6U THUNDER WINS BASEBALL LEGENDS THANKSGIVING TOURNAMENT 

Playing in our first two day tourney our boys out scored their opponents 70-38. Starting Saturday facing SGV Avengers 20-2, then facing Tijuana Indios in our second game and winning a nail biter 10-9. On Sunday Thunder was seeded 2nd and faced Los Al Young Guns and came away with a victory 8-5. Our 4th game was against the always tough SGV Hustle, this was a defensive highlight reel. Both teams played and hit extremely well, but Thunder walked away with a 12-11 win. In the championship we faced OC Elite and our bats came alive winning our 5th game 20-11. This was our third tournament and third championship as a team. All of our kids played great defense and hit extremely well, but Josh Springer went 12-15 with 4 homeruns, 3 triples, and 2 doubles and was named tournament MVP. I'm very proud of our boys, coaches, and a special thank you to all our parents for their support and dedication.

Coach Rene

6U THUNDER WINS BASEBALL LEGENDS JINGLE BELLS TOURNAMENT

6U Thunder wins again improving their record to 15-0. Thunder outscored their opponents 45-5 against Irvine Dynamite, So Cal Beast, Whittier Bandits and SGV Hustle in the championship. We played great defense and hit well through out our entire lineup. Very proud of all our boys. Thank you to all the coaches and of course our great supportive parents. See you all at Thunder Xmas Tourney 

Coach Rene

9U Thunder continues their winning ways. Thunder went 4-1 in the Hardcore Toys for Tots Tournament. In the championship game, they beat a tough La Puente Heat team 9-6. The team is looking forward to the Thunder Xmas Tournament.

Chino Hills THUNDER Baseball would like to thank Chino Hill's Pizza Co. for hosting our annual private Christmas party. First class and what a great evening for our ball players. CHTB would also like to thank all parents, players, coaches & board members for making this special event possible.

Happy Holidays!

CHTB

THUNDER 6U keeps on rolling. Thunder 6U goes 4-0 at the Hardcore Winter Champs Tourney!

THUNDER 7U traveled to Pico Rivera over the weekend to play in Pico Pride's “Where Dreams Begin” tournament searching for some W’s. The team was short a player for the weekend but just needed to get more playing time in. Thunder took on the challenge with being shorthanded along with the weather conditions. First game Saturday in pool play was against a tough Cobra’s team. Thunder had some great starting pitching by Hernandez but simply was falling short in the later innings. Some walks and errors let the game slip away after being up 7-2 going into the bottom of the last inning (L 8-7). After a tough beat against the Cobra’s, Thunder needed a W against Riverside Riot in game 2 to get a descent seed in pool play. Thunder came out with 2 runs but then fell behind 2 runs and was scrambling to get on top. With some small ball and clutch hits by Becerra, Ramirez & Perez, Thunder finished up the day with a victory (W 8-4). Thunder was then faced with being the #3 seed with the Cobra’s #1 and Riot #2. We knew we had a long day ahead of us and Thunder rose to the occasion. Thunder started off by having an 8am game with rain in the forecast and had to get passed Pico Pride first. They did just that with some key hits by Ruelas and then a key bunt by Yarc that drove in some runs (W 8-3). Now it was time to play the #1 seed Cobra’s team. With letting the first game against them Saturday get away, Thunder had to step up and prove that they wanted to be back in a championship. With Khansarinia on the bump determined to shut the opponent down, our offense then came to life! Khansarinia not only pitched a complete game (4innings) allowing only 3 but also drove in 2. Ramirez was also a game highlight with 6 RBI’s. Thunder finished up and finally made it to the Ship for the first time this season (W 12-3). Being faced with the #2 seed Riverside Riot in the Ship, our boys knew it was going to be a battle. Game time was set for 2pm and our 3^rd of the day. Thunder was up for the challenge and had some pitchers in the pen waiting. Thunder was up 9-0 going into the bottom of the 3^rd and just wanted to hold them and try to grab the mercy. That was not the case. Riot came out swinging and scored 5 but then Thunder came out in the top of the 4^th also scoring 5 but simply could not get the 10 run lead they needed. With 11 RBI’s between Ramirez, Hernandez & Ruelas it seemed that we should have been finished but Riot kept battling all the way till the last at bat in the bottom of the 6^th. All 5 Thunder pitchers deserved the win in the 2 hour + Championship Game (W 18-11).

With this being the first championship of the season it was a pleasure and honor to watch these young ball players finish the tourney with a 4-1 record. These young guys battled all weekend long and simply did not give up. Thunder 7U also pitched ALL 10 PLAYERS ON THEIR WEEKEND ROSTER. Once again, the coaches, parents and fans are very proud. Congrats 7U THUNDER for your well-deserved Championship!!!

10U Thunder finally gets over the hump as they win their first tournament Championship. The team went 2-0 on Saturday to clinch the #1 seed outscoring opponents 23-3. In the first playoff game, Tyson "Tylander" Patrick pitched a 5 inning CG to lead us to victory and into the Championship versus Team Mizuno. Thunder was down early and often, including down by 2 late. They battled and were able to tie the game and push it into extra innings. Down 1 in the bottom of the 7th inning, Thunder rallied and won a well played, intense ballgame 7-6!! Thunder was led by the great pitching of Ty Patrick, Daniel Barrera, Jonah Rivera, and Zay Ayala all weekend. Great job team, keep the Thunder rolling!!!

http://youth1.com/index.php/baseball-headlines/10478-2013-13th-annual-winter-classic-recap

Congrats to our THUNDER 6U team for...Yes another Championship at the So Cal Outlaws Bang Bang Tournament!!! Way to not only get a W but to get better as a team!!!

THUNDER 7U traveled to Hawaiian Gardens over the weekend to play in the So Cal Outlaws Bang Bang Tournament. Saturday was a tough day but the plan was to get our boys better as a team and gain good on field experience. Thunder 7U went 0-2 Saturday and was given the last seed going into Playoff Sunday. Sunday was another day though! The boys had another game plan and the plan was to win one game at a time which they did just that. Thunder arrived at the field at 7am in 30 degree temperatures to start the day against the 3 seed So Cal Outlaws. Both teams battled the conditions in a close competitive ballgame but Thunder came out on top 4-3. Thunder had a game break before having to play the 2 seed Diamond Stingrays, the boys warmed up and kept the plan in-tact. Thunder defeated the Stingrays 8-5 to get into the Championship. Thunder had to deal with yet another game break but was back into a Championship Game. This time against the 1 seed Tomateros. Thunder was on all cylinders but could not let up if they wanted to stick to the plan. Thunder’s offense came unglued, scoring a season high in runs (21) and hits (16). The highlight of the game was the dominance of “Dominator” (Dominic Ramirez). Dominic pitched a complete game, allowing only 1 run to go along with his 8 K’s. Thunder won the ship with a final score of 21-1.

Thunder outscored their Sunday opponents 33-9 in three games that took over 10 hours to complete. Thunder proved this tournament that they are getting better and can battle with any other 7U team out there. Great job boys, keep up the hard work and continue to keep your heads up regardless of stats & records. Thunder 7U has been in 4 tournaments so far this season with 3 Championship appearances, winning back to back Championships.

Chino Hills Thunder 10u participated in the I.E Rough Riders MLK Memorial Tournament over the weekend. Thunder went 2-0 in pool play and obtained the #2 seed going into the playoffs. In the first playoff game, Thunder beat the host team, I.E. Rough Riders 6-3. Thunder then went on to beat the top seeded Mad Catz 19-5 to win their second Championship in 2 weeks. Thunder was led offensively by Mateo Matthews (BA 1.000, 2 HR's and slugging 2.143%.  Mayson Baez (BA .667, slugging 1.000% and 7 SB's) and Art Briones (BA .667, 7 R's and 8 SB's) also had strong tournaments. Art also caught every inning of the tournament and did an outstanding job!

PICTURE TO FOLLOW!

Thunder 9U competed in a MLK Tournament sponsored by the IE Rough Riders.  On Day 1, the boys opened up with an 11-6 victory of the Madcats.  They then faced the Outlaws and battled the whole game but came up short 9-6.  On Day 2, Thunder again faced the Madcats and this time was victorious 13-5.  In the Championship game, Thunder squared off with the Hustle.  Trailing 3-1 in the last inning, Thunder scored 5 runs thanks to a great at bat by Jacob Bernal and key hits by Austin and Ian.  A great game by two quality teams.

6U Thunder came out banging at the MLK three day tourney held by Baseball Legends. We faced some of Southern California's best 6U teams Whittier Bandits, OC Elite, and Smashers in the championship. Kids played with a lot of heart and emotion with great defense in the infield and outfield. We swung the bat extremely well all three days and outscored our competition 66-13. I'm proud of our boys, each one is getting better and better each week. This was our seventh tournament and we were fortunate to pull out our seventh championship. Our tournament MVP was awarded by our coaches to Cameron Bateman batting .800 and making some great catches behind the dish. Great job to all the boys. Special thanks to all our parents, grandparents, and coaches for their support and loyalty.

THUNDER 7U traveled to Heartwell Park in Long Beach over the 3-Day weekend. The Baseball Legends Organization had 11 of the top 7U teams in attendance for their MLK Super NIT. This was a true test for Thunder 7U to find out if they can go deep into a 3 day tournament with a full bullpen. Saturday in pool play, Thunder was assigned two good teams, Los Alamitos Combat and Riverside Riot. Thunder beat them both. 7-2 against Los Al & 7-1 against Riot. While going 2-0 in pool play and only allowing 3 runs, Thunder was given the #4 seed for the playoffs. Come Sunday, it was set... Thunder had to go through the toughest bracket to reach the Ship. Being deep in the bullpen due to using 7 different pitchers on Saturday, Thunder knew they had the pitching but also knew they needed to put some runs up on the board in order to get past the Tomateros & the CTBA #1 ranked Simi Patriots. Thunder got passed the Tomateros with a final score of 7-2 thanks to some great playoff pitching, clutch hitting & solid playoff defense. With winning on Sunday, Thunder met up with a well coached Simi Patriots team Monday in the semi finals. The Thunder bats were alive along with once again, great playoff pitching & defense. Thunder finished up with a final score of 11-3 against the Pats. Thunder 7U was now faced with the Diamond Stingrays for the Gold Division Championship. The Stingrays put up a good fight but Thunder was victorious with a final score of 5-4.

While Thunder 7U outscored their opponents 37-12, they also won their 3^rd consecutive Championship and earned a FREE ride to the 2013 Cecil Fielder / TBL Elite World Series scheduled in June. Thunder 7U definitely proved that they are a force to be reckoned with in the 7U division. All of the coaches & parents are extremely proud of the boys for being such great competitors and for showing great sportsmanship.

GREAT JOB BOYS!!!

 Congrats to our 6U team for their 8^th consecutive championship at Hardcore's 2013 Superbowl tournament.http://youth1.com/index.php/baseball-headlines/10711-13th-annual-super-bowl-classic-baseball-recap

Congrats to our 7U team for their 4^th consecutive championship at Hardcore’s 2013 Superbowl tournament. 

THUNDER 6U CHAMPIONS (7-0 RECORD) - MVP JOSHUA SPRINGER

THUNDER 7U RUNNERS UP (6-1 RECORD)

Thunder 7U entered an 8U tournament over the weekend to prep for 8U in Arizona and ends up winning it! Thunder 7U went 3-0 outscoring thier opponents 24-8. Thunder 7U will be playing up in the 8's next weekend too, stay tuned... Great job boys, keep it up and continue to get better!

A big thanks to all of the Thunder families for a sucessful Applebees fundraiser. Thank you Applebees!!! 9U & 10U Applebees fundraiser will be held Saturday March 30th 8am in Chino.

A big thanks to all the Thunder coaches and parents who helped make this happen. We had over 50 Thunder players participate in our organization work-out. Good luck to you all!!!

Thunder 7U wins the USSSA/Top Choice Spring Championship Super NIT out in Arizona. Thunder 7U played up in the 8U division and finished with a 3-2 record, capturing the AA title. Thunder 7U was in the toughest bracket by far but was definitely up for the challenge. The boys started off in pool play against the So Cal Outlaws-Premier 8U team nervous allowing 12 runs (6 unearned), losing 12-4. Next up was Pico Pride 8U. Thunder 7U proved to a lot of people this game that they should not be treated lightly as Pico Pride threw 4 different pitchers at them. Thunder had a chance to win it in the bottom of the 6th with 2 men on but simply fell short with a final score of 7-6. Last game in pool play was against the Cali Gamers 8U team. Thunder was victorious with a final score of 15-6. Thunder started the playoffs hot and did not look back, outscoring their opponents 26-3 capturing the title. Jake Ruelas received the tournament MVP for his hot hitting streak, Congrats Jakey! The coaches, parents and fans are extremely proud of our young ballplayers. They showed heart, character and class while representing the Thunder Nation out in Arizona. Keep up the great work boys!!! Thunder 7U plans on playing a mixture of 8U tournaments through-out the remainder of the season and will also be attending the TBL & USSSA World Series.

A big thanks to all of the Thunder families for a sucessful Applebees fundraiser. Thank you Applebees!!!

Thunder 9U competed in the Xtreme Diamond Game Day Classic on April 6-7. Thunder wrapped up the number 1 seed after outscoring their opponents 25-0 on Day 1. In the semi-finals, they once again battled a familiar foe in the Torrance Tribe. After giving up 7 runs in the first inning, Thunder battled back and won in extra innings 9-8. In the ship, Thunder faced the SoCal Outlaws-Vazquez formerly known as the Tomateros. The game was scoreless through three innings but eventually the Outlaws took charge. Thunder came away with second place but gained the respect of the number #1 9U team.

THUNDER 7U was back at it over the weekend, playing in the TBL "Uncle Sam Slam" tournament. Thunder was down a couple players Saturday in pool play but with the help of a Thunder 6U member, they were still able to pick up the #2 seed going into Championship Sunday. Thunder had to face an always tough Tomateros team as the #3 seed and was able to come out with a W to then face the new and improved #1 seed Diamond Stingrays. This game was a great back & forth baseball game. Thunder scored the go ahead runs in the top of the 6th and then locked it down in the bottom to become Champions once again with a 7-5 victory.

Prior to this tournament, Thunder 7U has been playing up in a few 8U tournaments mainly to keep the boys fresh and on their toes and also to prep them for their Arizona trip. While playing up in the 8’s, Thunder 7U had a 9-5 record and an average of 8 runs scored per game. Thunder 7U was also in 3 Championship’s, winning 2 of them.

On behalf of the coaches and parents, we all would like to say congratulations for all of your accomplishments thus far into the 2013 season.

Thunder 7U plans on playing in the USSSA World Series Qualifier “Bat Wars Super NIT” tournament to obtain their World Series birth on Saturday May 4^th & Sunday May 5^th BLD Chino Hills.

Thunder 8U wins the Xtreme Diamond Sports – Southern California Ring Bash. Thunder finished pool play Saturday with 2 wins scoring 25 runs and allowing 5 runs, earning the #2 seed. Thunder faced the North Valley Titans the #6 team in Southern California. The Titans pitched one of the best pitchers in 8U and the Thunder offense started fast in the first inning scoring 5 runs. The Titans battled back to tie the game in the 3^rd inning. The score remained the same until the bottom of the sixth; when Thunder scored the winning run to send them to the Championship to face the Pico Pride, the #4 team in Southern California. An exciting Championship game which; took extra innings and the California Tie Breaker had to be implemented to decide the winner. Thunder came out and scored 2 runs in the top of the 8^th inning and only allowed 1 run in the bottom of the 8^th to secure the win. The boys played with commitment, heart and determination this weekend.

YOUTH1 LINK: http://youth1.com/~youth1/index.php/baseball-headlines/11387-winner-takes-all-at-so-cal-rings-bash

Over the weekend, Thunder 7U played in the So Cal Outlaws (7U) 2013 Spring Bash Bat Give-Away Tournament. They went a perfect 4-0 and locked the #1 seed down going into Championship Sunday. Thunder 7U continues to not only develop but keeps the team goal intact strictly playing for Championship Sundays. Thunder faced the Diamond Stingrays in the ship and finished with a 13-5 victory taking 12 new Miken RZR bats home with them. Thunder improves their overall record to 40-14 which includes their 9-5 record in the 8U division. From behalf of the coaching staff, parents & the CHTB organization, we would like to congratulate you all for your wonderful accomplishments for the 2013 season. Next stop, USSSA Bat Wars Super NIT Qualifier 5/4 & 5/5 BLD West Covina.

Thunder 7U participated in last weekend’s USSSA Bat Wars Super NIT tournament and dominated the field. Thunder went 5-0 outscoring their opponents 70-20 to win their 3^rd NIT tournament of the season. This tournament had all the top 7U teams from the state. With this performance, Thunder 7U earned the #1 ranking and was the team of the weekend by California Travelball Authority (CTBA).

2013 "MOTHERS DAY CLASSIC” 5/11/2013

6U CHAMPIONS - CH THUNDER

6U RUNNERS UP - SGV HUSTLE

8U CHAMPIONS - CH THUNDER

8U RUNNERS UP - OUTLAWS PREMIER

Thunder 6U wins CHTB's Mother’s Day Classic Tournament. The boys played very well in the 100+ degree temperatures. Thanks for the support to all of the teams that participated and thank you parents & coaches for your continued support.

8U Thunder wins the 2013 “Mother’s Day Classic.” Three teams supported our one day tournament and we would like to thank them for their support; Bakersfield Dirt Worx, Outlaws (Silva), and Pico Pride. Thunder faced Bakersfield in the first game and came out swinging the bats for a 12-0 win. The second game Thunder faced the Outlaws and continued to swing away beating the Outlaws 14-2. Thunder and the Outlaws faced off again for the Championship. A tighter baseball game, but in the end the Thunder’s "Hot Bats" outscored the Outlaws 13-8. A solid performance by Thunder offensively and defensively this weekend.

Chino Hills Thunder 7U spent the Memorial Day weekend in Fountain Valley to play in USSSA's 17th annual Memorial Day tournament. Thunder went 4-0 to win the Ship. Thunder outscored their opponents 34-6. Next up for Thunder will be playing up in the 8's on June 8th & 9th.

PBBL League Champs!

6U Thunder signed up for the 1st Annual PBBL Spring Training Travel Ball League, which included 10 season games and a playoff round with winners being awarded NEW custom Soto gloves. Thunder went 7-1 in league play and 2-0 in playoffs. Championship game saw two familiar teams, SGV Hustle and CH Thunder. Championship final score: Thunder 13, Hustle 3. Thunder shortstop Seth Hernandez was named league MVP. Thank you to PBBL league directors for working with our schedules and to our very loyal families for their dedication and support. Way to go boys!

Coach Rene

 #1 ranked 7U Chino Hills Thunder participated in the 2013 Cecil Fielder Elite World Series (June 21^st - June 25^th). It started with #25 Merrick “Beast” Becerra capturing the 7U HR Derby title at the opening ceremonies in San Bernardino at the 66er stadium. Earlier that morning Thunder was given their pool play schedules. On paper they were faced with playing 3 tough pool play games against 3 top 5 ranked 7U teams. The boys knew they had a challenge ahead of them with having to face the Cali Gamers, Diamond Stingrays and El Monte Dukes. DAY 1 Saturday, Thunder played a tight game against the Gamers winning 6-4 and then went on to beat the Stingrays 9-1. DAY 2 Sunday having to play the last pool play game was the key. Thunder was in the running to obtain a good seed but allowed a couple too many at the end of the day beating the Dukes 15-3. DAY 3 Monday (2pm) as the #2 seed, Thunder out played Swagger with a final score of 18-3 in game 1 but then had to face the hungry Cali Gamers next (4pm). The Gamers shutout Thunder with a final score of 7-0!!! The Thunder bats were left at the hotel room and the players were stunned! That was the first loss by a 7U team in 127 days for Thunder!!! The boys had to quickly regain their focus and now had to battle their way back to the top in the loser’s bracket. With the loss, they had to play another game that night at 8pm against SGV Hustle. Thunder started slow but then took control with a final score of 7-2 completing the day with 3 games (2pm, 4pm & 8pm). Not being able to rest Thunder had to immediately get back at it the final day having the 8am game. DAY 4 Tuesday (Championship Day) Thunder had to get by the former #1 ranked team Simi Patriots and they did. Final score was 11-7. Right after the 8am game, Thunder had to face the So Cal Outlaws at 10am in the semifinals. The players & coaches knew this was the game of the weekend as did the Outlaws. With having a full strength ace available in the bullpen, Thunder knew it was do or die and asked a lot from him (#5 Kasen “Kase” Khansarinia).  This game was an intense back and forth ball game until time ended in a 4-4 tie at the end of the 5th. The game was now in “extra innings” so to speak and had to follow the international tie-breaker rule. Outlaws had to make a pitching change and Thunder jumped all over it scoring 5 in the top of the 6^th. Thunder rolled with their ace to close out the game in the 6^th inning and did just that only allowing 2 runs. The final score was 9-6 and gave Thunder the trip to the Actual World Series Championship game! Now Thunder had to face once again the Cali Gamers... Game time was at 1:25pm, this was Thunders 6^th game in a 24hr span and the 9^th game in 4 days!!! The players had one thing in mind and that was to beat the Gamers that shut them out the day before and win the WS! The game was good but Thunder simply had more pitching in the bullpen and Thunder went on to become the 2013 Cecil Fielder Elite World Series 7U CHAMPIONS with a final score of 11-6. 

This was a great experience for the Thunder boys and families. Both the coaches and the parents could not be any more proud of the boys. They simply showed heart, determination, commitment, stamina and their skills all weekend long. This was a complete team effort and all of the boys played their hearts out and deserved every bit of credit offered. Great work boys, way to give it your all and come out on top ONCE AGAIN and REMAIN #1!!!

Thunder 9U competed in the Cecil Fielder World Series on June 21- 25.  During the first three days, Thunder played 5 games to determine playoff seeding.  Due to great hitting and excellent defense, Thunder went 4-1.  Thunder earned the #1 seed.  In the semifinals, Thunder faced the Pico Hitmen and played their way to the championship 8-6.  In the Championship, Thunder faced the Chino Hills Outlaws.  The Outlaw bats were on fire and built a 16-5 lead on Thunder in the 3rd inning.   The tables turned and the Thunder bats exploded.  Slowly the boys chipped away at the lead and trailed 16-14 in the 5th inning.  In the final at bat, Thunder scored 7 runs to take a 21-16 lead.  The Thunder then went and got three quick Outlaw outs to win the Championship.  The support of the parents and the relentless attitude of the players were amazing.  Great job!!

THUNDER 7U helped support Chino Hills Storm 10U over the past weekend at their “Bash For Cash” Tournament. Thunder ended up bringing the CASH home with them! Thunder 7U went undefeated while outscoring their opponents 55-12 (5 games) in 100+ degree temperatures. The boys “as always” showed heart and determination and battled through fatigue due to the previous CFEWS tournament and temperatures. Thunder 7U will now take some well-deserved time off to rest and enjoy the summer before the USSSA World Series. Great work boys, you have nothing else to prove.

“2013 INDEPENDENCE DAY BLAST” 8U & 10U $500 CASH GIVE-AWAY TOURNAMENT 

CHTB would like to thank all the players, coaches parents & fans for your generous support and participation at our tournament last weekend. We wish you all the best of luck for the remiander of the 2013 season. 

8U $500 CHAMPIONS: SGV HUSTLE

8U RUNNERS-UP: CH THUNDER 

10U $500 CHAMPIONS: LA CLASH

10U RUNNERS-UP: CALI RAYS

2013 CHINO HILLS THUNDER 7U finished the season off in yet another championship game. The team came up 2 runs short in the 2 game Championship against Diamond MVP (Stingrays) at the end but truly showed that they remain the #1 7U team (even after 97 games). The coaches, parents & fans are very proud of all these young ball players. This highly decorated team had many great memories, experiences and accomplishments through-out the season. 

2013 7U THUNDER SEASON RECAP

Overall Record: 74-21-2 

7U vs. 7U Record: 62-15-2 

7U vs. 8U Record: 12-6 

Winning Percentage: .779 

Tournaments Entered: 21 

Tournament Championship Appearances: 19 

Tournament Championship Victories: 14 

Notable Championships WON: 

2013 TBL MLK Super NIT 

2013 USSSA AZ Spring Championships Super NIT (8U Div. Silver Champions) 

2013 USSSA Bat Wars Super NIT 

2013 USSSA 17th Annual Memorial Day 

2013 TBL Cecil Fielder Elite World Series 

Notable Tournament Runners-Up: 

2013 TBL Presidents Day Super NIT 

2013 USSSA World Series 

As the 2013 Travel Baseball season comes to an end the 8U THUNDER team ends
up on top at the USSSA World Series. This season was a journey beginning
with Colby Del Duca braking his tibia, next was Austin Castillo with a
broken wrist and finally Blake Wilson also with a broken wrist. We played
in several tournaments throughout the season and just seemed to fall short
in many of them. We played in the largest and what many considered the most
competitive division in travel ball with a lot of success, but just felt
like the stars never aligned. As a team we were confident that we had all of
the right players and coaches it was just a matter of time...well the stars
finally aligned!

As we entered into the 18 team 8U USSSA World Series we knew we would give
it all we had and promised each other we would leave it all on the field and
we did. During pool play we ended up going 2-1 putting us as the 6 seed
facing a team out of Colorado. We came out with bats hot winning 13-1 and
advancing on to play one of the best 8U teams around.The Hustle. We knew
that this was going to be a great game because we played each other several
time throughout the year. Both teams have a lot of respect for one another
and it was just a matter of who would finish. We ended up winning 4-2 in 8
innings. Next up for us was another strong opponent who we also played
several times throughout the year..Premier Outlaws. This game was the
undefeated game and would put the winner in the championship having to be
beat twice. After a great game THUNDER comes out on top 6-5, positioning us
in a great spot for Sunday... "The Championship". We ended up playing the
So. Cal Shockers in the championship game. We came out and played very well
on defense and hit the ball well, but right to people. This was a one run
game into the 6th inning when the boys decided this was our year to be
CHAMPS and scored 7 to go ahead 9-1, which led us to an 8U CHAMPIONSHIP of
what many considered the most prestigious tournament of the year and the
largest field of any major tournament in 2013.

This tournament was full of highlights and great plays both offensively and
defensively, but the most important thing was what we did together..win a
championship. We played 3 of the top ranked teams during this tournament, so
it was no easy task for us to accomplish this prestigious award. There were
many unselfish moments by several different players and as any successful
team would tell you, this is key! A few of the notable moments were homeruns
by Sawyer Voortman and Austin Castillo as well as our "Tournament MVP".
Colby Del Duca and our "Offensive Player".. Jason Avila.

In closing I would like to thank my team for being some of the most well
behaved, best human beings that you could ever be surrounded by. I would
secondly like to thank my coaching staff for their unselfish commitment to
myself, our boys and the Thunder organization. Last and certainly not least
our families that makes this opportunity possible. Without people like you
this wonderful dream for our 8 year old boys would never come true. You
should be extremely proud of what type of boys you are raising and teaching
them the values of CLASS! I can't express in words what this means to me and
how proud I am to see these 11 little guys get what they have worked so hard
for and earned. Although many considered this a tough season I wouldn't
change a thing because this WORLD SERIES CHAMPIONSHIP was worth the wait.
Thanks again for a great season and thanks for allowing the THUNDER
organization to have a part of your family's life. As we always say we are
only around because you allow us the opportunity to coach your children and
we are grateful for that!!