Photos by Ray Hamill/HumboldtSports.com
By Ray Hamill — Summer baseball is in full swing here on the North Coast and once again it’s been a good summer for one local Little League association.
On Thursday, McKinleyville Little League clinched a third District all-star tournament championship, defeating Eel River 6-2 in the 12U championship game in Redway.
The win secured an undefeated run through tournament play for the dominating Mack players.
And that makes them our choice for Humboldt Sports Team of the Week.
The young 12U All-Stars become the third McKinleyville team to win a district championship, following in the footsteps of their 10Us, who won their tournament in Willow Creek last week, and the Mack Junior All-Stars, who won their district title in Arcata early last month.
The McKinleyville 12Us will now turn their attention to the upcoming Section tournament in Susanville as they look to extend their season further and qualify for the NorCal tournament.
Equally impressive, it’s also been a good summer for the Northern Humboldt Giants and some of their players.
Including Arcata High’s Ben Lukens, who has carried his impressive form playing for the Tigers into his summer season with the Giants.
And a big week this week makes him our choice for athlete of the week.
Lukens has been one of the Giants’ most effective players, both on the mound and at the plate, and that continued at last weekend’s Reno tournament.
The impressive Lukens helped lead the Giants to five straight wins on their way to the tournament championship game, including a big pitching performance in an extra-innings semifinal win over the Muck Dogs, while also providing some power at the plate.
ATHLETE OF THE WEEK
Ben Lukens
Northern Humboldt Giants
According to this head coach Eric Agliolo, Lukens was “on fire” at the plate all tournament.
If his summer form is any indication, the soon-to-be Arcata senior looks set to play a pivotal role next spring as the Tigers look to bounce back from a disappointing 2024 campaign.
Lukens hit a pair of home runs in tournament play, including a grand slam, as he continued to inspire his teammates.
He also pitched 5.2 strong innings against the Muck Dogs to help the Giants reach the championship game, allowing just two runs and striking out six.
For more on his big week, see Giants enjoy big weekend, get to meet former Crabs star in Reno …
Submitted photo
TEAM OF THE WEEK
McKinleyville 12U All-Stars
McKinleyville’s boys and girls of summer rarely disappoint, and that’s been the case once again this year.
Their 12U All-Stars completed another undefeated run through the District tournament with a championship game victory on the Fourth and now they’ll take their talents to the Section tournament, where they’ll be expected to continue to make some noise.
A tip of the hat to the Eel River All-Stars, who placed second in all four of this year’s District tournaments and pushed the Mack all-stars all the way this week.
