With 300 kids representing 22 teams spanning from the tee ball division through juniors, the 2025 spring season for Union City National Little League (UCNLL) was an overwhelming success from start to finish.
Here’s a recap of the notable end of season highlights from the youngest to the oldest:
In June, baseballers aged seven to eight competed in the local Jerry Barry tournament, an experience meant to promote post-season play and prepare the kids for their later years in baseball. The tournament is also a way for the community to honor an old, dear friend and advisor, Jerry Barry. Under the coaching and direction of Danny Mayen-Cole and Nick Williges, UC National fought hard and exited the tournament in the semi-championship round in a defeat against San Lorenzo.
On May 14, the Union City National Softball Minor Division, led by Armando Hurtado, Angel Perez, Mark Perry and Oscar Vargas won one of two Tournament of Champions (TOC) flags for UCNLL, defeating Tennyson American Little League, 12-3.
Union City National’s 11-year-old All Star Team captured the District 45 All Star Flag in dramatic fashion. After winning their first game, they lost to San Lorenzo Little League. Coming out of the loser’s bracket, they defeated Castro Valley to advance to the championship against San Lorenzo, needing to win twice.
After winning game one, they forced a winner-take-all game that ended in a walk-off win to capture the flag. Down one run in the last inning, Aiden Huffmaster walked on a 3-2 pitch with two outs. Then, Mateo Ramirez tripled to right field to tie the game. On a 0-1 pitch, Jaxson Reyes hit a rocket to left field, scoring Mateo Ramirez for the win in walk-off fashion. The team was led by Saul Ramirez, Chris Huffmaster and Keith Yamagata.
In the 50/70 Division, UCNLL defeated Castro Valley 12-3, winning the league’s second District 45 TOC Flag. The team was led by Michael Guzman, Miguel Perez and Francisco Gomez.
Finally, the Junior All Stars won District 45, beating Castro Valley 6-2 on June 23. The team then went 3-0 in the Section 3 Junior All Star Tournament, defeating Palo Alto Little League 16-12 on July 8. The team went on to compete in the State Tournament, going 3-0 to advance to the championship before losing to Mark West Little League (MWLL) of Santa Rosa. MWLL eventually represented California in the Little League World Series Junior Division.
UCNLL’s participation at the state level marks the first time in almost 30 years for the achievement. Union City National was runner up in the State Tournament out of 302 Northern California Little League teams. The Junior Team was led by Armando Hurtado, Rick Smith and Chris Serrano.
Registration for the spring 2026 season begins in November 2025. The season officially starts in February 2026. For more information follow the league on Instagram @uc_national_official.
