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Tournaments  | Story  | 7/5/2018

Canes rebound for 13u BCS title

Bryan Cooney     
Photo: Canes Florida Prime 2023 (Perfect Game)

FORT MYERS, Fla. – For most teams, just advancing into the playoff rounds of the 13u BCS National Championship would be an accomplishment to be proud of. For others, it is an expectation.

Regardless of the age group, the powerhouse programs of the Evoshield Canes and Elite Squad have grown accustomed to having their teams making a long run and contend for a championship.

On championship day of the tournament Thursday morning, a matchup between Canes Florida Prime 2023 and the Elite Squad Outlaws was not much of a surprise and it was also not a surprise the game was tight the whole way. Heading into the seventh inning, the Outlaws held a 2-1 lead but the Canes rallied with patient at-bats and a timely hit from Nick Robert (2023, Stuart, Fla.).

Robert’s two-out, two-run single put the Canes ahead for good as they would hold on for a 4-2 victory and cap off a week of outstanding baseball for a team that needed all hands on deck when it mattered the most.

The Canes drew three straight walks to open the top of the seventh and drew even with the Outlaws on an RBI groundout by Michael O’Shaughnessy (2022, Delmar, N.Y.). Robert’s hard-hit ground ball scooted into right field to bring in the go-ahead runs for the Canes.

Reaching the playoff rounds almost didn’t materialize at all for the Canes as they needed another rally dating back to Monday to qualify as a pool winner. Facing the South River Seahawks, the Canes trailed 5-1 through three innings, but three runs in both the fourth and fifth innings were good enough to fight off the Seahawks 7-6 and propel them into the playoff bracket.

From there, a collective effort on the mound from players who didn’t anticipate needing to toe the rubber and help their team advance onward is what keyed the surge through win-or-go home games.

“The chemistry of this team was pretty amazing, we had some kids this week that had never played with us before and they bonded immediately,” Canes head coach Gary White said. “Everybody contributed, we had people pitch that aren’t pitchers, and we had big hits from everyone down to the 11th batter to our first batter.  To play 10 games for the week and go 9-1 is pretty amazing.”

The Outlaws entered the title game as the last unbeaten team for the tournament as they were carried by a pitching staff that allowed just 11 runs in seven games before the semifinals on Wednesday. Needing to extend their tournament in the bottom of the seventh trailing Scorpions North 13u-Nugent 5-4, the Outlaws scratched across two runs after being down to their last out to prevail 6-5 and advance to the championship game.

Each team sent one of their top arms to the hill for the title game, as Jacob Gomberg (2023, Coral Springs, Fla.) got the call for the Canes against Nickolas Mora (2022, Doral, Fla.) for the Outlaws. In the first inning, it was the Outlaws who drew first blood.

After Mora tossed a scoreless frame, Gomberg was greeted by back-to-back singles from Justin LeBron (2023, Pembroke Pines, Fla.) and Antonio Jimenez (2023, Miami Lakes, Fla.) to start the inning. With LeBron at third, Manuel Henriquez (2023, Hialeah, Fla.) brought him in with a sacrifice fly to right to put the Outlaws ahead 1-0.

The Canes had an answer in the second inning as O’Shaughnessy lined a one-out single and would come in to score from second on a single to left off the bat of Grant McDonald (2022, Boca Raton, Fla.) to even the game at one apiece.

The game would not stay tied for long as the Outlaws loaded the bases in the bottom of the second and would take a 2-1 lead on an RBI single to center from Paul Lane (2023, Weston, Fla.). Gomberg was able to wiggle out of further trouble as he stranded runners at second and third with a strikeout of Jimenez to limit the damage.

From there, each starter settled into a groove as Mora and Gomberg matched zeroes for the next three innings. In the sixth, Gomberg had to give way as he hit his pitch limit after working 5 1/3 innings and striking out seven. McDonald came on in relief and finished the sixth with the game still in favor of the Outlaws with a 2-1 lead.

Mora would lose his control at the worst time for the Outlaws in the seventh as he surrendered the three consecutive free passes and gave way on the mound to Devin Catoni (2023, Miami Lakes, Fla.) after going six-plus innings and striking out four.

Once his teammates made their rally to give him a lead, McDonald allowed an infield hit with two outs before getting a fly out to right to close out the victory for the Canes.

Throughout the entire week, several Canes had standout performances, but Devan Meran (2022, Aventura, Fla.) was the selection as the MV-Player of the tournament after he batted .524 (11-for-21) with three doubles, two triples, a home run, seven stolen bases and 11 RBI.

“Devan was our leader all week long, in the dugout and in the field,” White said. “He didn’t let us get down and he kept everybody on top of the game. He’s a competitor at all times, whether it’s a national championship here or if it’s a small tournament back in West Palm Beach.”

Antonio Alvarez (2023, Wellington, Fla.), Matthew Correa (2023, Port St. Lucie, Fla.) and Robert all recorded 10 hits and batted over .400 for the Canes for the tournament. O’Shaughnessy went 2-0 on the mound for the week with eight strikeouts in nine innings of work and also drove in 10 runs at the plate.

For the runner-up Outlaws, Bryan Rivera (2023, Tampa, Fla.) was selected as the MV-Pitcher of the tournament as he picked up two victories and finished with six scoreless innings, striking out five batters in his two appearances.

Offensively, Henriquez led the way doing the week for the Outlaws as he batted .545 (12-for-22) with seven extra-base hits, including a home run and 12 RBI. Jeter Polledo (2024, Hialeah, Fla.) also had a strong showing as he batted .462 (6-for-13) with four extra-base hits, including a home run and 10 RBI.


2018 13u BCS National Championship runner-up: Elite Squad Outlaws



2018 13u BCS National Championship MVP: Devan Meran



2018 13u BCS National Championship MV-Pitcher: Bryan Rivera
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