Sports

Season Ends for Santana National with 11-9 Loss

SNLL gives 2009 national champion Park View a run for its money in Section 7 tournament.

The season may be over for the Santana National Little League All-Stars, but it was a great ride while it lasted.

SNLL was knocked out of the Section 7 playoffs by Park View of Chula Vista on Tuesday, which came back from a 9-7 deficit to register an 11-9 win in the double-elimination tournament at the Fletcher Hills Little League field. Park View, the 2009 national and world champions of Little League baseball, had opened the tourney with an 8-2 decision over Santana National on Saturday.

It looked promising in the first for SNLL. A leadoff double by Colton Calvert, a walk to Aidan Rasmusson and a single by Christian Mendez loaded the bases. Noah Nunez's sacrifice fly to right scored the game's first run, and after Xavier Baza walked, Cooper Mendoza singled to make it 2-0 Santana. 

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The lead was short-lived. A two-out grand slam in the bottom of the first gave Park View a 4-2 advantage. But in the top of the second, SNLL scored three runs to regain the lead at 5-4.

Rasmusson started the rally with a solo home run. Mendez and Nunez singled, with a fielder's choice and error bring home Mendez to tie the score at 4-4. Nathan Ball's RBI double to left then scored the go-ahead run.

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A solo homer with two outs in the third enabled Park View to pull even at 5-5, and an error prolonged the inning before a two-run double made it 7-5 Park View. 

In the fourth, singles by Calvert and Rasmusson preceded a three-run homer by Mendez, again putting SNLL in front, 8-7. Derek Powell then doubled and scored on Mendoza's single to give Santana a 9-7 lead.

But Park View would score three times in the bottom of the fourth to take the lead for good, adding an insurance run in the fifth to make the final 11-9.

The District 42 champs now advance to the Southern California regional playoffs in Fountain Valley, while Santana National has to settle for the District 41 title and a summer full of memories.

Thanks to SNLL scorekeeper Lisa Ball for contributing to this report.


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