Susan McDonald

Mason Harvey flies through the air as the team cools off between games.

Susan McDonald

Celebrating the victory

Susan McDonald

10U World Series Champions

Susan McDonald

Turner McDonald on the mound

The 10U Oxnard Sharks stayed closer to home this year to play in the USSSA 10U Major Western World Series. As a 9-and-under team, the Sharks traveled to Kansas City last year to compete against 37 teams from around the nation, ultimately placing 5th. This year the World Series was held at the Big League Dreams Parks in Chino Hills, West Covina, and Riverside.

Getting off to a good start, Turner McDonald opened pool play against the Santa Clarita Toros by striking out the first three batters. John McGill took over after the first inning and kept the Toros to 3 runs, while throwing six strike outs, giving the Sharks the opening game 15-3. The Sharks went on to win all three of their games of pool play and were seeded #1.

A shot to right field by Jake Constantine in the first game of bracket play against the West Covina Fear gave the Sharks a 2-0 lead. Glancing at his phone in the 4th inning, Coach Greg Herrera got the devastating news that his stepfather had succumbed to cancer. Although Mason Harvey had a RBI in the 5th to give the Sharks the lead 3-2, the Fear had a runner on 2nd and 3rd with 2 outs in the top of the 6th. At that time, Coach Greg made the decision to send his son, Jeremy, to the mound and intentionally walked the next batter. With the bases loaded Jeremy threw one pitch drawing a grounder to the first baseman for the final out. Wearing black tape on their uniforms for the remainder of the tournament, the team was determined to help Coach Greg keep his final promise to his stepdad and win the World Series title.

In the next game, the Sharks found themselves distracted and entertained by the rhythmic chants of the Puerto Rican fans. They finally got back their focus in the 5th inning when Darius Vines laid down a perfect bunt to move Frankie Tostado into scoring position. A shot to left field by Tony Hernandez scored both runs for the 3-2 lead. Pitcher, Tony Contreras, kept the Puerto Rico Angels from scoring in the 6th to secure the 3-2 win.

In the Championship game against Chino Hills, Gabe Vargas bunted to bring in Jaime Lopez and managed to beat the throw, arriving safely at first. The insurance runs in the bottom of the 5th gave the Sharks a more comfortable 6-2 lead going into the final inning. With 2 outs in the 6th, catcher Darius Vines and short stop Mason Harvey did what they did best through out the entire tournament and picked off the base runner at second for the final out. Turner McDonald pitched a complete game. Ramon Gomez, who was on base 12 times in 14 at bats, was awarded the Outstanding Offensive Player Award for the tournament. The MVP Award was presented to Turner McDonald who pitched 13 innings, giving up two unearned runs and registering 16 strike outs. Congratulations Champions!!

The Sharks want to thank the coaches ( Pete Hernandez, Greg Herrera, Ricardo Tostado) and their parents for all of the time, love, and support that they have given to both the team and to their individual efforts. And, of course a huge "THANK YOU" to our sponsors, Gene and Dolores Hernandez, who make every team event a very special and cherished memory!!