All-Stars Force Deciding Game at Sectionals

The Santa Monica West 9- & 10-year-old Little League All-Star baseball team is having so much fun that players hope their season never ends.

Managed by Brian Corrigan, the team stayed alive in the Section 4 playoffs Tuesday night by turning the tables on West Torrance with a 6-4 victory at Marine Field in Manhattan Beach. 

The teams meet again in a "Western" showdown on the same field Wednesday at 6 p.m., with the winner advancing to the Division Tournament in Santa Barbara on Saturday. Each team now has one loss in the double-elimination bracket.

Santa Monica West opened the Section 4 Tournament against host Manhattan Beach, the District 36 champion, and won by a 2-1 score. Santa Monica West then played West Torrance to decide the winner's bracket Sunday and West Torrance won 20-3.

However, Santa Monica West bounced back with a 16-3 victory over Lennox on Monday, then avenged its earlier defeat to West Torrance with Tuesday's convincing triumph.

"We have to beat them [West Torrance] two in a row to advance," Corrigan said Monday. "But our pitching is intact and the boys are ready to meet the challenge." 

Santa Monica West dominated the District 25 Tournament, crushing West Los Angeles 11-3 in the final round while racking up 58 runs in five games. 

Santa Monica West's players are J.P. Corrigan, Ryan Bunting, Chase Rowe, J.P. Maniscalco, Grant Smith, Luca Decristo, Sam Chessler, Jared Levin, Aidan Rosen, James McCormick, Alan Schlessinger and Ethan Enriquez.