Paseo Verde advances to Little League World Series with win in region title game

SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. — Coach Cory Edwards knew Owen Guzman was getting restless.

The pitcher got his reps on the mound for Paseo Verde Little League. He closed games. He pitched four crucial innings in the state championship game, but didn’t start.

Guzman would constantly ask Edwards when he would get his chance to start.

“Kind of like a dog on a leash, a little bit,” Edwards said of Guzman.

The dog was free Friday.

Guzman pitched five scoreless innings and struck out nine in his first start of the summer, sending Paseo Verde to the Little League World Series with a 9-2 win over Billings Big Sky Little League from Montana in the Mountain Region championship at Al Houghton Stadium.

The 12-year-old right-hander took a no-hitter into the fourth inning, which was broken up by a one-out single from Montana second baseman Jaxson Podoll.

That was the first ball Montana got past the infield to that point.

Guzman’s 82-pitch gem pushed a Nevada team to its fourth consecutive trip to Williamsport, Pennsylvania, to represent the state in the Little League World Series, which begins Wednesday.

“I try to get a good vibe with him, a good read, and tell him why we’re doing certain things,” Edwards said of Guzman. “This seemed like a right moment with his stuff, and how long he’s been waiting for this moment.”

Guzman was locked in right away.

Podoll made little contact on Guzman’s first pitch, barely reaching the mound. Guzman threw him out. He struck out the next two batters in a 10-pitch top of the first.

“I was feeling pretty good,” Guzman said. “Breezed right through.”

Guzman also reached base all three times he went to bat, walking twice and reaching on an error. He scored the first run on a sacrifice fly.

Left fielder Jace Ward had two hits, including a two-run, bases-loaded double that kickstarted a four-run third inning that broke the game open for a 6-0 lead.

“We stuck to our approach,” Edwards said. “We’ve been doing a lot of takes to the next strike, being patient. We got hits at the right time.”

That was all the cushion Guzman needed. He struck out five of the first seven batters he faced. His last four punch-outs were called third strikes.

Montana scored twice in the top of the sixth, but Paseo Verde readied the celebration, throwing their gloves in the air and mobbing each other at third base.

They took a lap with the championship banner around the outfield. The players returned to a lobby at the baseball complex and were met with an ovation from friends and family that made the three-hour trip.

Now comes the part where Paseo Verde has to live up to what their Summerlin counterparts did last year.

Summerlin South became the first team from Nevada to win the United States championship, but their exciting run ended in the final against Chinese Taipei.

Paseo Verde is tasked with trying to recreate the magic. This time, by tacking on one more win.

“I think all of the ‘Nevada’s been X amount of times in a row,’ that pressure starts to creep in,” Edwards said. “It feels like this is the hump we needed to get past that.”

At least they have another option at starting pitcher to rely on for the long haul.

“Our goal was just to try to get to Williamsport,” Guzman said, “and now our goal is to try to make it as far as we can.”