Make it a remarkable four straight years of District 12 championships for Rincon All-Stars manager Eddie Sapp, his son Braxton and Calvin Williams.
The elder Sapp’s 9-10-11 team won the district championship game 15-0 in three innings over San Xavier on Saturday night at Anamax Park at Sahuarita. The Sapps and Williams were part of the 8-9-10 district championship teams the three previous seasons. They won the state championship of that age bracket last season at Purple Heart Park.
Rincon’s 9-10-11 team advances to the state tournament at Maricopa starting July 13.
“I felt amazing; it’s nice to win another one, my fourth in a row,” Braxton Sapp, Rincon’s starting pitcher, when asked how he felt on the mound.
When asked the reason behind the four straight district titles, the younger Sapp said: “Not too cocky.”
He had a single and also was effective on the mound against San Xavier, allowing one hit in his three innings. He struck out four with no walks.
Rincon’s Braxton Sapp is a four-time District 12 champ along with teammate Calvin Williams. They won the 8-9-10 titles the previous three years and the 9-10-11 championship tonight. pic.twitter.com/MHd5sRlRAi
— Javier Morales (@JavierJMorales) June 30, 2024
Rincon, an organization that has featured future major-leaguers Nick Gonzales and Andre Jackson in the past, went unbeaten in this week’s tournament, outscoring its three opponents 42-3.
To its credit, Sunnyside challenged Rincon in a 3-2 loss in the winners’ bracket semifinal game.
Eddie Sapp stresses a strong family atmosphere with his players playing club ball together with the Tucson Toros outside of the summer and putting that on hold once the Little League season is about to start.
Some of the players compete against each other during the Little League season but reunite for the all-stars competition.
Rincon manager Eddie Sapp is trying to earn a second straight state title with many of the same players who won the 8-9-10 championship last year. His team won the District 12 9-10-11 championship tonight, his fourth straight district title earned as manager after leading his son… pic.twitter.com/acSuEonBwh
— Javier Morales (@JavierJMorales) June 30, 2024
“The kids love to compete against each other (during the Little League regular season),” the elder Sapp said. “About 80 percent of this team is on our club team. We just did one age level, 12U, last year. Eight of these kids were on our 12U Toros team playing up a year (in age).
“When they come into Little League, they’re playing against each other, competing, and then they get to all-stars and they all know each other. The team chemistry is amazing. They all really like each other — team, parents, everybody … they really get along. It makes a huge difference.”
Rincon was aggressive from the start against San Xavier turning walks into an opportunity to take second base if a runner was on third base, which happened often.
It mixed its eight hits with seven walks to manufacture the runs.
“I’d say we’re the most aggressive team on the bases out there,” said Bryson Strzyzewski, who had a double, triple, two runs and an RBI. “What I like about this team is they push hard to make everybody great but leave enough room for fun.”
Rincon catcher Bryson Strzyzewski went 2 for 2 with a double and triple and had an RBI in his team’s 15-0 win in three innings over San Xavier in the District 12 9-10-11 championship. pic.twitter.com/bQrhbCuSBH
— Javier Morales (@JavierJMorales) June 30, 2024
Rincon 3B Steven Woodrum, the No. 9 batter, went 2 for 3 with two runs, a double and three RBIs in his team’s 15-0 win in three innings over San Xavier in the District 12 9-10-11 championship. pic.twitter.com/nEYOoyNx61
— Javier Morales (@JavierJMorales) June 30, 2024
Rincon had nine RBIs in the game, five by the last two batters in the lineup — Brycen Barnes with two and Steven Woodrum with three. They scored the other runs via wild pitches and errors.
“We teach our kids to take advantage any little mishap,” Eddie Sapp said. “Make the other team make plays. When we walk, a lot of times we’ll go all the way to second if there is a runner on third base. We just make teams make decisions.
“If they make a decision and get an out, we’re trying to steal at least one run there. San Xavier’s got a great team. We got up on them kind of early so it’s hard for them to come back, but we put pressure on them the whole time. That’s how we play. We put pressure on everybody from the first pitch to the last pitch. … The kids love it because they get to have a lot of fun. It’s like them running around the park like they’re playing wiffle ball.”
Hunter Russell had a single, two runs and an RBI. Deacon Darling hit a double and scored a run. Chris McLaughlin finished with a hit and two runs.
San Xavier’s Arian Murillo led his team with a double.
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ALLSPORTSTUCSON.com publisher, writer and editor Javier Morales is a former Arizona Press Club award winner. He is a former Arizona Daily Star beat reporter for the Arizona basketball team, including when the Wildcats won the 1996-97 NCAA title. He has also written articles for CollegeAD.com, Bleacher Report, Lindy’s Sports, TucsonCitizen.com, The Arizona Republic, Sporting News and Baseball America, among many other publications. He has also authored the book “The Highest Form of Living”, which is available at Amazon. He became an educator in 2016 and is presently a special education teacher at Sunnyside High School in the Sunnyside Unified School District.
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