By SARA MILSTEIN Special to the Daily Press
Santa Monica’s own Little League Softball team last week won the District 25 All-Star Tournament Championship for the 9-and 10-year-old division.
The winning team was not without humble beginnings, however. When the regular softball season ended on June 11, both the Santa Monica Minor Marlins and Mets had been eliminated in the District 25 Tournament of Champions by a Culver City squad. However, Santa Monica was given the opportunity to send 12 of its best players to the District 25 All-Star tournament, which was hosted by the Beverly Hills Little League on June 30.
Santa Monica’s first win against West LA was a bittersweet victory. Their opposing team withdrew from the tournament, and Santa Monica won by default. The girls anticipated that their next game, set to take place on July 7 against North Venice, might not be so easy, yet they secured another victory, 16-8.
Their next game was held two days later against Malibu, a team that was on a roll, winning their previous two games by a combined score of 48-8. Santa Monica did not cower, taking out Malibu, 11-1.
The girls couldn’t have predicted the intensity of their next contest, a rematch with North Venice on July 13.
In the top of the fourth inning, it was looking bleak for Santa Monica, already trailing by seven runs. North Venice had enjoyed a stunning rebound in the past two games, and now seemed to be back with a vengeance. North Venice scored two more runs in the fourth for a 15-6 lead, prompting the umpire to warn Santa Monica that the girls needed to score a run to avoid losing by virtue of “the mercy rule.”
“They came into that last inning determined to get the job done,” said Fabian Padilla, parent and official coach at the league. “They already had the winning attitude because they never gave up, no matter what the score read. They had a lot of heart.”
Santa Monica still had a lot of fight, evident through a stunning display of teamwork, and actually tied the score at 21-21. Lacking in pitching staff, North Venice could not throw a strike, walking in the tying run.
The next batter, Natalie Coutts, cracked a grounder to bring in the winning run. Santa Monica was victorious, by a 22-21 margin.
“The emotion was so high out there,” Padilla said. “The kids just went crazy. They felt like giants out there.”
The victory marks the first district win by a Santa Monica Little League team since 2002. Santa Monica’s all-star team is set to play their first game against another Southern California District winner on July 22, when they’ll face the West Torrance Little League.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on July 16, 2005. Read the original PDF.