Little League Tournament Proves a Hit in Thousand Oaks : Recreation: In a PR coup, county hosts Senior League Western Regional Final for first time. The winner’s next stop: the World Series.

Half-past noon under a hot sun at Thousand Oaks High School and parents were growing restless.

More than 100 Little League enthusiasts congregated atop wooden bleachers and along chain-link fences Sunday, slurping sodas and waiting for the umpire to utter those two sacred words: “Play Ball!”

For the first time, Ventura County is hosting the Senior League Western Regional Final, a Little League tournament matching the finest 14- and 15-year-old baseball players in 11 Western states.

Two California teams, one from Mission Viejo and the other from Danville up north, are going up against teams from Aiea, Hawaii, and Henderson, Nev. At stake is a trip to Kissimmee, Fla., on Saturday, where eight national and international regional champions will face off in the Little League World Series.

“This is like Americana, with these small-town teams getting together,” said Tim Casey, a Moorpark engineer who spent his day off watching the game.

“It’s better than the big leagues,” Casey said after Brad Hughes of Danville roped a ball down the third-base line to score two runs and tie the first of two games Sunday. “There’s nobody out there who’s high-paid, and they all still have their hopes and dreams.”

Landing the tournament, which parents and Little League officials liken to a Super Bowl or the Olympics, represents a public-relations coup for Thousand Oaks, said local dignitaries who stumped for the city during opening ceremonies.

“It’s really a plum to get it,” Mayor Judy Lazar said. “It’s good publicity for the league and it’s good publicity for the city. It’ll put us on the map for people who don’t know where we are.

“And you’ll see some good baseball,” she added.

Officially, the regional final is hosted by the Conejo Valley Little League, a member of the District 13 Little League group, which represents most of Ventura County. But the city of Thousand Oaks donated $1,000 to help defray expenses and local businesses also have volunteered goods and services.

“We pick up all the living expenses, but the parents and friends are on their own,” said tournament director Joel Silverstein, who doubles as treasurer of the Conejo Valley Little League. “It makes our city look good.”

Organizers take the games seriously, requiring each team member to carry a birth certificate to guard against ringers, or players older than 15.

“We don’t want what happened with the Philippines team last year to happen again,” said Silverstein, referring to a championship club disqualified for cheating.

The Thousand Oaks Little League squad narrowly missed playing for the regional championship in its own back yard, when it lost to Mission Viejo last week by one run in extra innings, players said.

“It was a tough loss,” said left fielder Jason Earls, watching a game Sunday that might have been his. “It could have gone either way.”

One of Jason’s teammates, however, met with defeat more personally.

“It hurts your pride when you’re in your own hometown and you’re watching other teams play,” shortstop Eugene Thompson said.

Two of the Western Regional Finals teams--the clubs from Danville and Aiea--took advantage of offers to stay at the homes of Conejo Valley Little League players.

The squad from Mission Viejo is commuting while the Henderson, Nev., club is staying at a local motel.

“They lost in the regionals last year, so maybe they’re superstitious,” Silverstein said.

Players from Aiea, a small suburb of Honolulu, easily drew the most support. More than 35 parents and friends made the trip from Hawaii to Oregon to Thousand Oaks--and, they hope, will continue on to Florida for the Little League World Series.

“We saved all year and everybody planned their vacations around this,” said Karyn Okano, the mother of James and Mark Okano, who played catcher and center field, respectively, on Sunday.

Tanya Johnson, sitting next to Okano, was leading a chorus of cheers.

“Three up, three down. Let’s get ‘em out, 1, 2, 3,” more than a dozen boosters yelled in a unifying cadence.

The strategy must have helped. The Aiea team beat Danville 9-2, keeping alive its unbeaten streak in postseason play. In the second contest, the Henderson team dominated Mission Viejo by a score of 21-6.

Games will continue today at noon and 4 p.m., and 4 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday.