Roseville holds off late rally from EDH, wins 7-5

Roseville's 9-10-year-old All-Stars aren't the most experience group of players, but they opened their first all-star tournament with a 7-5 victory over El Dorado Hills on Sunday morning in the District 54 Tournament. Roseville looked like it was on its way to a blowout victory, leading 7-0 after 4½ innings. They scored one run in the first and third innings and then broke the game open with five runs in the top of the fourth inning. Jameson Bales hit a two-run single and Hudson Rice and leadoff hitter Callen Lauchner followed with RBI hits before a steal of home accounted for the fifth run. Starting pitcher Brady Wilson pitched a great game until the bottom of the fifth when he ran into trouble in the form of an El Dorado Hills comeback. Hudson Heidt drove in the team's first run with a double before EDH loaded the bases via the base on balls. Then they scored four consecutive runs when four consecutive batters reached base; Gage Roulet walked, Blake Dedrick singled and Chase Quilao and Cole Vieira also walked to push to bring EDH back into the game trailing 7-5. From this point forward, Roseville did it with defense, as Wilson, now playing shortstop, made the next play, catching a liner off the bat of George Bergamo and then Uriah Martin caught a fly ball in left field off the bat of Kasen Irwin to end the inning. In the bottom of the seventh, a leadoff walk to Broderick Merryman was wiped off the board thanks to a picture-perfect double play by Wilson, who scooped up a ball hit by Charles Clark, calmly stepped on second base and threw to first for the second out. Roseville pitcher Kellan Cabodi then fielded a ground ball and threw to first to end the game. "We've got some heart on this team," Roseville coach Mike Bellotti said. "We have kids who haven't played a lot of baseball before this year; I call them the COVID kids. They all battled big time. Our starting pitching, Brady Wilson, went deep into the game, and then Kellan Cabodi closed it down, Our bats were hot today and that's what helped us. We put the bat on the ball with two outs when we needed to." Roseville advances in the winner's bracket, and they play again at 5:30 p.m. on Friday against Lakeside, while EDH will play Cosumnes at 5 p.m. Tuesday in the loser's bracket. "I think if we keep playing our baseball we'll do well," Bellotti said. "We've got to hit well, pitch well and play defense."