Northridge Advances to Little League Regional With 11-0 Win

RIALTO —  Perhaps it was a gesture of mercy when the outfield lights went out temporarily during Saturday night’s Southern California Division II final between the Northridge and Whittier Little League all-star teams.

After all, the inevitable was about to happen.

Northridge was en route to an 11-0 victory at Lilac Park, earning a berth in this week’s four-team Western Regionals in San Bernardino.

This is the first Northridge team to win a division title since 1975, and the team has strong hitting and the pitching of Nathaniel Dunlap to thank.

Dunlap pitched a one-hitter, struck out nine and walked none. Only a ground-ball single in the first inning kept him from pitching a perfect game.

“He’s very disciplined for a 12-year-old,” Northridge Coach Larry Baca said of Dunlap. “In the 13 years I’ve been coaching here, he’s probably the best pitcher I’ve seen. And we’ve had some guys go on to the pros.”

Once again, Northridge (12-0) served notice that it is a team that can hit.

Angered by a recent story in a San Bernardino paper that suggested the team’s hitting was sub-par, Northridge has been on a tear in the two games since, scoring 34 runs.

Northridge had 12 hits, including three home runs.

In the third, Matt Cassel and Jonathon Higashi each ripped home runs. By the end of the third inning, Northridge held a 7-0 lead.

In the fifth, Peter Tuber hit a three-run home run to center field, his fourth in as many division games, to make the score 10-0.

In addition, Tuber was celebrating his 13th birthday.

“This is a special home run, because it’s my birthday and we wanted to win so badly,” he said.

In the first inning, Northridge parlayed three singles and an error into three runs.

On Friday, Northridge will take on a team from Alaska at 5 p.m. The winner of the double-elimination regional advances to the Little League World Series in Williamsport, Pa.

Cassel, who finished three for four with two runs batted in, said, “Now that we’re going to regionals, all we have to do is win the (World Series) flag.”