Emerald Challengers to host Oregon American Legion Baseball AAA State Tournament
The Emerald Challengers and Swede Johnson Stadium will host the Oregon American Legion Baseball AAA State Tournament Friday through Wednesday at North Eugene High School.
The 12-team tournament will begin with play-in games on Friday. The double-elimination portion will start on Saturday and last until Wednesday, when a winner will be announced.
The Challengers finished the regular season as the Area 4 champions with a 46-6 overall record and will play the winner between the Portland Hillsdale Merchants and Stayton Post 58 Canyon Crushers on Saturday at 7 p.m.
The winner of the tournament will travel to Gillette, Wyoming, for the eight-team regional tournament, Aug. 2-6. The American Legion World Series will be held at Keeter Stadium in Shelby, North Carolina, Aug. 10-15.
'I feel like we have a bullseye on our back'
The Challengers have won the state tournament four times in 1985, 1999, 2012 and in 2021 when they defeated the Medford Mustangs, which had won the tournament for six straight years (not including 2020).
The Challengers have posted a 90-31 record over the last two seasons and reached the semifinal in the northwest regional tournament in 2021.
Among the teams competing in the state tournament on Saturday are defending champions Medford, the Portland Barbers and Mid-Valley Southpaws (Albany).
"I feel like we have a bullseye on our back," Challengers fifth-year head coach Kenny Niles said. "I don't think it's any secret that we've had a great year. We beat some of the teams that we're going to have to beat again and the old cliché of beating team's multiple times is really difficult.
"We're going to have our hands full, add the fact that we're playing at home. … We're going to take our best shot. I think we're going to see everybody's best arm and that's exciting."
Niles said the team has had a "special run" the last four years.
"It'd be fun to be a fan and watch this team play teams of the past for sure," he said.
Who's on the Emerald Challengers' team?
The Challengers' team is made up of an 18-man roster, ranging in age from 15 to 19, with athletes competing in Lane County schools, including 2023 5A state baseball champion Thurston as well as North Eugene, Churchill, Marist Catholic, Willamette, Junction City and Pleasant Hill.
"We maybe didn't get the 18 best players in town, but we got the best teammates in town," Niles said.
Niles added the team was able to bond this season during their 11-game trip to Alaska and five-game trip to Eureka, California, staying in campgrounds, hotels and homes.
"I will take a group of guys that will play hard for each other every single day over the most talented kids," he said. "There are some really good (baseball) players in town, and everybody can choose their path. I'll hang my hat on the fact that we got the best teammates in the whole area."
The biggest surprise for the Challengers this season has been North Eugene freshman Brock Johnson. Johnson is the everyday shortstop and is batting above .500 as the second hitter entering the tournament.
Marist Catholic grads Kaden Starr and Carter Greene have served as the Challengers two key pitchers for most of this season. The team's offensive leaders include Johnson, Adam Elliott (Thurston) and Peyton Tyner (Marist).
"This year's team hits one home run but we have a bunch of pitch-to-contact guys, we run the bases extremely well and play better defense," Niles said.
Edith Noriega is a sports reporter for The Register-Guard. You may reach her at ENoriega@gannett.com and follow her on Twitter at @Noriega_Edith.
This article originally appeared on Register-Guard: Emerald Challengers to host American Legion state tournament
