Marysville junior softball qualifies for West regional in Arizona

The rallying cry for Marysville Little League's junior softball All-Star team this summer may sound a little cliché, but in this case it certainly works: "Why not us?"

After a difficult few weeks that saw their manager step down, the group of 13- and 14-year-olds are in a position few thought they would be in — representing Northern California in the Western Regionals.

The tournament begins Aug. 4 in Marana, Ariz., where Marysville will be one of nine teams vying for a spot in the World Series in Washington D.C. They will open the tourney against host team Tucson Mountain and will compete for the crown against squads from Southern California, Arizona, Oregon, Washington, Utah, Hawaii and Alaska.

"It's unreal, even to these girls," said Marysville coach Jeff Bartolome, who took over the club when its manager was forced to step down. "People wrote us off when we first started in Colusa, but we went undefeated in both tournaments. We just started rolling at the right time."

Marysville had to rally back to beat Olivehurst-Linda and then edged Sutter to win the three-team District 2 tournament. They then won every game in the sectional tourney in Rancho Murieta last weekend to move on to regionals.

And despite an unexpected coaching change at regionals, the team continued on without a hitch.

"I stepped into a good spot," said Bartolome, who praised manager Gabe Garcia as well as assistant coaches Mike Bell and Carol Ketchum for helping the team get to this point. "It feels so surreal. It's something we never thought we'd get to experience."

But while Marysville has had little trouble winning, the team does need some help in terms of fundraising. They will hold a car wash on Saturday at Earle Yorton Little League Park, and spent most of Tuesday hitting the streets around town to raise money for the trip to Arizona.

"The girls are clicking on the field, but for me and the parents the big priority is raising money," Bartolome said. "Right after winning sections, we met to talk about fundraising."

Those interested in sponsoring the team can contact league president Bobby Washburn at 788-4460 or finance chair Diane Washburn at 392-0885. They can also be reached by email at thewashburns4@comcast.net.

For Bartolome, every little bit helps.

"The experience is something they can talk about for the rest of their lives," he said. "For most of them, I don't think it's set in yet."