Boy, what a ride. The Snoqualmie Valley Little League (SVLL) Majors All-Stars baseball team this postseason took their parents, friends and many in the Valley youth baseball community on a ride that will not be soon forgotten.

As noted in last week’s Valley Record, no other Majors All-Stars team in the history of the SVLL, nearly 50 years now, had ever made it to the state tournament – until now. And in their first effort, this team finished in third place, ahead of teams from leagues such as Richland National, that two years ago sent a team to the Little League World Series. While this Snoqualmie Valley team fell short of the ultimate goal of making it to Williamsport, Penn., for the Little League World Series, a third-place finish is a stellar accomplishment considering how different each of their three wins were.

In the first game the defense, specifically infielders Alec Deichman and Matthew Bankston and catcher Braden Wolgamott, put on a display of greatness that bailed out their pitcher and teammate Andrew Dunklee, and ultimately turned a nail biter of a game into a 2-1 win. In game three Wolgamott saved the day again, but this time with his bat as Snoqualmie Valley came from way behind to win. In between was an offensive display like no other as SVLL rolled 13-2 over the team that ended up finishing fourth at the tournament.

History will note the heartbreaking losses to Chehalis and Mill Creek, the Chehalis loss coming thanks to their pitcher’s perfect game and the loss to Mill Creek by one run, that ended this drive. Those defeats should not take away from the success they had. This is a team that has left its mark on Valley youth baseball and future kids will benefit from their accomplishments. It is hoped that this team of 12 year olds can continue their success as they head to select leagues and high-school baseball.

The Mount Si High School baseball program, with their No. 1 state ranking this spring, provided Valley baseball fans with a great story. These boys provided just as great a story and the Wildcats will hopefully benefit from these boys’ talents in the coming years.

Remember the names Tim Proudfoot, Alec Deichman, Cooper Helm, Andrew Dunklee, Matthew Bankston, Braden Wolgamott, Chris Clark, Dustin Breshears, Jeffrey Cragin, Max Brown, Taylor Mitchell, Trevor Taylor and Rob Lane. These 13 boys comprised a team that should go down as one of the great teams in the history of youth sports in this Valley.

Rhett Workman is the sports writer for the Snoqualmie Valley Record.