MUSTANGS REACH WEST ZONE : JUST PLAYING IN TOURNAMENT A VICTORY FOR ACTON-AGUA DULCE TEAM.Byline: Lee Barnathan Daily News Staff Writer Late last week, the Acton-Agua Dulce Mustang mustang [Sp. mesteño=a stray], small feral horse of the W United States. Mustangs are descended from escaped Native American horses, which in turn were descended from horses of North African blood, brought to the New World by the Spanish c.1500. baseball team reached the West Zone tournament for the first time, only to become the second team ousted from the eight-team, double-elimination tournament A double-elimination tournament is a competition in which a participant ceases to be eligible to win the tournament's championship upon having lost two games or matches. , whose championship game was played Monday night. But that was no cause for alarm or disappointment, according to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. team manager Reggie Rodriguez. This group of 9- and 10-year-olds had already exceeded expectations by advancing further than any previous squad, and by coming together despite infighting in·fight·ing n. 1. Contentious rivalry or disagreement among members of a group or organization: infighting on the President's staff. 2. Fighting or boxing at close range. that could have divided the young squad. Rodriguez said last week, ``When one kid catches fire, they all catch fire.'' That's what happened when the team won the sectional tournament it hosted July 20-22, then captured the regional title at Palmdale July 25-30. The boys went 8-1 in the two tournaments. These victories came after the team went 3-6 in nine practice games leading up to the sectional tournament. Rodriguez said the July 3-6 tournament in Sun Valley, where the youngsters lost four games - to William S William, crown prince of Germany William or Frederick William, 1882–1951, crown prince of Germany, son of William II. In World War I he commanded (1914) an army on the Western Front and was nominal commander in the German attack . Hart (which competed in Monday's zone championship), South Gate, Walnut and Sun Valley - gave him insight on how to best use his players' abilities. He realized that to win games, the team would have to do the little things, like bunting bunting, common name for small, plump birds of the family Fringillidae (finch family). Among the American buntings are the indigo bunting, in which the summer plumage of the male reflects sunlight as a rich, metallic blue; the painted bunting, or nonpareil ( and moving runners over. The boys didn't have the power to hit home runs. But after losing July 10 to Hart's second team, the infighting arose. Some parents and an assistant coach, fearing the team would lose two and be eliminated from the sectional tournament, expressed their concerns at a meeting. Rodriguez said half the team supported his plan to improve Acton-Agua Dulce's ability to compete against stronger teams. Those who opposed his strategy left and took their children with them. The parents who disagreed with Rodriguez could not be reached for comment. Suddenly, the week before the sectional, Rodriguez was without some key starting infield and outfield positions. ``I think they thought that by doing that, they would sabotage sabotage [Fr., sabot=wooden shoe; hence, to work clumsily], form of direct action by workers against employers through obstruction of work and/or lowering of plant efficiency. Methods range from peaceful slowing of production to destruction of property. things, but they didn't,'' Rodriguez said. ``The team rose to the occasion.'' Rodriguez inserted the rarely used Ryan McCarney at second base and Curtis Leavitt at first base, and both responded. He put Kyle Hitch hitch to fasten by a knot, usually used to describe tying a horse to a post. and Robert Rodriguez in the outfield, and they got better by playing more. Plus, the pitching that had been the team's strong point continued. Led by Matt Kelsey and Jeff LaLiberte, Acton-Agua Dulce went 4-1 in the sectional and 4-0 in the regional to reach the zone. ``This could have killed us,'' Rodriguez said. ``But we overcame it, and the kids want to win.'' |
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