Youth ball: Anchorage softball team returns

Nunaka Valley Little League from Anchorage, Alaska, is back in Vancouver, aiming to repeat as Little League Softball Western Region champions.

The tournament brings together nine state champions and the host team from Cascade Little League to compete for one berth in the Little League Softball World Series. Play begins with two games on Saturday and continues through the regional finals on Aug. 8.

The games are played at Fort Vancouver Little League, which is located on the south side of Mill Plain across from Hudson’s Bay High School. There is no charge for spectators.

Each of the 10 teams will play four pool-play games. The top two teams from both pools will play in the semifinals on Aug. 7. The finals are at 2 p.m. on Aug. 8.

The champion will play in the Little League World Series at Alpenrose Dairy in southwest Portland.

Cascade Little League earned the host slot in the tournament by winning the Washington Little League District 4 championship.

Members of the Cascade team are Shaylah Steinborn, Chaseti Dinsmore, Bailley Simms, Hannah Nystrom, Sydney Jones, Natalie Stofiel, Toni Jefferies, Courtney Walworth, Mariah Taylor, Hannah Harris, and Dabrielle Lowman. The manager is John Harris. The assistant coaches are Greg Nystrom and Ryan Jones.

Cascade will open pool play on Monday against the defending champions from Anchorage. On Tuesday, the host team will play Burbank, Calif., on Wednesday against Pendleton, Ore., and on Friday against Snow Canyon, Utah. All four of Cascade’s games will start at 6 p.m.

In the other pool are Washington state champion East Jefferson from Chimacum, perennial contender Gilroy, Calif., and teams from Anthem, Ariz., Billings, Mont., and Lewiston, Idaho.

Little League baseball — Mill Creek beat Glenwood 3-1 late Wednesday to knock the Vancouver team out of the Little League Baseball State Tournament at Elma. No details from the game were reported.

Little League 9-10 softball — Cascade Little League finished second at the Little League softball state tournament for girls ages 9-10. Gig Harbor beat Cascade 9-1 on July 24 to conclude the tournament at Mill Creek.

Allie Hancock and Maddie McClelland pitched all 36 innings. Between them, the pitchers allowed 17 hits and had 49 strikeouts. At the plate, Allie Hancock had 10 hits with a double, Katie Hancock had nine hits, and Maddie McClelland and Kaitlin Manker each had seven hits including a triple.

Other players were: Autumn Fitzgerald, Lauren Gehrmann, Amanda Grimes, Averie Haney, Jenna Linse, Kaitlin Manker, Kelcey Reed, Emma Riggins, and Emily Snow. The manager was Chad Hancock and the assistant coach was Matt Haney.