Ray Hamill/HumboldtSports.com

All four local Little League all-star teams remain in the hunt for a Section championship after a busy weekend, which included one thrilling finish.

The McKinleyville 12s are the only unbeaten local team after putting up back-to-back wins in the heat in Yuba City, defeating Chico Eastside 7-0 in their opener on Thursday and following that with a 7-4 win over Peach Bowl on Saturday.

The hard-hitting McKinleyville players have hit a pair of home runs in each win, with Cabella Carper and Carson Hicks both hitting one in their opener and Blake Carper and Tyson Marshall hitting one apiece on Saturday.

“I’m really pleased with the way the kids are playing,” said head coach Quintin Carper, whose players have been playing in temperatures well over 100 degrees. “Trying to keep the kids hydrated is our No. 1 priority.”

Marshall, Teoh Arredondo and Brayden Brock all combined on the mound for Saturday’s win, while center fielder Jude Scher provided the defensive highlights with a couple of big catches in the outfield.

McKinleyville will now play Chico Eastside again for the section championship on Monday night at 7 p.m.

A win for Mack will secure the section championship, while a loss will see the two clubs facing off a second time in a winner-takes-all game on Tuesday.

Two other local all-star teams posted back-to-back wins in elimination games over the weekend.

Over in Redding, the Eel River 11s dropped the opening game at their section tournament on Friday, falling to East Redding, but they displayed their resilience with victories on Saturday and Sunday.

On Saturday they defeated Plumas Lake 9-2 and then followed that with a thrilling 9-7 win over East Redding on Sunday,  with Bryson Maniaci hitting a two-run walk-off home run to seal the victory and help keep his team’s season going.

Maniaci finished 3-for-3 with four RBIs to lead a big team performance.

The Eel River All-Stars will play in the championship round on Monday night at 7:30 p.m. and the game can be viewed through the East Redding Little League website.

At Anderson, meanwhile, the McKinleyville Junior All-Stars also won two elimination games over the weekend after dropping their opening game in tournament play on Thursday.

Photo courtesy of McKinleyville League — Tyson Marshall and Blake Carper hit home runs in Saturday’s win for the McKinleyville 12s.

Once they found their rhythm and adjusted as well as possible to the heat, the Mack players put up plenty of offense, winning 13-1 on Saturday and 14-1 on Sunday.

According to head coach Tim Matson, the kids played well on Sunday under the hot sun.

They will try to make it three straight elimination game wins when they play on Monday night at 7:30 p.m.

Closer to home, the McKinleyville 8-10s opened their Section Tournament at Hiller Park with a comprehensive 20-1 win over Susanville on Friday, before dropping game two to Chico Central on Sunday afternoon.

The young Mack players will try to bounce back when they play West Redding on Monday night at 5 p.m. with the winner advancing to the championship round.

Colton Hawkes led the way for McKinleyville at the plate on Sunday and was 3-for-3 with two runs scored, while Casanova Marshall and Bo Battilochi each also had a base hit.

Tatum, Brock, Cooper Jones, Tyus Scofield, Hawkes, Reece Combs and Rowdy Furber all pitched well against a good Chico offense.