Southern Nevada Bengals bring positive experience back from Connie Mack regional
It may not have been the most successful run in terms of wins, but the Southern Nevada Bengals came back from the Connie Mack baseball regional in Irvine, California with plenty to be proud of.
The Bengals, comprised of players from Bonanza, went 1-3 in the tournament, picking up a 2-0 victory against the Colton Nighthawks Burk on Thursday in their second game behind Diego Delgado’s shutout.
The Bengals lost 2-0 to Santa Rosa Baseball to open the tournament on Wednesday, then lost 7-2 on Friday to Dukes Baseball and 11-4 on Saturday to HOOTS Baseball, which won the championship.
“Yeah the kids were bummed, but we ended on a very good note and everybody was happy,” coach Sean DeSoto said. “Honestly, it seemed like we were the ones that won that game after that last game on Saturday.”
DeSoto is not Bonanza’s head coach in the spring season, or even an assistant. He is the father of players Jay and Nick DeSoto, and had coached many of the Bengals in youth baseball.
“When coach asked me if I wanted to run the summer program, I said it was about damn time,” Sean DeSoto said with a laugh. “It was great. Good experience.”
In their one win, the Bengals jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the fourth on an RBI groundout by Danny Ruiz, then Brandon Rivera’s sacrifice fly plated Ruiz in the sixth to bring the game to its final margin. Julio Seperich went 3-for-3 for the Bengals. Delgado threw 93 pitches in the shutout.
“We played a hell of a game,” Sean DeSoto said. “Everybody said this was the team to beat, and we just came out and boys were on point. We were ace on defense.”
The Bengals reached the regional tournament by winning the state tournament. Sean DeSoto said the Bengals were one of few teams in the regional tournament comprised of one high school team. Sean DeSoto said building a club team from multiple schools was more common.
“Everybody played their butt off, every single one of those kids on the field and every single one of the kids in the dugout did their job,” Sean DeSoto said. “There was a lot of positive energy.”
Contact Justin Emerson at jemerson@reviewjournal.com or (702) 387-2944. Follow @J15Emerson on Twitter.
