Finding a way to victory

A year ago, Robinwood Little League cruised through the Little League All-Star tournament en route to winning the District 62 championship. This year, with seven returning members from last year’s squad suiting up again, Robinwood figured to be in the thick of the race for another district banner. It was and although it wasn’t as overpowering, this team always seemed to find a way to win.

Tied up at 2-2 entering the sixth inning of Tuesday night’s second game of the division’s best-of-three championship series against Costa Mesa National, Robinwood came up with three runs in its last at-bat and made them stand in a title-clinching, 5-2 victory on its home field.

On Monday, Robinwood began the series with a 6-2 victory.

Robinwood has now won the last three district tournaments.

On the same night, Robinwood’s Junior League team defeated host Westminster, 4-0, to also win a district title.

“These guys just keep battling,” Robinwood Manager Scott Wagers said. “I told them beforehand, that this was a close-out game. A win gives us the district title.

“Costa Mesa came up with that big home run to tie the game but our guys came right back to win it in the sixth. They just find a way to win.”

After Costa Mesa National’s Tyler Rios tied the score with a two-run homer to centerfield in the bottom of the fifth, Robinwood scored the go-ahead run with one out in the top of the sixth when lead-off hitter Sage Sorochman took a 1-2 pitch for a sharp single up the middle. The ball sped past Tyler Wood, Costa Mesa National’s third pitcher of the game, skipped into the outfield and then ricocheted off centerfielder Jeff Carlysle allowing a charging Keegan Reeser to score from second base. The play gave Robinwood the lead for good.

“I was just hoping to make contact and hit it hard,” Sorochman said of his game-winning hit. “Once I knew the run scored, I was happy.”

Pinch runner Dustin Wagers and Sorochman later would score in the inning to pad the lead to 5-2.

When Robinwood starter Nick Varelas reached his pitch limit after recording a strikeout to begin the bottom of the sixth, reliever Austin Sojka gave up a hit before striking out the final two batters he faced to secure the district banner.

Varelas gave up six hits, walked two and struck out seven in recording the win.

Robinwood, which never lost in the double-elimination tournament, took a 1-0 lead in the second inning on an RBI single by Reeser and made it 2-0 in the fifth when Jonathan Abernatha delivered a two-out, RBI single.

The next step for Robinwood is the Section 10 tournament, which it will host beginning Saturday. Robinwood will take on the District 55 winner at 1 p.m. on the opening day of the double-elimination event.

The Robinwood Little League All-Stars are Jonathan Abernatha, Jonathan D’Alessandro, James Myers, Justin Neese, Austin Olivas, Keegan Reeser, Emmett Ross, Austin Sojka, Sage Sorochman, Nick Varelas, Dustin Wagers, Hayden Winks, Trevor Zeller, coaches David D’Alessandro and Doug Reeser and Manager Scott Wagers.

In other District 62 finals:On Monday, Seaview Little League won a pair of district titles when its 10/11 All-Star team defeated Ocean View, 6-4, at Westminster Little League, and its 9/10 All-Star team rallied past Huntington Valley, 10-7, at Robinwood Little League.

In previous championship series action:Home runs by Austin Olivas and Sage Sorochman allowed Robinwood to pull away and win the series opener Monday.

Little League All-Stars

Robinwood 6, Costa Mesa National 2

Robinwood took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning when Sorochman drew a lead-off walk and scored on a high-bounce sacrifice grounder to shortstop. They went up, 2-0, in the second inning when Dustin Wagers drew a bases loaded walk.

Costa Mesa National rallied to tie the score in the bottom of the second on RBI singles by Trevor Borkowski and Ben Beck but Robinwood regained the lead for good in the third when Jonathan Abernatha singled to right field and a bad hop allowed the ball to sail past Beck to the fence, and Nick Varelas scored from first on the play to give Robinwood a 3-2 edge.

Olivas led off the fourth with a home run to increase the advantage to 4-2.