Brayden Lee is mauled by his San Mateo National teammates after his walk-off single in the bottom of the sixth inning to top Pacifica American in the District 52 Little League All-Stars 11-12s Tournament Saturday at Mitchell Park.
PALO ALTO — After a cancelled 2020 season, the annual District 52 Little League All-Stars are back at long last.
The D52 12-year-olds’ tournament started Saturday, featuring each league’s best athletes from Pacifica to Palo Alto. The winner of the tournament will advance to the sectional round and begin their journey for a possible spot in the Little League World Series in South Williamsport, Pennsylvania.
Brayden Lee fueled San Mateo National’s thrilling 4-3 win with a walk-off single against Pacifica American Saturday afternoon at Palo Alto Little League field.
Dominant pitching performances from starter Curtis Lee and Cubby Gementera out of the bullpen in the sixth inning set the stage for Lee's game-winning hit.
“We had a lot of confidence in Curtis,” said John Vittori, manager for San Mateo National. “He was the best pitcher in our league, and he showed it today. He dominates in every aspect of the game. He locates his fastball, and he has good breaking stuff to go with it.”
Pacifica American manager John Snead said: “I think we got a lot more better bats than we showed today, but that was a tough pitcher as well.”
Curtis Lee gave up two earned runs on five hits in his five innings of work, while striking out six. Additionally, San Mateo did not walk a Pacifica hitter all afternoon.
The excitement began in the top of the sixth inning when Gementera came on in relief after Curtis Lee had pitched 82 of his allotted 85 pitches through five innings.
Brody Finale
Brody Finale led off the inning with a game-tying solo home run on the second pitch of the at-bat. Gementera quickly settled in, retiring the next three batters with a strikeout, groundout and flyout to right.
In the bottom of the inning, Gementera drew a walk to start a rally with one out. He advanced to third on a single by Carter Peak after stealing second base during the at-bat.
Pacifica American intentionally walked Curtis Lee, loading the bases with one out. This brought up San Mateo’s cleanup hitter, Nagao, who struck out to set the pressure on Brayden Lee.
With a 1-2 count, Brayden Lee ended the ballgame with a single to left field, scoring Gementera with the winning run.
Brayden Lee finished the ballgame 3 for 4 at the plate and two RBIs.
San Mateo National fell 7-6 to Menlo-Atherton on Sunday in the second day of the tournament.
“We have a lot of guys who can throw,” Vittori said. “Collectively, anybody can pitch at any given time. So, we’re just going to take it one day at a time.”
Pacifica American will play Palo Alto in an elimination game Monday at 6 p.m.
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LaurieHietter said:
Thank you, Lisa. I hope all of San Mateo reads this letter. More people need to know.
Dirk van Ulden said:
LaurieHietter said:
CA Is Burning said:
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