo Alto rallied to 18-17 after 5 innings and tied the score at 18-18 in the bottom of the sixth inning.
-- Danville scored one run in the 8th inning but Palo Alto answered with a home run by Austin Braff to tie it again. (Braff hit 19 home runs in his Little Leage regular season and was intentionally walked 11 times!)
-- Danville scored three in the top of the 9th -- on a three-run homer by its No. 9 hitter! – but Palo Alto scored three runs to tie it.

And finally ...
-- The game featured a four-hour delay, after the 9th inning, as the umpires called the game to allow the players to rest and rehydrate from the 100 degree-plus heat.

For the complete story

PS.

Palo Alto National needed to win seven games in a row to capture the district title after losing its second game. It punished its opponents with wins by 10-0, 20-0, 11-1, 12-2, 4-1, 9-1 and 3-2.

Little League Section I Results (July 23)

Loser's Bracket
San Francisco American 7 Vacaville National 5
(Vacaville National eliminated.)

San Francisco came back from 5-2 down in the 6th inning to win. Joey Cibotti's three-run home run off the top of the yellow part of the fence tied the game. San Francisco American then got two more runs to complete the comeback.

Championship Game
Monday, July 24, in Petaluma
Petaluma Valley vs. San Francisco American

Saturday, July 22, 2006

Division II (Northern California) Junior League Results (July 22)

Division II Bracket

Winner's Bracket
First Round
Saturday's Results

Tracy National vs. Cottonwood-not available
Turlock American 7 Bear River 2
Semifinals
Sunday's Games

Albany vs. Tracy National-Cottonwood winner
Branham Hills vs. Turlock American

Little League Section I Results (July 22)

Winner's Bracket
Final

Petaluma Valley b. San Francisco American
(Petaluma Valley advances to Monday's championship game.)

Loser's Bracket
Vacaville National 11 North Oakland 6
(North Oakland eliminated.)

Section 1 Schedule

Press Reports (July 21)

From the Contra Costa weekly editions ...

Albany Little League teams excel in tourneys
Three Albany Little League all-star teams reached championship games -- the Juniors won the District 4 and Section 1 titles and the 12s and 10s each advanced to the District 4 championship games after sweeping six games in a row in their loser's brackets. The 12s, the defending age group champions, fell to North Oakland, 11-10, but not before an amazing comeback bid.
For the whole story

Perri is catalyst as Alameda All-Stars win District 4 title
Alameda's Michael Perri was a one-man show as the Alameda's 9s-10s beat Albany, 8-2, in the D4 championship game at Chabot Elementary School.
For the whole story

Concord team chasing more glory
Concord's JOBL 11s are off to the Cal Ripken regionals in Utah after winning the state title.
For the whole story

Oakland American advances to Cal Ripken 12s Regionals

The Oakland American 12-and-under Cal Ripken team won the NorCal state championship July 15 with a 12-8 win over host Elk Grove.
Darrick Parnell blasted a three-run homer in Oakland's six-run rally in the 6th inning.
Oakland plays in the Pacific Southwest regional tournament, beginning July 25 in Woodland. The winner goes to the World Series in Aberdeen, Md.

Friday, July 21, 2006

Division II (Northern California) Junior League Teams

Division II Bracket

Section 1: Albany LL
Albany avenged an earlier loss to San Francisco LL, beating SFLL twice (9-3 and 5-2) in Benicia to claim the sectonal title. Jake Alaniz and Kenji Quides pitched complete games. Jon Cheng had big hit in second game with bases-loaded single to drive in two runs and give Albany a 3-2 lead in the 6th inning.

Earlier sectional game reports

Section 2: Cottonwood LL

Cottonwood beat Sutter Area, 8-7, in the section title game at Beckwourth Riverfront Park in Marysville on Tuesday.
Matt Roberts hit a three-run triple and came in to score to give Cottonwood a 4-3 lead in the 5th inning.
Cottonwood led 8-4 going into the bottom of the 7th inning when Kevin Noall crushed a three-run shot to bring Sutter Area within one run. Cottonwood's Al Doiron then threw out the tying run at the plate to get it out of a jam.

Cottonwood-Sutter Area game report

Section 3: Tracy National LL

(Tracy National's 12s were second at the Western Regionals in 2005.)

Section 4: Bear River LL
Bear River beat Carmichael 11-7, extending its winning streak to five games
Patrick Scott pitched the first six innings for Bear River, left the game, then returned to get final two outs after Carmichael scored four runs. He struck out seven batters.
Scott pitched all six innings of Bear River's 14-1 win against West Sacramento in the semifinal.
Bear River hitting stars: Scott and Zach Welz were 3-for-5; Scott Runte was 2-for-3; Connor Casey was 2-for-4.

Game report

Section 5: Branham Hills LL

After losing to Los Altos, Branham Hills won three games in a row to win the championship. It will be the "home team" in Milpitas.

Section 6: Turlock American LL

Play begins July 22 in Milpitas.

Little League Section I Results (July 21)

Winner's Bracket
Semifinals

Petaluma Valley 9 Vacaville National 5

Petaluma Valley scored eight runs in the top of the 1st inning.

Game Report

Loser's Bracket
No. Oakland 7 Fairfield Pacific 5
(Fairfield Pacific eliminated.)

Schedule

Little League Section I Results (July 20)

Winner's Bracket

First Round


Vacaville National 6 No. Oakland 1

Shane Siegrist was the star: complete game and three-run homer, one of three Vaca homers.

Read game report.

Semifinals

San Francisco American 10 Fairfield Pacific 7 (7 innings)

SFLL wins with three homers in seventh inning by Frankie Kaniewski, Colm Barrett and Joey Cibotti. Colin Monsour and Barrett had earlier homered as SFLL rallied from 7-2 down.