Arcade Creek Little League 50/70 team players and coaches pose with their latest championship banner. Photo by Mike Powers

CARMICHAEL, CA (MPG) - The 50/70 team from Arcade Creek Little League is something special!

With the District 5 Championship already in hand, Arcade Creek kept their momentum going by winning the Section 4 Intermediate Championship on July 1, defeating Nevada City/Grass Valley Little League 12-9 at Capeheart field in Antelope. With the win Arcade Creek advanced to the Northern California State Championship Tournament for the first time in the history of the young league.

While Arcade Creek Little League is a relatively new name in local Little League Baseball and Softball, its history runs deep. The league was created by the 2020 merger of Eastern Little League (formerly Del Paso-Eastern Little League) and Whitney Little League. Both Eastern and Whitney trace their roots to the early days of District 5, which was one of the original 33 Little League Districts formed in California in 1958.

Not since the Whitney Majors team made the 1993 NorCal State tournament has a team from Carmichael made it this far. Now, Arcade Creek 50/70 has an opportunity to do something unprecedented in league history...win State!

 Arcade Creek’s championship game home run hitters are left to right, Nathan Beebe, Colton Nickols and Tian Deyo. Photo by Melanie Powers

What does 50/70 mean? 50/70 is shorthand for the Intermediate League Baseball division of Little League, and the numbers refer to specific distances on the playing field: 50 feet pitching distance and 70 feet basepaths. It’s a larger field than the traditional Little League Majors field, which is 45 feet and 60 feet, respectively. Little League created the 50/70 Division in 2013 for players aged 11-13 as an intermediate step before making the jump to full-size fields in Juniors and high school.

Arcade Creek Little League's 50/70 team has mastered the larger field.

"Their seamless transition to the bigger field demonstrates adaptability and skill. Embracing the finer details that come with playing on a larger stage is commendable,” coach Bryan Deyo said

 The team's skill was on display as they went undefeated in the Section 4 Tournament.

In their first game on June 28 Arcade Creek beat North Natomas Little League (District 6) 13-3 in 5 innings. Highlights included home runs by Rex Laird and Jathen Howard, and excellent relief pitching by Jackson Waltrip.

The next day, Arcade Creek faced off against Maidu Little League (District 54), with the winner advancing to the championship game. Maidu struck early with two runs in the bottom of the first, but the Arcade Creek bats came alive with six hits and two walks in the third and fourth innings, including a big home run by Colton Nickols. Arcade Creek led 6-3 in a close game, and then got two insurance runs in the top of the sixth. Meanwhile, Jackson Powers kept Maidu off-balance at the plate, pitching 4.1 innings of scoreless relief while his teammates played stellar defense to seal the 8-3 victory in 7 full innings.

The semifinal win earned Arcade Creek an important day to rest from the hot summer sun while they awaited their opponent for the championship game on July 1. Nevada City/Grass Valley (District 11) beat a depleted Maidu squad 17-7 on June 30 to advance to the championship.

The championship game was set, Arcade Creek versus Nevada City/Grass Valley. Throughout the tournament, both teams exhibited depth at pitching, excellent contact hitting and fun loving, never-say-die attitudes. All these traits were on display in the game. Arcade Creek's Colton Nickols threw the first pitch as the temperatures soared well over 100 degrees. 15 pitches later Nickols had struck out the side.

In the bottom of the first, Arcade Creek took advantage of some opportunities. An error, hit-by-pitch, and dropped third strike put two runners on with one out for Nickols. He launched the first pitch that he saw for a no-doubt 3-run home run to straightaway center. A walk and then another error gave Marcos Tejeda a big opportunity he wouldn't waste. He sliced a line drive single to score two more runs and Arcade Creek had an early 5-0 lead.

 Manager Jamie Denton gets a victory ice bath from players Jackson Powers and Spencer Jones. Photo by Mike Powers

Nickols continued his pitching dominance with three more strikeouts in the second but Nevada City/Grass Valley scratched out a single run to get on the board. In the bottom of the second, Arcade Creek put on a fireworks display a few days early. Jackson Waltrip's single led off the inning, followed by back-to-back-to-back homers by Nathan Beebe, Tian Deyo and (once again!) Colton Nickols. Another run gave Arcade Creek a huge 10-1 run after two innings.

The two teams traded runs in the third inning and Nevada City/Grass Valley got one more, but after four innings, Arcade Creek was in control up 11-3. With their fate seemingly sealed, Nevada City/Grass Valley players got loose, sparked some joy and had some fun of their own. Taking advantage of three straight walks to open the fifth, they plated three more runs and had tilted momentum in their favor cutting the score to 11-6. Then Nevada City/Grass Valley got two more runners on and were within striking distance when Arcade Creek left fielder Marcos Tejeda made the defensive play of the game, a diving catch to save two runs from scoring.

Tian Deyo answered for Arcade Creek in the bottom of the fifth with his second solo homer of the game. In the sixth, Nevada City/Grass Valley followed with a solo shot of their own, and they weren't done yet! The plucky team from Gold Country struck it rich with two more hits and excellent baserunning to cut the lead to four. 

Arcade Creek went quietly in the bottom of the sixth, giving Nevada City/Grass Valley one more chance to mount the ultimate comeback, down 12-8. Relief pitcher Nathan Beebe got two quick outs in the 7th inning, but another solo home run cut the deficit to three and buoyed the spirits of the undaunted Nevada City/Grass Valley players. The next batter belted a high drive, but not deep enough as centerfielder Tian Deyo gloved the final out at the fence and Arcade Creek Little League were champions once again!

After the win, the Arcade Creek family of players, coaches and supporters talked with the Carmichael Times about what this team means to them. A common theme amongst the players was that they all love playing with their friends.

“During practice and games, it’s all 100% effort. We’re all here to have fun and put in the work.” Colton Nickols said. “Outside of baseball, I think what separates us from other teams is we’re all some of the best friends, and we all know how to work together.”

Added Marcos Tejeda, “We all have good chemistry, and are good at communicating with each other. We don’t really get down that much. If we do, we pick each other up and that keeps us in the game.”

Arcade Creek’s parents love what they're seeing from this team and from Little League in general. Brandon Laird, whose son, Rex, played a couple years of travel baseball before this season, emphasized how much happier his son is playing Little League.

“There’s more of a friend-on-friend relationship with these boys, with them going to school and growing up together. Going this far really feels like more of an accomplishment than a weekend win with a travel team,” Laird said.

Said mother Kim Nickols, “This is a truly special team. These boys love being together on and off the field. They support each other. They are picking each other up when they need to and they’re cheering each other on constantly, and it’s just a really special time for them to be together playing.”

Asked about her favorite moment from the season so far, Nickols replied, “That last out of every game and seeing the boys' reactions and seeing them realize all of the hard work that they put in is paying off.”

Up next for Section 4 Champion Arcade Creek 50/70 is a opportunity to bring that friendship and hard work to the Northern California State Tournament at Brooktree Park in Citrus Heights. There they will battle the six other NorCal Section Champions from July 6 to 13. When asked what they were most looking forward to at the state tournament, consensus among the players was a short, simple answer, “Winning…and having fun too.”

Arcade Creek got the State Tournament off to a great start, winning their first game 5-3 against Sunnyvale Little League on July 7. Nathan Beebe pitched six strong relief innings and had two hits. Rex Laird shined at the plate with two clutch RBI singles. The whole team played good defense, turning two double plays.

Arcade Creek will try to keep the momentum going on July 10 versus Bollinger Canyon Little League, who (at press time) is 2-0 in the tournament and has not yet allowed a run. The winner of the game will earn an automatic bid to the championship game on July 13.

Good luck, Arcade Creek!