ELK GROVE, CA (MPG) - The Cal Ripken 10U Pacific Southwest Regional Tournament at Morse Community Park this week concludes with the championship game on Saturday, July 19.

Ten teams qualified to play in this year’s tournament: three teams from Central California,  two teams from Northern California and Hawaii’ and a team each from Southern California, Arizona and Nevada. They will face each other throughout the week to win a spot to compete in the Cal Ripken 10U World Series Aug. 7 through Aug. 16 in Vincennes, Indiana.         

Each of the 10 teams that qualified for the tournament were required to check in on Sunday, July 13. Following the check-in, every team participated in a pin exchange, dinner and a skills challenge all together.

The skills challenge included a relay race, an around the horn competition, a golden arm challenge and a homerun derby.

 

Laguna Youth Baseball president Dawniella Meier.

Dawniella Meier, Laguna Youth Baseball president, wanted the skills challenge to “allow players to compete and have fun together, and not necessarily compete against each other as teams.”       

Starting July 14, there are two games played at 9 a.m. and two games that follow at 11:30 a.m. every day until the last day on July 19.

On the last day of the tournament, there will be two games that start at 8:30 a.m. The winners from those two games will go against each other in the championship game at noon.  

 

Every team participated in the Pin Exchange.

           

The championship winner will punch its ticket to the Cal Ripken World Series and play some of the best competition in their age range: something that every kid playing baseball dreams of.

Each team is playing for an opportunity to play under the lights and have everyone in the baseball community watch, as well as have friends and family cheer them on from across the country. The Cal Ripken 10U Pacific Southwest Regional Tournament is a chance that only comes so often: to play at the biggest stage of youth league baseball where every run, every game and every moment matters.              

 

Trophies were made ready for Skill Challenge winners.

Although there is only one team that will make the World Series, Meier hopes “the kids take away the experiences of being able to meet kids from other states just being able to play with each other.”              

The ultimate goal is to continue to play at a high level into high school, then college. But until that time comes, each team and each player has eyes set on making the Cal Ripken World Series.