The Camp Verde All-Stars Juniors team played light-out baseball at the state tournament July 17, they just couldn’t keep their momentum going once the lights came on.
The Little League Juniors team entered the state tournament on a roll after easily winning the District 10 tournament, beating Prescott Valley, Verde Valley and Chino Valley before tallying a 10-run win over Prescott in the championship game.
But strange things have a way of happening in the state tournament, especially in a hot location like Sierra Vista, where the state tournament was held this year.
In its first game, matched up against Lake Havasu, Camp Verde played well and held a 4-3 lead heading into the seventh and final inning.
But with darkness descending on the field, officials were unable to turn the stadium lights on, and the game was forced to move to a different field where the lights were working.
That’s when the fortunes of the Camp Verde team changed in a flash.
“Momentum was on our side until the lights didn’t come on out there,” said Camp Verde coach Ben Almendarez, “and then we moved to a different field and from that point on it just went in Lake Havasu’s favor.”
Lake Havasu scored two runs in the seventh inning to take the 5-4 win, sending Camp Verde into the losing bracket of the double elimination tournament where they faced North Scottsdale.
But the lost momentum from the previous day’s heartbreaker was too much for the young Camp Verde players to overcome, as they fell behind early and couldn’t fight their way back in a 10-4 loss.
For the full story, please see the Wednesday, July 24 issue of the Camp Verde Journal or Cottonwood Journal Extra.
