FPA Elite squeeze by CR Baseball for 14u title
EMERSON, Ga. – FPA Elite held on to defeat CR Baseball 7-6 and clinch the 14u PG EvoShield Classic. It came down to the wire as CR tried to mount a comeback but was unable to drive home the game tying run in the bottom of the seventh.
CR jumped out to big lead after two innings. They put up four combined runs to obtain a 4-0 advantage heading into the third inning. CR took advantage of some sloppy play by FPA as they scored runs on a bases loaded walk, a steal of home, an error, and an RBI single in the second.
FPA would tie the game in the third with a big inning. Tyson Tubbs had a big two-run single to drive home the first two runs of the game for FPA. They would score two more runs on two consecutive errors by the CR defense.
The game would remain tied at four until the late innings. Sharp defense and quality pitching was able to limit both offenses until FPA broke through in the top of the sixth. Tyson Tubbs came through again with a clutch, two out RBI single to take the lead. Tubbs would come around to score after an RBI single from Gunnar Henderson.
FPA would add another run to give them a 7-4 advantage heading into the bottom of the seventh. CR would start a rally as they had four consecutive walks to cut the lead to two. After an RBI groundout the game-tying run was on third with two outs. FPA was able to induce a fly out in order to secure the game.
Manager Greg Nichols credited this tournament win to the resiliency and mental toughness of his team. The championship game was a battle and his team’s ability to overcome adversity helped push them over the top.
“We had to battle,” said Nichols. “We gave up three in the first, probably based off nervousness, and we haven’t played at this level before. These guys are a part of a big organization, we hold them accountable for academics and athletics. They have to make their grades to play so we think that mental toughness helped out today.”
An extremely young team, the EvoShield Classic was FPA’s first taste of the competitive atmosphere of elite level baseball. The setting, atmosphere, and competition level only added to the sweetness of the championship.
“They have really worked hard, we started out as an average team but they continued to work,” said Nichols. “Some of our pitchers are still trying to develop their craft and we have some strong arms but they have some control issues. Each game we continued to battle and PG hosting with LakePoint is such a phenomenal place to play. The atmosphere was unbelievable. It gives these guys the confidence to go work in the offseason. Our whole mission is about developing student-athletes. We’re excited that we get to show the fruits of the effort with this EvoShield Classic and we can come back and continue to battle for the next one.”
At 14-years-old these players still have a lot of room for development. Nichols said that his focus now is to make sure the players continue to develop well and focus on improving the detailed aspects of their game.
“We thought we worked on mental mistakes a lot until this week,” said Nichols. “Now we’re really going to focus on the smaller details. This game is the greatest game in the world and anyone can play this game as high up as their ability will take them. We’re really focused on working on the details. These kids have the skills it just comes down to how badly they want to play at the next level. We think we have the talent, with a great group of kids all from Alabama. We’re excited about the opportunity to work with them and develop them.”
The MV-Pitcher was Logan Austin of CR Baseball. Austin finished the tournament with a 1-0 record, a team high eight innings pitched, and only allowed two runs over the course of the tournament. Christian Thornton of FPA Elite came away with MVP honors. Thornton finished with an absurd .647 batting average, three doubles, a home run, eight RBI, and six runs scored.
“Sometimes I go up there and I’m too tense and everything would fly open so I just went up there and tried to square up the baseball,” said Thompson. “It feels awesome. The last couple tournaments I haven’t been doing that well but to be able to come here in this tournament, I can’t ask for anything more than that.”
2016 14u PG EvoShield Classic champions: FPA Elite
2016 14u PG EvoShield Classic runner-up: CR Baseball
2016 14u PG EvoShield Classic MVP: Christian Thornton
2016 14u PG EvoShield Classic MV-Pitcher: Logan Austin
Colt .45s take down No. 1 seed in 16u title game
The East Cobb Colt .45s found themselves with another Perfect Game championship title, this one the 16u PG EvoShield Classic, after a 9-3 victory over the Northern Valley Hurricanes. The Colt .45s capitalized on pitching mistakes to crush some baseballs and hit two moonshots in the final game.
Chase Patrick, the No. 4 righthanded pitcher in the state of Georgia for the class of 2017 and a Georgia Tech commit, turned in a stellar performance for the Colt .45s on the mound. Patrick held the Hurricanes to only one hit and no runs in five innings pitched. He was able to mix speeds, hit his locations, and ended up striking out four batters.
The game was tightly contested through four innings. The Colt .45s put two runs on the board on an RBI fielder’s choice and an RBI single but the fireworks started in the top of the fifth. Logan Cerny, the No. 4 catcher in the state of Georgia for the class of 2018 and a Troy commit, hit an absolute moonshot of a two-run home run to left center that hit the middle of the scoreboard. Later in the inning Noah Ledford, the No. 19 catcher in the state of Georgia for the class of 2018, would knock home a run on a bloop RBI single to increase the lead to 5-0.
“I knew it right away,” said Cerny. “Coach Matt gave me a 3-0 green light and I was swinging for the fences. We had a lead and a runner on third so I was trying to crush the ball.”
After seeing Cerny’s home run the last inning, Nolan Tressler, the No. 14 outfielder in the state of Georgia for the class of 2017 and a Georgia Southern commit, decided to respond with one of his own. He hooked a fastball down the right field line to bring home two more runs as a part of a four-run sixth inning to bring the lead to 9-0.
The Hurricanes would put three runs up in the bottom of the sixth but they were not able to mount a comeback. Will Shirah, the No. 3 lefthanded pitcher in the state of Georgia for the class of 2018 and a Georgia Tech commit, took the mound in the bottom of the seventh and closed out the game and secured another Perfect Game championship trophy for the Colt .45s.
The Colt .45s have been one of the most consistent teams in the country this summer. Undoubtedly talented, they bring the best of their abilities to the field every game and manager Matt Hightower has instilled that sharp focus into this team.
“It’s a model of consistency,” said Hightower. “It sounds cliché, but you really take it one day at a time. If you look too far ahead you can be blinded by what’s in front of you, if you dwell on a questionable game it can give you a hangover effect. Fortunately the schedule allowed us to play so frequently in Perfect Game events that after every tournament you say, ‘Well, we have another one tomorrow.’ The chemistry of the kids was great too. Again, it sounds cliché, but if you have a group of guys who are excited to be around each other it brings energy and it manifests itself with positive results on the baseball field.”
The offense for the Colt .45s received huge contributions from the “Big 3” of Tressler, Cerny, and Ledford. All three hit two home runs each this tournament and had batting averages well over .500. Hightower knows that all three are immensely talented and it just so happened that they all put together seven game hot streaks.
“Nolan (Tressler) has obviously been swinging the bat well for a long time,” said Hightower. “He’s a hyper-aggressive kid but I can’t think of a better kid who is going to set the tone better for us at the top of the lineup. With Logan (Cerny) obviously hitting right behind him and (Noah) Ledford has been swinging the bat well all season. To their credit they have been very consistent. You take a kid like Logan, who’s such a dynamic player, and he has the capability to hit the long ball but also plays the small game very well. He also runs the bases well and it’s ironic because he is a catcher too. We were good at pacing him through the season to make sure his legs were fresh to do other things that he is capable of doing.”
Hightower has seen a lot of growth with his team. From last year to the end of this year, Hightower credits his team’s maturity as they are able to move on from games, whether they be big wins or tough losses, and immediately focus on the next game.
“I think a lot of it this year has been being able to understand that when you run into good teams, they are going to run into you,” said Hightower. “How are you going to hit back? Especially when you’re playing up and you know that good teams are going to take a shot at you. It’s part of the process. The other day we lost a close game but we have to turn right around and play another game tomorrow. We don’t dwell on the losses. I think that’s the difference between last year’s team is being able to get over that hurdle. Last year we had some close losses to good teams, like the Central Florida Gators beat us by one run.
"This year we’re able to hold on. There’s a toughness factor and being able to hang on. This was our fourth Perfect Game we won I believe and that’s a credit to the kids. Also (assistant coaches) Mitch and Patrick, I can’t do it without them and we can’t do it without the kids. They come first.”
The MV-Pitcher of the tournament was Jordan Pacheco, the No. 3 middle infielder in the state of New York for the class of 2018, of the Northern Valley Hurricanes. Pacheco finished the tournament with a 2-0 record in eight shutout innings and only allowed three hits while racking up thirteen strikeouts. The MVP of the tournament was Logan Cerny of the Colt .45s. Cerny, Tressler, and Ledford all had huge tournaments and were all deserving of the award, but Cerny’s final line of .429 with two home runs, one double, one triple, six RBI, and nine runs scored was enough to secure the award.
“We were trying to hit line drives,” said Cerny. “We just played in the 17u EvoShield last week and came up short in the championship, but we came up with metal bats firing. I had a home run the first game, (Noah) Ledford did really well, and (Nolan) Tressler too. Those were the three guys in the MVP race.”
2016 16u PG EvoShield Classic champions: East Cobb Colt .45s
2016 16u PG EvoShield Classic runner-up: Northern Valley Hurricanes
2016 16u PG EvoShield Classic MVP: Logan Cerny
2016 16u PG EvoShield Classic MV-Pitcher: Justin Pacheco
643 DP Cougars claim another PG EvoShield title
The 643 DP Cougars Pralgo defeated Team Phenom Florida 4-2 in the final of the 18u PG EvoShield Classic to secure their second PG EvoShield Classic title in as many weeks. The Cougars also won the 17u PG EvoShield Classic last week and now can claim bragging rights over both divisions.
This game was contested the entire afternoon as both teams battled in a tight ballgame. The Cougars struck first with a run in the top of the first inning. Playing their trademarked smallball, they pushed the run across after a leadoff single, stolen base, sacrifice bunt, and finally an RBI fielder’s choice.
Phenom would take the lead in the bottom of the second. The first run came across to score on an RBI fielder’s choice to tie the game. The next batter hit a sacrifice fly deep enough to bring home the second runner and take the lead.
The score would remain the same until the top of the fifth. In a clutch situation, Zach Williams, the No. 10 lefthanded pitcher in the state of Georgia for the class of 2017 and a College of Charleston commit, of the Cougars roped a curveball to left field to bring home the tying run. Both teams showed tremendous defense and pitching ability and the game remained tied until the sixth inning.
The Cougars broke through with two runs in the sixth to take the lead. Sean Mootrey, the No. 2 third baseman in the state of Georgia for the class of 2017, and Jared Miller, the No. 16 shortstop in the state of Georgia for the class of 2017 and a Notre Dame commit, came through with big RBI singles to give the Cougars the final runs of the game. From that point on the pitching and defense of the Cougars was able to shut down the Phenom offense and give the Cougars yet another Perfect Game tournament title.
Manager Danny Pralgo declared this team one of the most fun teams that he had ever coached. After a remarkable summer season where they finished 68-4-2 Pralgo commented that the winning isn’t what makes this team great but their mentality and ability to see baseball for what it is: a game that you deserve to have fun playing.
“Truly, this was one of the most memorable seasons a coach could imagine,” said Pralgo. “This was 20 young men who buy into the team concept. It doesn’t matter who starts or comes off the bench but they bought into playing one inning at a time to see where that takes us. We didn’t talk about winning games and championships but we wanted to see how good we could become if we play team baseball. We ended up 68-4-2 and that was achieved based on winning one inning at a time. We set up the hardest schedule that we could this year. On our off games we were playing against the East Cobb Yankees 18s who are one of the best teams in the country. We love James Beavers and he does a great job over there.
"We played the best of the best to prepare these guys for a long summer and along the way they kept doing the little things to win it. I’m so proud of these guys and we don’t promise any titles but these suckers took down four of the toughest PG titles this year. They did not play individual baseball they played team baseball; I’m so proud of these guys.”
This team is incredibly loose in the dugout and truly enjoys playing the game. Pralgo recounted some stories of players teasing each other and coming up with nicknames to get on each other’s nerves.
“They feed off each other,” said Pralgo. “So much of that energy is just them making fun of each other. When J.P. (McGuire) comes up his name is ‘Jipper’ and they say ‘Jip-Jip Hooray!’ and you hear it and they feed off it. Jared Miller is one of our best middle infielders and is a die-hard Boston Red Sox fan. So every time he comes up they’re singing ‘Ja-red Mil-ler’ as if it’s Derek Jeter for the Yankees because they know he can’t stand the Yankees. It’s all about having fun with each other and playing the game the right way. I’ve never been around a group of kids, actually men, who have been able to balance that. This is going to go down as one of the most special seasons, I think, in youth sports. I’m so lucky that they took me along for the ride.”
Pralgo had nothing but high praise for Phenom. They gave the Cougars an incredible game and Pralgo admired their toughness and way that they played the game.
“Everyone was tipping their hat to the other team’s starting pitcher,” said Pralgo. “He was one of the best arms we saw all year. You see a lot of big velo guys but this kid knew how to pitch so a tip of the cap to him. He mixed pitches in and out and we knew we had to stay close, hang tight and then we get a runner on move him over and knock him in. The second run that tied the game was on a ridiculously filthy curveball down low and Zach Williams, one of our best two strike hitters, just happened to drop a barrel on a ball that most people don’t hit. After that it seemed to set the tone. I tip my hat to that squad because they were an outstanding and well-coached baseball team.”
The MV-Pitcher of the tournament was Thomas Farr, the No. 23 righthanded pitcher in the state of Georgia for the class of 2017, of Phenom. Farr finished with a 1-0 record in eleven scoreless innings and added ten strikeouts as well. The MVP of the tournament was Drew Waters of the Cougars. Waters absolutely raked this tournament as he finished with a .500 average that included three doubles, one triple, one home run, eleven RBI, and five runs scored.
“It feels good. We have a lot of solid players on this team,” said Waters. “When we play together I expect to win every single game. My approach was to look for fastballs in and adjust to breaking balls. I really didn’t miss any fastballs.”
2016 18u PG EvoShield Classic champions: 643 DP Cougars Pralgo
2016 18u PG EvoShield Classic runner-up: Team Phenom Florida Elite
2016 18u PG EvoShield Classic MVP: Drew Waters
2016 18u PG EvoShield Classic MV-Pitcher: Thomas Farr
