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By Ray Hamill — It was a good week for one local team in particular.

On Tuesday night, the Padres ended a seven-year wait for Redwood Empire Little League by winning the District 26 Tournament of Champions.

And that makes them our choice for Humboldt Sports Team of the Week.

Not only did the Padres players win the district championship, but they had to face a difficult path on the way to success, overcoming some of the best teams in the county.

In the opening round, they knocked off McKinleyville Trinity Diesel, the three-time defending TOC champs, and in their semifinal they had to dig deep to defeat the Dodgers, who were the No. 1 team from RELL.

But the impressive Padres found a way to seal the deal, and they did so with a total team effort, epitomizing what it means to be a true team of the week.

“Every single kid contributed at least two runs each (in tournament play),” Padres manager Tyler Conley said. “That was one of the biggest things, every kid played a big role.”

The Padres opened tournament play with a 17-5 victory over Trinity Diesel, before getting the better of the Southern Humboldt Pirates 12-2 in the quarterfinals.

They then navigated a tricky semifinal against the Dodgers, winning 9-2.

In a competitive championship game, the Padres once again took care of business, defeating the Eel River A’s 3-1.

Ray Hamill/HumboldtSports.com – Liam Kilgore in action for the Padres during Tuesday’s championship game.

TEAM OF THE WEEK

RELL Padres

As their manager suggested, this was a total team effort with every player on the roster contributing on the way to the championship.

Many of these young players clearly have a bright future in the game and will likely be entertaining local fans for years to come.

Including pitchers Liam Kilgore and Na-res Ballew, each of whom were outstanding on the hill in the championship game and semifinal, respectively.

But they weren’t the only players to impress on a roster that also included Treyce Conley, Graham Gaser, Carter Conrad, Jace Johnson, Charlie Armstrong, Asher Novello, Shy Smart, Hudson Jimenez, Campbell Ramey and Kellen Holliday.

For more on their big week, see Padres end seven-year RELL wait for District 26 TOC title …