H.B. Vikings win qualifier

Local youth baseball team goes 5-0 in tourney play.The H.B. Vikings, an 11-and-under travel baseball team, overcame tough competition and inclement weather go to 5-0 and win the 2006 Super Series Martin Luther King Classic National Qualifier tournament last weekend.

The tournament was played at the Huntington Beach Sports Complex.

The Vikings defeated the Riverside Rebels, 4-3, in their tournament opener Saturday, then came back later in the day to edge another Huntington Beach team, Surf City Vikings, 10-9. On Sunday, the Vikings met the Los Alamitos Sluggers in a showdown of unbeaten teams for the tournament title. Huntington prevailed, 11-3.

“I always tell my players that if you play great defense, pitch well, and have some timely hits, you will most always be in a position to win,” Vikings manager David D’Alessandro said. “We showed that this weekend by winning three hard-fought one-run games.”

The Vikings players are Jonathan Abernatha, Jonathan D’Alessandro, Jesse Kuet, Frankie Padulo, Keegan Reeser, Blake Rottiers, Jason Saenz, William Sprowls, Shane Veeder and Max Willingham.

To find out more information about the team, visit www.eteamz.active.com/ hbvikings.

The team is open to any player who has turned or will turn 11 after May 1.