The seasons ended for four youth baseball teams from Bozeman in the final days of July but not before some strong showings at their regional tournaments.
The Bozeman Bucks 13U All-Stars, playing in Ferndale, Washington, went 5-0 as the No. 1 seed to reach the tournament’s championship game. They opened the tournament with wins against the Calgary Longhorns (7-2), Kelso, Washington (11-3), the Mount Vernon River Dogs (5-3) and the Willamette Valley Nationals (16-3).
In the semifinals, the Bucks used a six-run first inning to propel them to an eventual 11-0 win against the Belgrade Bandits. In that first inning, one run scored on an error before True Archer had an RBI single. Brayden Reich hit into a fielder’s choice, allowing another run to score. Weston Schultz and Will O’Brien each drew bases-loaded walks to bring home runs, and a steal of home completed the scoring.
Sam Sullivan pitched five one-hit innings for Bozeman, striking out seven and walking two. Miles Sgamma and Archer each had two hits. Archer, Reich and Schultz each drove in two runs. Bozeman batters walked 10 times.
In the regional’s championship game, Bozeman lost 2-1 to the Co-County Warhawks of Idaho. The game had been tied 1-1 in the bottom of the seventh before a Bozeman error allowed the winning run to score.
Harvey Kimmel pitched six innings for the Bucks, allowing just two hits and two runs (one earned) while striking out six and walking three. Dawson Lewis had three hits, and Quade Schnabel had the team’s lone RBI. Rolen Quezada also had two hits.
Bozeman’s 12U team lost in its regional semifinal in Longview, Washington, finishing the tournament with a 3-2 record.
The 10U team, also in Longview, went 3-2 in its regional and lost in the semifinals. The Bucks began with wins against Meridian, Idaho (13-8) and Black Hills, Washington (8-4). A 3-1 loss to Umpqua Valley of Oregon came next, followed by an 11-10 win against Lower Columbia, also of Oregon. A loss against West Linn, Oregon, ended Bozeman’s season.
Bozeman’s 9U team received an invitation to the Cal Ripken Pacific Northwest Regional Tournament in Eugene, Oregon, where it went 0-4.
Bozeman’s 10U, 12U and 13U teams all won their respective state tournaments to qualify for these trips to regionals, while the 9U team had placed second at state. Bozeman’s 14U team also won its state tournament but declined an invitation to its regional because not all players could make the trip.
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