Buckeye Little League players capped off a busy summer with a string of impressive runs through district and state tournaments, highlighting the program’s continued growth in both baseball and softball.
The Junior Girls All-Stars (ages 12-14) led the way, finishing second in the state after battling through a tough bracket in Winslow. The team, representing District 11, won its local district title before advancing to the state level, where they defeated Mountain Pines LL and Prescott Valley LL but ultimately fell to Four Peaks Little League, 2-15, in the final.
“They worked so hard and showed so much heart,” Buckeye Little League President and coach Jason McVey said. “As far as I know, it’s been more than a decade since we’ve won a district tournament. It really shows how well baseball and softball are growing here.”
The Senior Boys All-Star team (ages 13-16) also put up a strong fight in Nogales, Arizona. After beating District 1’s Northern Arizona team 9-2 and pulling out a close 12-11 win over Rio Vista, Peoria, they advanced to the championship game but were shut out 6-0 by Douglas Little League.
In the Intermediate Boys (ages 11-13) Baseball division, Buckeye’s All-Star squad finished third in the state after a wild run in Nogales. The team battled back from an opening loss to Copper Hills with wins over Western (7-5) and Chino Valley (13-8) before losing a back-and-forth semifinal rematch to Copper Hills, 22-18.
The league’s younger Softball All-Star (ages 9-11) team is still in action, opening its tournament with a 10-3 win over Randolph Little League (Tucson area). They face Four Peaks Little League next as they aim for another deep run.
Overall, Buckeye Little League fielded teams in 11 divisions this summer, sending a team for every age group, with four winning local titles and advancing to state tournaments.
With the success on the youth level and local players like Buckeye Union High School graduate Brandon Compton being selected in the second round of the MLB Draft this year, Buckeye is increasingly becoming known as a baseball town.
"We're all just super proud of them. It's probably been over a decade since we've won a district tournament, and then this year we won four of them," McVey said. "So, it's just really cool to see baseball and softball growing and how well all the divisions have done."
