Robinwood’s run comes to end

Five days after winning a District 62 championship, the Robinwood Little League All-Star team was eliminated from postseason competition after losing two games at the Section 10 Tournament.

Robinwood, which hosted the double-elimination tournament on the same field where it won the district title, hadn’t lost an All-Star game until Saturday when it lost to Laguna Niguel.

On Sunday, Robinwood was eliminated by Tijeras Creek.

Laguna Niguel and Tijeras Creek were the only two remaining teams left in the Section 10 tournament as of Tuesday.

Entering the Section 10 event, Robinwood had run up a 5-0 record in postseason play.

The locals earned the right to represent District 62 in the Section tournament by winning two games from previously undefeated Costa Mesa National in a best-of-three district series played July 9-10.

Laguna Niguel 11, Robinwood 5Robinwood took a 1-0 lead on District 55 champs but played catch-up the remainder of the game after Laguna Niguel came up with a six-run second-inning to forge a 6-1 edge.

Yet Robinwood battled back, scoring four unanswered runs of their own. Two big hits ignited the spree, with Trevor Zeller driving in three of the runs with a bases-loaded triple and a solo home run by Emmett Ross which brought Robinwood to within 6-5.

Laguna Niguel, however, gained needed breathing room in the bottom of the fifth by scoring five runs to up their lead to 11-5.

Tijeras Creek 14, Robinwood 2Still feeling the effects of Saturday’s loss to Laguna Niguel, Robinwood never mounted a serious threat against District 68 winner Tijeras Creek.

Robinwood managed its two runs on four hits.

“At this level of play, starting pitching is key and we faced some good ones,” Robinwood Coach David D’Alessandro said. “Our boys have nothing to hang their heads about. In the end only one team will be left standing and to put all the emphasis on that would be self-defeating.

“The boys can look back years from now and know in the summer of ‘07, we were the best team in the Huntington Beach area.”

Robinwood Little League All-Stars: 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, Coach David D’Alessandro, Coach Doug Reeser, Manager Scott Wagers.