The Mill Valley Little League 14U All-Stars, Sectional Champions 2026.
What happened: Mill Valley's 14U All-Stars are sectional champions after beating North/South Oakland 9-2 Wednesday night at Tam High, capping one of the more dramatic weeks in recent MVLL memory. Mill Valley advances to the Northern California state tournament in Turlock, the first Mill Valley team to reach state since 2019.
The comeback: Mill Valley won its first sectional game Saturday, beating Napa Juniors 10-4 to open the tournament. A path to state became a lot more difficult the next day. North/South Oakland routed Mill Valley 15-5 Sunday, scoring in every inning but the fifth and dropping the 14s into the loser's bracket. From there, Mill Valley knew exactly what it would take to survive: beat Woodland, then beat Oakland not once but twice.
The first of those tasks came Monday against Woodland, and it was not close. Mill Valley scored eight runs in the first inning alone and never let up, routing Woodland 16-1 to stay alive.
That set up the required rematch with North/South Oakland. Tuesday, Mill Valley delivered, beating Oakland 12-1 to even the series and force the winner-take-all Game 2 the bracket demanded. Quinn Kelly threw 4.1 innings and struck out five, Graz Cerchiai drove in three runs, and Jack Payne added two hits and two RBI.
That left the decisive game. Wednesday, at home at Tam High, Mill Valley beat North/South Oakland again, 9-2, completing the sweep through the loser's bracket and clinching the sectional title. Jack Chaudhry opened on the mound and struck out two over two scoreless innings, and Hudson Wayne closed it out with four innings of relief and four strikeouts. Matthew Cao doubled and drove in a run, and Quinn Kelly reached base four times and scored twice.
The scene: MVLL president Patti Shore said the crowd at Tam High was large and loud, and called Hudson Wayne's closing performance a display of "nerves of steel." "They represented Mill Valley at its best," Shore said. "On to Turlock!"
The team: The 14U All-Star roster includes Graziano Cerchiai, Jack Chaudhry, Nicholas Drakulich, August Gottlieb, Quinn Kelly, Teddy Klaassen, Jack Payne, Mikey Peavy, Cole Swift, Leo Tenenbown, Oscar Walker, Hudson Wayne and Evan Wolly, along with callups Ricky Ames, Matthew Cao and Walker Yaeger. Dylan Swift manages the team, with Christopher "Holby" Holbrook and Nick Drakulich coaching.
By the numbers: Across the three games it took to complete the turnaround, Mill Valley outscored Woodland and North/South Oakland by a combined 37-4, an average margin of better than 12 runs a game.
By the tournament:
Graz Cerchiai led the team with 8 hits and 8 RBI.
Quinn Kelly hit .583 (7-for-12) with 9 runs scored and 5 RBI, and also anchored the pitching staff, throwing 7.1 innings across three appearances with 10 strikeouts and just 2 runs allowed.
Jack Payne scored 7 runs, second on the team behind Kelly.
Jack Chaudhry was untouchable on the mound in his two starts, throwing 4 scoreless innings without allowing a hit and striking out 6.
Leo Tenenbown drove in 7 runs.
Hudson Wayne threw 6.1 innings and struck out 7.
Why it matters: The win extends a run that began with Mill Valley winning District 3 outright before sectional play started. It is Mill Valley's first trip to the Northern California state tournament since 2019, and puts the 14s one step closer to the West Regional in Oregon.
What's next: Mill Valley plays the Section 2 winner this Saturday at 4pm in Turlock, the opening game of the Northern California state tournament. A win sends them to Sunday's 1pm game; a loss drops them to the 4pm game that day. Also qualified are Half Moon Bay, Arden (Sacramento), Sunnyvale and Turlock.
A NorCal title would send Mill Valley to the West Regional in Bend, Oregon, and from there, to the Junior League Baseball World Series in Taylor, Michigan. Last year, a team that was in Mill Valley’s spot at this very moment went all the way to the World Series: Mark West Youth Club Little League of Santa Rosa won Section 1, then NorCal, then the West Regional, and represented the West at the World Series.
Meanwhile, in the 12U bracket: Mill Valley's 12U All-Stars beat Tiburon Peninsula 3-1 in the district semifinal Wednesday afternoon, keeping their own unbeaten tournament run alive. The 12s play the district final Saturday at 4:30pm at Joe Wagner Field in Larkspur.
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