Maidu Majors claim Section 4 championship

A second District 54 Little League team and a second team from Roseville won a Section 4 Little League championship in as many nights. After Roseville Little League's 10-11-year-old All-Stars defeated Rancho Cordova on Monday night to claim the Section 4 championship, the Maidu Major All-Stars, who came within a strike of winning the Section 4 Tournament last year, got it done Tuesday night, defeating Fair Oaks Orangevale 9-4. Maidu Manager Heath Dringenberg couldn't have been more proud of his team. "Beckett (Griffin) threw great and the boys played great defense behind him," Dringenberg said. "That's our calling card; we're not the biggest team." Maidu got out in front big after two innings and held Fair Oaks Orangevale from there, as Maidu scored six runs in the first inning and three in the second to take a 9-2 lead. Nicolas and Beckett Griffin led off with back-to-back singles and Tyler Dringenberg knocked them both in with a single. Landon McIlnay made it 3-1 with an RBI single, and after Jenner Nishimura singled, Ethan Wutkee's base hit made it 4-1. A bases-loaded walk by Ryder Frost brought across the fifth run, and another single by Austin Duckworth made it 6-1. Seven batters had hits in the first inning and two others walked, as nine-of-11 Maidu batters reached base. In the second inning, a wild pitch scored one run, a double by Nishimura scored another, and the team's third run came in on an error, making their lead 9-2. Beckett Griffin was nails until the top of the seventh, when he left the game with one out and a runner on first. Ben Sandoval, who had three of Fair Oaks Orangevale's seven hits, doubled in two runs before reliever Maddox Zabalerio recorded the last out of the game. "They got up by two, but we came back out and got a hit after hit, after hit, after hit," Dringenberg said. "Heart of a champion. I couldn't be prouder of a group of boys. They're more than friends. They're more than teammates, they're family. We've been grinding since they were 9 years old. "So this year, we got back here and did what we needed to do. I'll fight with these guys to the end. There's no quit in them. They fight for each other. I give them as good a chance as any to win the state tournament. We'll practice for a few days and go down and fight for this thing." Maidu opens the state playoffs at 4 p.m. Saturday against the Section 3 champion. The tournament will be held at Hoover Tyler Little League, located at 3513 Wisconsin Ave. in Stockton.