A pair of Ceres Blaze travel baseball teams coached by Jorge Guerrero experienced success in tournament play in recent weeks.

“It’s definitely challenging,” Guerrero said while talking about his busy schedule. “The little ones require more coaching and attention to detail. The older boys you fine-tune their stuff. It’s fun.”

The Ceres Blaze 13-and-under team captured the Pony Baseball West Zone NorCal Super Region championship this past weekend at Costa Fields.

“It’s the first time in 12 years that a Blaze or any Ceres team has won back-to-back Super Regional championships,” said Guerrero, who guided a 12-and-under squad to the championship in 2023. “It’s a big accomplishment.”

The Blaze won all four of their games.

Ceres outscored its opponents, 44-12.

“We had quality at-bats,” Guerrero said. “We weren’t chasing bad pitches.”

The Blaze edged Campbell 5-4 for the championship on Sunday.

Campbell needed to beat Ceres twice to claim the title.

“We wanted that banner for our fields,” Guerrero said. “We hang them when we have these types of tournaments.”

“It’s not the cleanest game we’ve played,” he added. “But we were able to grind it out. We put the pressure on them.”

Ceres secured the victory in the final inning when Oliver Loomis scored from third base on a wild pitch.

Loomis and Blaze coaches were doused with ice water following the game.

“It was a fun celebration,” Guerrero said. “With that heat, it felt pretty good.”

Ceres posted a 14-4 win over San Francisco Youth Baseball in the semifinals on Saturday.

The Blaze pounded Burlingame 16-1 on July 3.

Ceres notched a 9-3 victory against Campbell on July 1.

The Blaze qualified for the West Zone Championship, which will get underway this week in West Hills.

Ceres will play Kauai (Hawaii) on Thursday at 1 p.m.

A total of eight teams will be battling for a berth to the International World Series.

9s

The Ceres Blaze nine-and-under team placed first at the Oakdale Tournament last month.

“It was the first championship for them this season,” Guerrero said. “You could see the joy in their faces. We had been struggling.”

The Blaze amassed a 4-0 record at the June 29-30 event.

Ceres outscored its four opponents, 49-24.

“The whole tournament our bats were on fire,” Guerrero said. “The kids competed.”

The second-seeded Blaze rallied for a 16-12 win over top-seeded Oakdale in the title game on June 30.

Ceres improved its head-to-head record to 2-0 versus Oakdale this year.

“I knew it was going to be a competitive game,” Guerrero said. “They can hit.”

The Blaze battled back from a 12-8 deficit in the top of the sixth inning.

“It was a crazy game,” Guerrero said. “It was back and forth. Lots of great hitting from both teams.”

Ceres beat the Bel Passi 10-and-under team 9-2 in the semifinals on June 30.

The Blaze won both of their games in pool play.

Ceres defeated Bel Passi 10s 10-4 and Bel Passi 9s 14-6 on June 29.

The Blaze avenged a pair of losses to Bel Passi 10u.