Sandpoint Junior All-Star team represents Idaho at Western Regionals

VANCOUVER, Wash. — The Sandpoint Junior All-Star team represented Idaho at the recent Western Region All-Star Tournament in Vancouver, Wash.

The team finished 0-4 in a brutally tough slate of pool play games, facing losing 11-1 to Arizona, 17-4 to Oregon, 16-1 to Southern California and 16-3 to Washington.

There were some definite highlights, namely getting the chance to compete against some of the top 13- and 14-year-old baseball talent in the western United States.

In the final loss to Washington, outfielders Alex Stockton and Payton Cox each cut down a runner at home with strong throws. Stockton also made a highlight catch on a deep shot into the right center gap, and would have had a second assist from the outfield save for a disputed call at home.

The pool schedule did Sandpoint no favors, opening against last year’s Intermediate World Series champion team from Nogales, a game that was scoreless heading into the fifth inning.

Sandpoint and Nogales ended up becoming good friends and hanging out together throughout the course of the tournament, one team bordering Canada and one team bordering Mexico, each team loving baseball. Nogales, which beat Southern California but lost to Washington, showed up to cheer Idaho on in the final game, but Washington dashed their hopes with a win to advance to the semis.

The step up in competition was an eye opener, getting a chance to face pitchers with better velocity and command than Sandpoint had previously seen. For stretches, Sandpoint more than held its own, but other times struggled to keep pace with talent-laden teams from far bigger population bases.

Despite the tough scores, Sandpoint played with great hustle and sportsmanship, earning the respect of the opposing teams and representing Idaho with class.

The team wishes to thank everyone in the community for the great support, all of which helped make the fun, once-in-a-lifetime experience possible.