The Alaska state champions earned a trip to the Little League World Series by winning the Western Regional championship Sunday in Vancouver, Wash. Nunaka Valley beat Gilroy, Calif., 8-1 in the title game to complete an undefeated run through the eight-team tournament.
The World Series begins Thursday in Portland and concludes with a championship game six days later on Aug. 19, the day school starts in Anchorage. If Nunaka Valley makes it as far as the title game, the girls will be on national television instead of in the classroom.
Nunaka Valley is Alaska's first team of 11- and 12- year-olds -- boys or girls -- to make it to the Little League World Series. It's the second Alaska team to advance to one of Little League of America's international championship tournaments. In 1995, a Big League softball team that included players from the Nunaka Valley organization won the Western Regional and advanced to the Big League World Series in Kalamazoo, Mich.
A perennial powerhouse in girls softball, Nunaka Valley placed third at last year's Western Regional for 11- and 12-year-olds.
"We thought we could place again, but we didn't know we would win it," said second-year player Sydney Smith, the winning pitcher in Sunday's championship. "We thought second place would be cool."
But to win it all?
"Oh my gosh!" Smith said via cell phone as her team celebrated their achievement over lunch Sunday afternoon in Vancouver.
Smith and Heather Breslin each pitched three games for Nunaka Valley. The pair only gave up three walks in six games, while the team's offense outscored opponents 32-9.
The Alaska champs survived two close calls -- a 5-4 win over Utah in their second game and a 2-1 semifinal win over Southern California on Saturday.
Sunday's game was Anchorage's second against Gilroy. In its third tournament game, Nunaka Valley sent the Northern California champs into the loser's bracket by blanking them 6-0.
Going into the rematch, the Alaskans had to guard against overconfidence, Smith said.
"We were really pumped because we had already beaten them before, she said.
The team is a combination of top players from two teams that play in the Nunaka Valley organization in northeast Anchorage.
In 2006, a Nunaka Valley junior girls softball team made it to the championship of the Western Regional tournament but lost the game -- and a trip to the World Series. That same year, the boys team from Dimond-West came up two runs short of winning a spot in the fabled Little League World Series in Williamsport, Pa., falling 5-4 in a regional championship game aired on ESPN2.
The Aug. 18 semifinals and Aug. 19 championship of the Portland tournament will air live on ESPN2. Nunaka Valley is one of 10 teams aiming for the championship.
Nunaka Valley Major All-Stars
Erin Goudreau
Gabby Meyerson
Sydney Smith
Kaela Emerson
Matanoya Fiame
Mara Winningham
Morgan Hill
Heather Breslin
Jacynne Augafa
Taria Page
Hannah Peterson
Lauren Syrup
Julia Merritt
Manager: Richard Knowles
Coach: Chuck Thompson
Coach: Rick Peterson
Chaperone: Richard Hill
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