Sweetwater Valley Earns Berth In SoCal’s Final 10

(Slugger Joel Vargas belts a two-run homer on Jul. 9 to lead Bonita’s Sweetwater Valley Little League to win California District 42’s 2022 title. Photo courtesy of Jon Bigornia.)

This summer’s Little League baseball all-star tournaments zoomed into full-throttle. Local competitions throughout the Southland lead down a fast track to next month’s annual Little League World Series held in South Williamsport, PA. Apologies for CaliSports News’ late arrival to the race. Usually, CSN begins Little League coverage several weeks prior to the start of tournaments. This year is different. More on that later. But first, let us catch up on the action.

Last year, Torrance Little League of Torrance won the Southern California crown by defeating Chula Vista’s Eastlake Little League in back-to-back championship games. Torrance then moved on to the Little League World Series as the West Region runner-up. This year, 10 teams remain alive in the quest to win SoCal’s title. However, Torrance and Eastlake are not among them.

A new king.

That means this summer, Southern California shall crown a new champion. And, two new teams shall compete in SoCal’s championship game. As for Torrance, its summer started brightly. The 2021 California District 27 champ continued its reign by going 3-0 in this year’s tourney. In the championship, Jul. 9, Torrance shut out its crosstown rival and tournament host, West Torrance Little League of Torrance. Due to Little League’s 10-run rule, that contest was called after five innings, with Torrance on top, 12-0. Congratulations to Torrance, 2022 District 27 champion!!

Then, Torrance advanced to the Southern California Section 4 tournament. Again, West Torrance hosted. Only this time, the reigning SoCal champs met their match. Say hello to District 37’s Del Rey American Little League of Playa Del Rey. The District 37 champion beat Torrance, 7-2, in Section 4’s opening round, Jul. 16. But, Torrance returned for a rematch. In that section’s championship game, Jul. 19, Del Rey eliminated SoCal’s defending champs. Final score: 3-2. For Del Rey, that reportedly marked that league’s first Section 4 title since 1980. Congratulations to Del Rey American, 2022 District 37 and Section 4 champion!!

As for Eastlake, that powerhouse Chula Vista league failed to win its district title this month. So, which league won the highly-competitive District 42 banner? Well, common sense might dictate that whichever team won last year’s district title in the 11-and-under division could figure to be a strong favorite to win this year’s 12-and-under banner. Same players but a year later. Right?

Three-Headed Monster strikes again.

Last year, Eastlake’s next-door neighbor, Chula Vista’s prestigious Park View Little League, won District 42’s banner for 11-year-olds. Park View’s standout players then won 2021’s Southern California 11U championship. So, such a powerful group of young athletes might seem a shoe-in to win it all this year. Right? Wrong! Park View failed to capture its district’s 12U crown this year.

But, before Del Rey players breathe a sigh of relief knowing they will not face last year’s Southern California 12U runner-up, nor last year’s SoCal 11U champs, Section 4’s reps may be in for a shock. You see, Eastlake and Park View combine with a third commonly-shared next-door neighbor to form District 42’s famous “Three-Headed Monster” of Little League. And, that ferocious monster’s third head belongs to Bonita’s dominant Sweetwater Valley Little League.

That Bonita league won the 2015 and 2019 Southern California championships. Incidentally, Park View won SoCal’s 2009, 2016, and 2018 titles. Eastlake won SoCal’s banner in 2013, and finished second in 2017 and 2021. That perennial three-headed beast even left a massive, Pennsylvania-sized footprint in S. Williamsport. Since 2009, each of the three adjoining leagues competed in the Little League World Series. Park View did so twice, and in doing so, won a world championship. Eastlake won a national title. So, yeah, Three-Headed Monster, indeed.

How sweet it is for Sweetwater Valley.

But, after Eastlake’s 12U all-stars and Park View’s 11U all-stars played in 2021’s Southern California championship games, who would dare predict that the beast’s third head, Sweetwater Valley, would rise up in 2022? Well, this sportswriter heard someone make that very prediction.

Back during May. Before leagues even selected rosters. I attended a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) softball post-season tournament. At that event, I met a current District 42 player and his father. The dad recognized me as the CaliSports News writer that covers his son’s district. Small world, right? That baseball father informed me that Sweetwater Valley is stacked with talent. He then picked it to win this year’s title. That dad nailed it! Awesome call, dude!

Fast forward from May to July. As predicted, Bonita’s all-stars ripped through their district tournament in convincing fashion. Then, this past week, Sweetwater Valley represented District 42 at the Southern California Section 7 tourney. And, for the seemingly millionth time in a row, the Three-Headed Monster not only won District 42’s crown, but the Section 7 banner as well. Those three adjoining South San Diego County leagues seemingly account for every District 42 and Section 7 championship since the start of baseball. I almost think the last time a league other than those three won a Section 7 title, Abner Doubleday himself threw out the first pitch. Not quite. Actually, 2008 marked the last time a league other than the three-headed beast won a Section 7 banner. That was 14 years ago. This summer’s players were not even born, yet.

Throw the dice.

So, once again, the 10 section winners competing for Southern California’s crown include part of the Three-Headed Monster. That the final 10 teams each year include one of that beast’s heads remains a constant. Predicting which of the three prevails? That tends to be a dice roll. So, major props to my fellow UCLA Bruins softball fan on his killer cast of the dice. Now, to recap Sweetwater Valley’s tournament run. But first, regarding dice, enjoy this rock song by that name:

(“Winning or losing, the dice are cast”. Lyrics from Dice. Clearly inspired by District 42. Music courtesy of Band-Maid. Oh come on, it’s Little League. It’s supposed to be fun.)

Sweetwater Valley broke out of the gate quickly. As soon as the tournaments began, the Bonita team started destroying its District 42 competition. Sweetwater Valley won its first game, 26-0. Its second game, 15-0. Its third game, 4-1. After three decisive victories, Bonita’s boys outscored their opponents by a whopping combined total of 45-1. Then, with a perfect 3-0 record, Sweetwater Valley entered its district championship. Park View hosted that contest on Jul. 9.

Familiar faces.

There, Sweetwater Valley squared off against Chula Vista American Little League (CVA) of Chula Vista. CVA featured five returning stars from its 2021 team: Gerardo “G” Covarrubias, Champ García, Chase Miranda, Ian Puente, and Alexander “Güero” Solís.

Covarrubias, García, Miranda, and Solís played on CVA’s 2019 10-and-under squad that won District 42 and Section 7 10U banners, and finished fifth in Southern California. That year, those youngsters competed as 9-year-olds. In 2021, they played in the 12U division as 11-year-olds.

Beast mode.

The championship bout opened with a bang. In the first inning, Sweetwater Valley’s leadoff batter, Niko Duncan hit a single. And then, Joel Vargas blasted the first pitch thrown to him over the fence. Just like that, Bonita’s boys took a 2-0 lead with still nobody out. A blast such as that is not surprising to come from Vargas. That kid is a bigtime homerun machine on the national stage. In the following footage filmed at a Major League Baseball scouting event held in Florida, Vargas went into beast mode at the plate. He smacked 14 home runs, four in a row, one of which flew 327 feet. That Little Leaguer already launches rockets out of big league ballparks:

(Joel Vargas spotlights his amazing skills. Footage courtesy of Power Showcase.)

So yeah, now it becomes clearer why that UCLA fan said Sweetwater Valley is stacked with talent. Stacked with talent, indeed. That league has a kid that is ready to turn pro. Against CVA, Vargas’ first-inning two-run shot that drove Duncan home proved to be the game-winner. That was because Sweetwater Valley’s Kenson Johnson pitched a monster of a game. The fireballer shut out Chula Vista American through five innings. CVA finally rallied for a run in the sixth. But that was too little too late. Johnson picked up the victory. Sweetwater Valley won, 6-1.

All hail Sweetwater Valley!

Johnson also helped on offense. He hit a double and scored a run. His teammate Brandon Hirsch did the same. When the dust settled, Sweetwater Valley improved its undefeated record to 4-0, and outscored its opponents by an incredible 51-2 margin! That league captured its first district banner since 2019. Congratulations to Sweetwater Valley, 2022 District 42 champion!!

Bonita’s all-stars then competed in Section 7’s tournament. District 66’s Spring Valley Little League of Spring Valley hosted. Sweetwater Valley opened the tourney on Jul. 16 with another lopsided victory. The District 42 champs shut out the host team, 11-0, in four innings. With the win, Bonita’s squad improved to 5-0, and outscored its opponents, 62-2! That is tantamount to scoring nine touchdowns while only giving up a safety. But, the next day, things got real.

A monster-slayer?

That was when the Three-Headed Monster did something for the first time in 10 years. It lost a Section 7 tournament game. Congratulations to District 41’s Lakeside National Little League of Lakeside! The first Section 7 team to beat a District 42 champion since 2012. Final score: 11-7.

However, Sweetwater Valley bounced back. Not so easy to slay the monster. That beast picked itself up off from the ground in style. The next day, Jul. 18, Bonita’s team breathed fire. The District 42 champions again shut out Spring Valley by run-rule. This time, 19-0. That victory moved Sweetwater Valley into the tournament finals, and set up a rematch against Lakeside.

The championship series started on Jul. 20. The District 42 kings left no doubt. Sweetwater Valley won the first game of the championship, 18-0. So, after dropping its only loss, Bonita’s club grabbed two straight victories. In doing so, District 42’s champion outscored its opponents, 37-0! Sweetwater Valley’s Jul. 20 shutout forced a third-and-final match against the District 41 champs. That winner-take-all event was held Thursday night. And once again, the result was not even close. This time, behind the lights-out pitching of its ace, Ethan Orozco, Sweetwater Valley shut out Lakeside, 20-0. Congratulations to Sweetwater Valley, 2022 Section 7 champion!!

Stacked with talent.

The victory improved Sweetwater Valley’s record to 8-1. During those nine games, Bonita’s red hot pitching staff recorded six shutouts. That staff threw a shutout in each of its four Section 7 victories, including the past three games. Yes, folks. After giving up a loss, Sweetwater Valley bounced back with three straight shutouts. The total score of those three were 57-0. Not so easy to slay the monster. Not so easy, indeed. Overall, heading into the next tournament, according to my calculations, Sweetwater Valley outscored its opponents this summer, 126-13 !! Unreal. As for Orozco, he brought the fire. He pitched a four-inning shutout in the Section 7 opener, and then finished with yet another shutout in the championship. Orozco was reportedly a finalist for the 2022 12U National Team trials for USA Baseball. Sweetwater Valley is stacked with talent.

With Thursday’s huge victory, Sweetwater Valley qualified for the upcoming Southern California Divisional Tournament. The field is now set for that Southland showdown. Here are the 10 competitors: Eastvale Little League of Eastvale. Encinitas Little League of Encinitas. Glendora American Little League of Glendora. Huntington Beach’s Huntington Valley Little League. La Mirada Little League of La Mirada. Orcutt National Little League of Santa Maria. Sherman Oaks Little League of Sherman Oaks. Vineyard Little League of Rancho Cucamonga. And of course, Del Rey American and Sweetwater Valley. Eastvale’s Harada Heritage Park shall serve as host.

And then there were 10.

The tournament starts on Saturday morning with Sweetwater Valley taking on Orcutt. That contest’s winner is scheduled to face La Mirada on Sunday. The Riverside County event concludes with a championship series slated to start Jul. 31. In all, the tournament promises to provide plenty of excitement, and CaliSports News promises to provide updates.

Incidentally, CSN readers should recall Huntington Valley. It faced Park View in the 2018 Southern California championship. In 2019, Huntington Valley faced Eastlake in SoCal’s 11U championship. So, a recent rivalry developed between that Huntington Beach league and the Three-Headed Monster. Those rivals could meet in 2022’s championship. Or, perhaps the championship shall pit a rematch from last year’s battle between Sections 4 and 7. Meaning, instead of Torrance and Eastlake, the championship will see Del Rey face Sweetwater Valley. We shall soon learn if predicting the champ becomes a roll of the dice. Until then, stay tuned!!

Where are they now?

It is time to bring back the popular segment within CaliSports News’ Little League articles called, Where Are They Now? I mentioned that I attended a UCLA softball game. The Bruins’ freshman Kate Blunt played in that contest. CSN included her among many Southern California young female baseball stars in the 2019 feature piece, Little League’s Female Stars Shine In SoCal.

At that time, CaliSports News mentioned that Blunt played on Las Flores’ Tesoro High School baseball team. An incredible accomplishment for a female. Since then, she switched sports, and plays for my mighty Bruins. Congratulations to Blunt!! Way to go, Kate! U-C-L-A fight fight fight!

Interestingly, right below the paragraph in which CSN mentions Blunt in Female Stars Shine is a video of the Bruins celebrating after winning a national championship. Coincidence? You decide.

Teamwork makes the dream work.

CaliSports News thanks District 42’s incredibly hard-working and helpful media relations manager, chief photographer, and my buddy, Jon Bigornia. He is the best in the business at providing photos and info of tournament action within a district. Bigornia works his tail off to provide CSN with the best coverage. What an unreal effort. Very much appreciated. Working closely with Jon on a daily basis makes my job so much easier. Thank you, Jon!

Stay tuned for major news regarding our working relationship. In addition, my next articles promise to provide updates on other Little League division tournaments. Juniors, Seniors, the U’s: 10U, 11U. That type of stuff. You do not want to miss those. Until then, Let’s Go SoCal!!

Stay with CaliSportsNews.com, Southern California’s undisputed leader in Little League coverage, as we keep you up-to-date on all things SoCal sports! All Cali, All the time!

Related Posts

• 
  Little League All-Star Girl To Play For Oregon Ducks
• 
  Star Of 2013 Little League World Series Dead After Freeway Wreck
• 
  Little League Mourns Tragic Death Of Eastlake’s Manager