Submitted photo – The Padres players and coaches celebrate their championship win on Wednesday.

An exciting District Tournament of Champions final went right down to the wire this year, ending five days of action at the Arcata and Blue Lake Little League fields.

And when all was said and done, the Redwood Empire Padres walked away with a championship banner for the second straight year.

Twelve months ago the Padres ended a seven-year wait for RELL to win a TOC, and with a majority of the same players on hand this year they didn’t have to wait quite as long.

But they had to battle, edging the resilient Klamath Trinity Nationals 3-1 in Wednesday night’s decider in Arcata.

The victory not only secured the District championship but also completed a perfect season as the Padres closed out the year 23-0.

The Nationals fought hard until the final pitch, however, and had the bases loaded with one out in the final inning.

But the Padres got out of the late jam to secure the win, getting the final out on a run down between third base and home plate.

“These kids, every single one of them are gamers,” Padres head coach Tyler Conley said. “None of them quit. They all loved it. Every kid was into it and every kid wanted to be there. Every one of these kids is a baseball player.”

The two team aces — Treyce Conley and Liam Kilgore — played a key role on the path to success.

In Tuesday’s semifinal showdown against the RELL Orioles, the dominating Kilgore pitched a one-hitter and struck out 15.

Treyce Conley was just as impressive in the championship game, throwing 5.1 innings and striking out 13 before he left the game because of his pitch count.

The young Conley also had a huge tournament at the plate, hitting two home runs with just one out over the four games combined.

Kilgore also made his presence felt at the plate and “hit well the whole weekend,” according to Tyler Conley.

“The hard hitting Liam is a threat every time he comes up to the plate,” the Padres coach added. “He is also a kid you know you can put on the mound and will win any game … he pitched an absolute gem in the semifinal to get us to the championship.”

Several of their teammates also stepped up over the weekend and over the course of the entire season, including Guido Satterlee and Carter Conrad, the latter of whom closed out the championship game on the mound with a composed performance to help see his team over the finish line.

“Guido had an active bat all tourney,” the Padres head coach said of Saterlee, who hit .500 in tournament play and also contributed on the mound and featured behind the plate. “He was a key piece for our victories.” 

Conrad also hit .500 in tournament play, including “key hits always at a pivotal time during the games,” according to the coach.

Charlie Armstrong, Kellen Holliday and Jace Johnson each also impressed on the way to the championship.

Armstrong was particularly impressive at the plate and was the team’s third .500 hitter at the TOC, while providing “some serious pop in the middle of our lineup with big hits and RBIs,” according to the coach.

Holliday was out of town for last year’s championship run but made his presence felt in a big way this time around, while Johnson gave the team some necessary versatility by playing multiple positions and playing them all well.

“(Kellen is) seeing the ball really well and consistently put pressure on the defenses,” Tyler Conley said, while adding that Johnson “was our Swiss Army knife.”

“We really can play him anywhere and not even blink an eye,” the coach added of Johnson. “Outfield, infield, catcher, it doesn’t matter, put him there and he will excel.”

Rocco Pearson, Hunter Acosta, Madison Cone, Maddux Graney and Hudson Jimenez rounded out the championship roster and each of them also made some big contributions on the path to success.

Pearson, according to the coach, lived up to his nickname of “the Goat and helped get his teammates fired up with two “huge” rally-starting base hits in the semifinal against the Orioles, including a triple, while also making some “big-time” outs at second base.

Acosta is a fundamentally sound young player.

“He takes pride in the small things that really makes great ball players,” Tyler Conley said. “We can always count on him being in the right spot, backing up the throws, and he laid down a huge run-scoring bunt in the semis.”

The speedy Cone covered a lot of ground in the outfield and is a player the coach describes as a “terrific center fielder with his speed,” and a player who “turned routine groundouts into singles.”

Graney, who his teammates fondly refer to as “Mad Dog,” also made his presence felt.

“Mad Dog is the true competitor,” the coach said. “He’s the definition of a gamer and his competitive fire was contagious for us in the dugout. The kid has heart.”

Jimenez, the coach said, is “another gamer who locked down the outfield and had good at bats every at bat. He always has a good attitude and never backed down from the moment.”

Craig Conrad and Blake Satterlee were assistant coaches on the team, who each also played key roles on the way to the championship, while Tyler Conley praised the contributions of RELL president Tyson Fisher, who has played an important role helping to put the local Little League association back on the map.

“He’s improved the league and made a bunch of changes to help Redwood Empire,” the Padres coach said. “He’s done a lot of work behind the scenes and he did a lot for us throughout the season.”