Shafter Little League girls have successful first season

In their inaugural season in the Little League system, the Shafter Little League Girls Softball team fell just a couple wins shy of the State Tournament. The local team, which is made up of girls 10-12 years old, qualified for a trip to the Sectional tournament, where they ended up taking third place in the Section 7.

The Shafter team played a full season and selected an All-Star team to represent the Shafter Little League in the post season tournament. Shafter beat out several teams in the District 61 tournament, eventually winning against a team from Greenfield Little League for the championship. This is almost unheard of for a brand new program, but the Shafter teams ended up accomplishing the feat in the Girls Softball Division, as well as the Boys Little League Baseball Division as well.

The boys team will travel to Madera on Friday, playing against Chowchilla. The winner of the Sectional playoffs will advance to the State Tournament, which will be held in San Bernardino. For all of the kids in the Little League All-Stars, there is a dream of making it to Williamsport, Penn., to play in the Little League World Series.

The Shafter players' journey continues on Friday. This season has been a special one for more than just the players capturing the district title. According to Director Daniel Burciega, the kids have worked so hard on and off the field, with their parents and the rest of the community to make this season even possible. They worked hard on the old Kirschenmann Park field, getting it ready to play on, as well as keeping up the maintenance on it and the remaining work that has to be done to operate a Little League season.

Burciega said that he wouldn't trade this experience for anything. "There is nothing like Little League. I loved it growing up and learned so much. I love being able to introduce our kids to this experience and be a part of this amazing journey."