SAN BENITO — The San Benito Little League baseball club is looking to repeat last summer’s historic run. The 12U squad will have a shot at reaching the PONY Baseball Little League World Series for a second straight year later this week at the South Zone Tournament in Deer Park.
“It’s always a great feeling to represent the Valley at the PONY South Zone Tournament,” said head coach Angelo Villarreal. “Our boys have represented the Valley well over the past three years and it has been a humbling experience for us.”
A total of 16 teams will play in Deer Park and the Hounds will begin the tournament against Eagle Pass at 3 p.m. Thursday. Their second matchup will follow at 9 a.m. Friday against Medina Valley.
After pool play, the tournament will follow with a playoff game, a semifinal round and, finally, a championship round. The winner of the tournament will head to the 12U PONY Little League World Series in Los Alamitos, California, on Aug. 3.
Outside of San Benito, Palmview and Pharr are also representing the Valley at the tournament. Fort Worth, San Antonio, Florida, Eagle Pass and Houston are the other teams competing for a shot at the title.
“Our hope is we get to represent the Valley again at the World Series, but whatever happens we’re excited and extremely proud of our boys,” Villarreal said. “The kids have fought hard and continue to fight. The biggest challenge was working together to play as a team and learning to trust each other on the field.”
This is the third straight year the Hounds have reached the South Zone qualifier. Along the way, San Benito won first place at the Mid-Season tournament and won all three of their invitational tournaments.
The Hounds also won their section and placed third at the regional qualifier, which punched their ticket to Deer Park.
This year’s club has a mix of boys who have never reached the World Series and there are five returning players from last year’s team.
Angelo Villarreal, Aaron Corona, Devin Silva, Thomas Flores and Karmyne Castilleja are five returning from last year’s squad.
“Next week we have an opportunity to go up against teams from all over the south, and we’re ready and excited for the challenge,” said Villarreal.
