Santa Margarita Little League team begins West Regional play Sunday in San Beardino

More than half of the players on the Santa Margarita National Little League all-star team play together on a travel ball team when the Little League season is over.

Assuming the Little League season would be finished by now, the travel ball team was scheduled to be competing in a touament in Cooperstown, N.Y., this week.

Plans change.

Santa Margarita will be representing Southe Califoia in the Little League West Regional beginning Sunday at Al Houghton Stadium in San Beardino. The winner of the regional advances as the Southwest representative in the Little League World Series, which begins Aug. 17 in Williamsport, Pa.

Santa Margarita takes on Summerlin South, the Nevada champion, at 7:30 p.m. in the double-elimination touament, which also includes state champions from Arizona (Chandler), Hawaii (Hilo) and Utah (Dixie), and a squad from Northe Califoia (Canyon Creek of San Ramon).

“San Beardino is an unbelievable place where every kid wants to go,” Santa Margarita coach C.J. Ankrum said.

The team of 12-year-old all-stars is the first Santa Margarita Little League team to advance to the Southwest Regional, league president Paul Persiani said.

Santa Margarita advanced to the regional by capturing the District 68, Section 10 and Southe Califoia Divisional touaments – going 11-0 in the process.

In the divisional championship game in Long Beach on July 30, Santa Margarita came back from a five-run deficit to defeat Eastlake (Chula Vista), 10-8.

Santa Margarita scored 44 runs over five games in Long Beach.

“They are so dedicated … and good teammates to each other,” Ankrum said. “They are not a rah-rah team. They are not on the fence screaming at a pitcher when he is in his wind up. They sit there, they watch and they take in and they just play the game the right way.”

To win in San Beardino, the team just needs to do what it has been doing over the past three touaments, second baseman Tyler Ankrum said.

“Everybody is good at this level,” Ankrum said. “We’ve just got to play our game.”

The team is looking forward not only to playing baseball but to the overall experience, which involves staying in dorms at the San Beardino complex throughout the touament.

Ankrum plans to be “hanging out with my friends in the cabin, jumping in the pool and playing some more baseball.”

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“I’m looking forward to having fun and meeting new players and hopefully doing well again,” pitcher Bobby Gray said.

Santa Margarita’s roster includes Ankrum, Gray, Mason Kellerman, Garrett Strenger, Tommy Woods, Bryan Ramirez, Matt Haddad, Jonas Novek, Drew Rutter, A.J. Gamulao, Danny Lawler, Nick Haddad and Joey Gray.

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