After all, since losing to rival Campbell 6-4 on July 6, Moreland indeed had survived a torturous elimination bracket. On successive days, Moreland's all-stars successfully fought off elimination against Los Altos, Cupertino American and, finally, Campbell in a rematch, bringing it to a Saturday matinee against unbeaten Cupertino National.

Moreland's hot streak continued in the July 10 match-up at Sunnyvale's De Anza Park, as Alex Tuft pitched a four-hitter and smacked four hits. The 10-0 win was Moreland's fourth straight victory and it forced a decisive game for the next afternoon.

Unfortunately for Moreland, Cupertino National recovered and won the District 44 championship, taking a 5-3 decision at Miller Middle School.

Although the defeat was a tough pill to swallow, Moreland players gave manager Jim Wippich and coaches Frank Payton, Jeff Floodman and Steve Smith plenty to cheer about while winning six of eight games.

Tuft earned three pitching decisions and was a top hitter in most games. Shortstop Brandon Willard and second baseman Austin Wippich provided strength up the middle, especially in the 8-1 win over Cupertino American when they combined to be involved in 12 of the 18 putouts. Third baseman Anthony Frediani, catcher Josh Thorpe and first baseman Dylan Payton all played solid defense throughout the eight games.

Tyler Ward came up with a defensive gem during the fifth inning in the win over Cupertino National. The third baseman went to his knees and backhanded a ball, before scrambling to his feet and throwing out the batter at first.

Ian Lynch allowed just four hits and one run while going the distance against Cupertino American, his only mound appearance of the tournament. Lynch often roamed the outfield, as did leadoff hitter Justin Floodman, Tucker Brinton and Ruiz. Kyle Smith played in the first two games but was unavailable to play during the rest of the tourney.

Moreland avenged its first loss by outlasting Campbell on July 9, earning an opportunity to challenge for the championship.

Moreland started slowly against Campbell ace Nick Moreno, the winning pitcher the first time the teams met. Moreno worked the first three innings, and he left the mound with his team in the lead. In fact, Campbell led 7-3 entering the last of the fifth.
The first five Moreland batters reached base to start the fifth, trimming the deficit to 7-5. Campbell's Jonathan Salhany earned the first out by snagging Ruiz's scorching liner. But after a strikeout, five more Moreland batsmen reached base safely, including Frediani on his second double of the inning. Before the frame was over, Moreland had scored seven runs and gone ahead 10-7.

Campbell showed it had heart, too, answering with three runs to tie the game.

Josh Jacobsen led off the sixth with a hit off the fence in right-center. Nate Hosmer followed with an infield single, and Chris Olivier walked, loading the bases. Salhany forced pinch-runner Timmy Dovedot at home, but Ryan Sampson ripped a two-run double. Salhany alertly dashed home with the tying run on a wild pitch that rolled just a few feet from the plate.

With Sampson on third base and one out, Moreland's defense toughened. First, Willard barehanded Joey Dei Rossi's grounder to short and threw a strike to Thorpe at the plate. Sampson tried to slide under the tag with the go-ahead run, but Thorpe tagged him out. Payton then made a nice catch of Robert DeRego's smash to end the inning.

The tie didn't last long. Thorpe led off the last of the sixth with a double and scored on an errant throw to give Moreland the 11-10 win. It was the second straight loss for Campbell after it had won four straight.

After using a six-run first and holding on in its July 6 win over Moreland, Campbell quickly fell behind 6-0 two days later in a 9-4 loss against Cupertino National. Campbell scored all of its runs in the fourth inning. Olivier's RBI single and Salhany's two-run triple were the key hits.

Campbell was convincing in its first two wins, blanking Tri-Cities 12-0 in four innings and Serra 10-0 in five. Nick Moreno struck out 10 while pitching a one-hitter against Tri-Cities. Lawrence Moreno, Nick's cousin, went the distance and rapped a two-run single against Serra.

Campbell's top hitters during the tournament were Casey Thompson, Lawrence Moreno and Dei Rossi, who all batted .500 or better. Olivier's six RBIs were a team-high for the six games. Nick Moreno pitched 13 innings over a span of three games, allowing just one earned run and striking out 24 batters.

Jimmy Manning also was a member of the Campbell all-stars, who were led by manager Matt Jacobsen and coaches, Bob Espinosa, Larry Moreno, Mike Olivier, Karen Thompson and Tim Thompson.