Moorpark Enjoys Comfort Zone

WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. — It might not have shown in their performance, but the Moorpark players love the accommodations here. The dormitories are plush, the beds are comfortable and the food gets the thumbs-up.

Meeting kids from other parts of the world is fun as well.

“The guys from Taiwan are really funny,” Aaron Garcia said. “They don’t speak any English, but we communicate fine.”

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This is the 50th anniversary of the World Series, which has grown from a local tournament that included only one team from outside Pennsylvania to one that draws teams from five continents.

Four teams from the Valley and Ventura regions have qualified besides Moorpark: world champion Granada Hills in 1963 and Northridge in ‘67, ’75 and ’94. Northridge was national champion in its last appearance.

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In the other national games on Monday, Panama City, Fla., led by pitcher Mark Sauls, defeated Marshalltown, Iowa, 8-3. Sauls struck out 12 and allowed three hits in five innings.

The international bracket went as it typically does, with the teams from Latin America and the Far East dominating Canada and Europe. San Isidro, D.R., defeated Surrey, B.C., 5-1, and Kao-Hsuing, Taipei, Taiwan, scored eight runs in the first three innings and rolled to a 12-3 victory over Dhahran, Saudi Arabia.