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<< Previous   of   Next >>   ADVERTISEMENT   State Little League Majors Tournament The winners of Washington’s 13 district championships for 12-year-old all-star teams play Friday through July 27. Where: Freedom Field at the Mill Creek Sports Park (North Creek Drive, Mill Creek). Admission: Free Parking: Fans should arrive half an hour before the start of their game. They can park first at the Mill Creek Sports Park lot and once that is filled, the overflow lots are at St. Francis Episcopal Church and lots north of the field. Shuttles will pick up those who park at McCollum Park and on Trillium Road. Friday’s schedule: Bainbridge Island vs. West Seattle, 4:30 p.m.; Central Vancouver vs. Greater Richland, 7 p.m. Live podcast: www.eteamz.com/millcreek/   CONTACT THE HERALD Report scores and results to 425-339-3470 or 1-866-6-SCORES (Call after 4:30 p.m.) E-mail information including items for Tuesday's Communities Sports Roundup and Thursday's Outdoor Calendar, to sports@heraldnet.com Kevin Brown, Sports Editor kbrown@heraldnet.com   Published: Thursday, July 17, 2008 Little League Majors Tournament in Mill Creek Washington's 12-year-old champions begin battling Friday By Tony Dondero For The Herald For the first time in its 14-year history, the Mill Creek Little League will host the state Little League Majors Tournament. The 12-year-old champions from 13 districts from around the state descend on the Mill Creek Sports Park's Freedom Field beginning Friday. The winner of the tournament, which runs through July 27, advances to the regional tournament Aug. 1-10 in San Bernadino, Calif. The ultimate goal is the Little League World Series Aug. 15-26 in Williamsport, Penn. Mill Creek Little League put in a request last year to host the 2008 tournament and got its wish. "We're pretty honored with this opportunity to be the host league," Mill Creek Little League president Ed Lundberg said. "Everybody in the community is pretty excited about hosting this. A lot of parents have put in a lot of time to make this a first class tournament." The opening ceremony takes place at 9:30 a.m. with a welcome from Mill Creek Mayor Terry Ryan, co-tournament director Tom Davis and Snohomish County Sheriff John Lovick. The first pitch is 4:30 p.m. Friday when Bainbridge Island, the District 2 champions, plays West Seattle, the District 7 champions. The nightcap features District 12 champ Central Vancouver against District 4 champs Greater Richland. Mill Creek, representing District 1, won all five of its district games and outscored its opponents 59-6. Mill Creek swept Everett 11-1 and 10-1 to take the title. Leadoff man Dan Kingma hit a three-run homer to lead the offense in the final game while Derrick Mahlum struck out 12 in 42/3 innings to get the win. Joakim Soderqvist pitched the final 11/3 innings and struck out three. Fifteen of the 18 outs recorded by Mill Creek were by strikeout. Ten of the 13 players on the team played on Mill Creek's 11-year-old all-star team that won the state tournament last year. The squad, managed by Scott Mahlum, includes four players who have played together the past four years: Kingma, Mahlum, Jason Todd and Alex Jondal. "I think most teams have three or four good players that stand out," Scott Mahlum said. "The difference with this team is all 13 kids can hit the ball. They all can hit and catch." Mill Creek also has a strong pitching staff led by Todd, Mahlum and Soderqvist. Another key to the team's success is winter training. "Most of the kids here train all year-round," Mahlum said. Derrick Mahlum described his team as "dominant" because of its top pitchers and hitters. Kingma bats leadoff, followed by Mahlum, Todd, Soderqvist and Jondal. The players said they look forward to playing at state in front of a hometown crowd. "We get a bunch of people coming to our games and everything," Jondal said. The games will be broadcast live via podcast at www.eteamz.com/millcreek/. A stationary camera will provide the video and the audio will come from announcer Ken Circeo.

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