Where there was a Will there was a way for Arizona Rip to make the semifinals of the Don Mattingly National Qualifier (17u) at the Surprise Recreation Campus.

Daniel Will came in and protected a one-run lead in the seventh Saturday as Rip beat Players Academy 7-6 in first-round elimination play.

“It was just a case of us gutting out a win, playing our sixth game in three days,’’ coach Mike Simmons said.

Arizona RIP will play the Angels White in one semifinal Sunday at Surprise. All-Star Baseball Academy will take on Arizona Clash in the other. Both games are at 9 a.m.

ASBA beat the Arizona Angels 8-0 in elimination play.

The final is at 11:30 a.m. The tournament winner qualifies for the AABC Don Mattingly World Series beginning July 25 in Albuquerque.

Simmons said Rip relied on pitching by committee, timely hitting, bunting and other little-ball tactics to win Saturday. Bobby Stahel had key steals, moving into scoring position for two big runs, Simmons said.

Rip has relied on pitching by committee throughout the event.

“We’ve used some kids who don’t normally pitch,” he said.

That tactic could pay off Sunday.

“We think we still have some gas in the tank,’’ he said.