Three local Little League softball teams will advance to the divisional tournament this weekend after claiming titles in the District 4 All-Star tournament.

Antioch’s senior softball team and its 11-12-year-old team, as well as East County’s 10-11 softball squad, recently ran the tables, earning District 4 All-Star championships.

The most successful local baseball team was Antioch’s 9-10 team, which went 8-1 to earn a spot in the final game against North Oakland on Tuesday in Alameda. Included in that run was a 4-1 win against North Oakland on Monday night, which set up the winner-take-all showdown. But North Oakland got its revenge, beating Antioch 7-3 in the final to win District 4.

“All of the players were strong performers,” said Tiffany Silva, wife of Coach Dan Silva. “We got hits and great plays from everyone; it’s really hard to single out a few players. We just came together as a team and played great; we just came up a little short.”

While the baseball teams weren’t as successful as they’d hoped, Antioch’s 11-12 softball team was dominant. After receiving a first-round bye, the team beat Pittsburg 14-0 in its first game and won back-to-back battles against Pinole-Hercules by scores of 9-1 and 4-2 to claim the championship.

“Antioch Little League showed great poise and power on the field,” said Dennis Felix, coach of the 11-12 team and executive vice president of Antioch Little League. “We were led by strong pitching, stellar base running, and excellent hitting to bring home the championship banner and represent Antioch in the state championship round.”

Kylie Cast was Antioch’s ace pitcher, spreading five hits and one walk over all three games while striking out 22 hitters. Her season total in strikeouts is now 173 and her record is 23-0. Cast was also strong at the plate, as were most of her teammates, specifically Julia Odom and Megan Felix.

Also making key contributions were Presley Guitierrez, Kyra Gallego, Alexandria Tellez, Michaela Vanderklugt and Clarissa Im. Augmenting Cast’s strong pitching were relievers Im and Monica Anjari, whose talents allowed Antioch to give Cast a larger role in big games.

Antioch’s senior softball team was no less successful, beating Martinez 5-4 to set up a game against East County, which had just beaten Pittsburg 19-8. Antioch handily defeated East County by a 26-1 score, setting up a finals rematch against Martinez, host team of the tournament. Antioch defeated Martinez again, this time by a more convincing 14-6 score.

East County’s 10-11 championship team was also dominant, although it needed only two wins – both against Martinez and by scores more common to football: 26-3 and 18-3.

The winning teams all move on to the Division 2 championship series. The 10-11 tournament is held in Antioch. With the exception of the 11-12 tournament, those begin this weekend. The 11-12 tournament is already underway.

In baseball, the only other loss suffered by Antioch came at the hands of Albany in a 7-4 defeat. Included in Antioch’s run was a 10-0 victory over East County. The team also posted convincing wins against Walnut Creek (13-4), Pinole-Hercules (16-0), Alameda (14-1) and Concord American (9-1). Both East County and Antioch fielded two squads in that tournament.

Antioch also enjoyed success in the 11-12 baseball division, opening with a 25-0 loss to Albany, but bouncing back with a 6-0 win against Richmond and an 11-2 victory over Martinez before being eliminated by South Oakland 7-4.

“Antioch Little League (boys and girls) did very well in the All-Star Tournament,” Felix added. “We had five teams make the championship games and we took home two District 4 titles. The excellent play by both the girls and boys teams showed why Antioch Little League is a top-notch program in the area.”