Wildcats pile up the titles

Baseball club has won four straight state championships

The core of the team played together on the Green Valley Little League all-star squad that finished within a game of advancing to the Little League World Series a few years ago.

Now members of the Nevada Wildcats Baseball Club, the players have continued their success, winning four straight state titles and earning a No. 3 national ranking by the USSSA.

The Wildcats' 14-and-younger squad, which helped start the local year-round baseball club in 1999, will compete in the USSSA 14-and-under World Series in Orlando, Fla., in July, capping off an impressive four-year run.

Most of the 11 players on the roster will go on to play for their respective high schools next year, including Bishop Gorman, Coronado and Green Valley.

"That group of kids has experienced a lot of neat moments," said Tripp Jones, manager of the 14-and-younger team. "We've had them since they were 11 and they were kind of the flagship team of the Wildcat organization.

"When we started, everyone was telling us we couldn't compete with Florida and California, but we kept teaching. We don't have the biggest or strongest players, but we probably do have the fastest and smartest."

The Nevada Wildcats Baseball Club now features 10 teams and 130 players, ages 8-14, with its 11-and-under team also capturing a state title this year and earning a No. 5 national ranking. The 11-and-under squad will compete in its USSSA World Series in Gulfport, Miss., in late July.

"This is a great alternative for the kids," said Don Harrison, director of the club and assistant coach for the 11-and-under team. "A lot of them are in junior high school now, and with the tightening up of the budgets in school sports, this is a great option."

The Wildcats, who recently hosted a fund-raising golf tournament at Anthem, along with the UNLV baseball team, are a nonprofit organization, using funds for travel expenses for teams to attend national tournaments.

The club was formed to provide an environment for young kids to develop confidence, self-esteem and positive habits.

"The game of baseball is our vehicle to teach the players some of life's lessons as well, through our core values of team, respect and discipline," Harrison said. "We pass on key values and skills that will help prepare the young men and women for life's challenges and to teach them to play the game of baseball as it was meant to be played."

The Wildcats' 14-and-under team features Matt Harrison, Ben Morris, Ryan Pineda, Niko Vasquez, Randy Pacheco, Gary Detwiler, Jake Wagner, Austin Baggs, Felix Sagovia, Scott Dysinger and Tyler Jones.

Kevin Smoot and Ed Detwiler help coach the team, which had won 18 straight games at press time, including 15 by the 10-run rule, including all three in the state tournament, where the Wildcats beat the Las Vegas Heat in the semifinals and then pounded the Las Vegas Wolfpack in the title tilt.

The Wildcats also rolled to a 7-0 record en route to the title of the 32-team March Madness tournament in Utah, winning each game by the run rule.

"That was a big one. There were some pretty good teams there and we were just playing out of our heads," Jones said. "There were teams from six states and that's really where we get our competition. We travel to California, Utah and Arizona for the bigger tournaments.

"(Our national ranking) is fun for the kids, but we'd rather go play. We try and play against the best teams in the country, because that's the only time you find out how good you're doing. I definitely think we're a legitimate top-10 team again."

The Wildcats placed 10th in the USSSA World Series last year and finished the season ranked fourth in the country. Jones said the team can show off its speed at this year's event, when bases are 90 feet apart, just like in the big leagues. More than 60 teams are expected to compete.

"We'll force other teams to play real baseball now," Jones said. "Our pitching and hitting have really been consistent, but our speed and baseball IQ, and our ability to play defense is way above average.

"The top of our lineup is a track team impersonating a baseball team. We have a lot of speed."

Morris and Harrison are two of the top athletes on the team, with Harrison one of the top starting pitchers and hitters and Morris a stellar center fielder and hitter.

"Morris is probably in the top five center fielders, in our age group, in the country," Jones said.

Pacheco also possesses a lot of speed and other top pitchers and hitters for the Wildcats include Pineda and Vasquez, with Detwiler one of the leading hitters. Jones, Sagovia, Dysinger and Wagner also excel on defense.

The Wildcats have scheduled open tryouts at the end of August. Those interested can call 458-4000.


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