FORT MYERS, Fla. – If there’s any indication of the success of the PG Series and how far it was come in its three years, the first championship game contested in its run through the age groups could have been the best in its history.
A back-and-forth affair with fine pitching, terrific defense and scoring opportunities aplenty for each side, Aaron Keel’s dash home in the bottom of the seventh knocked the ball loose on a play at the plate to send his Carolinas’ team past Gulf Coast 3-2 to win the 14u Series Classic.
On a day that began with four teams who survived quarterfinals matchups on Thursday duking it out in semifinal matchups, Gulf Coast rode the left arm and bat of Eli Runyan (2021, Graham, Ala.) to the title game. Runyan tossed a complete game shutout and went 3-for-3 at the plate to lead his team past previously unbeaten South Florida 7-0.
Another lefthander led the way for the Carolinas as Carter Holton (2021, Guyton, Ga.) fired five scoreless innings on the mound and went 2-for-3 at the dish to lead his team to the final with a 5-0 victory over the South.
The championship game moved to the stadium at JetBlue Park and in the early going, the Carolinas struck first.
Leadoff man Tommy Hawke (2021, Oak Island, N.C) roped a triple down the right field line and came into score after three walks in a four-batter span by Gulf Coast starter Jacob Peters (2021, Helena, Ala.). Peters would limit the damage by getting a 4-6-3 double play to keep the inning from getting out of hand.
Gulf Coast would answer with a run in the top of the second as Tristan Everly (2021, Huntsville, Ala.) was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded by Carolinas’ starter Cooper George (2021, Okatie, S.C.), but George escaped further damage by getting a flyout to left.
Holton would help the Carolinas regain the lead in the bottom half of the frame after his leadoff double and dash home on a wild pitch to make it 2-1.
Gulf Coast took advantage of a leadoff two-base error in the top of the fourth as Trey Smith (2021, Madison, Miss.) lined a single into center to bring in Landon Hayes (2020, Magee, Miss) to tie the game up.
Gulf Coast had a big opportunity to break the tie in the sixth with Hayes at the plate with first and second and two outs, but George struck him out on a 3-2 fastball to keep the game knotted up at two.
Brennon McNair (2021, Magee, Miss.), who came on in relief of Peters for Gulf Coast in the sixth, got a big strikeout of Carson Kelly with two men on to send the game tied heading to the seventh.
After George fired a scoreless seventh, Keel (2020, Cedar Point, N.C) singled to center to lead off the bottom half of the inning for the Carolinas. Will Holmes (2021, Inman, S.C.) was sent in to pinch-hit and lay a bunt down, but a ball in the dirt allowed Keel to advance to second.
Holmes dumped a single into center to make it first and third with nobody out turning it back over to the top of the lineup. Hawke hit a fly ball to center that wasn’t deep enough to being in Keel, which brought Travis Snell (2021, Mint Hill, S.C.) to the plate with one out.
On the first pitch, Snell hit a chopper to short and Keel broke to the plate with the contact play on. The throw home arrived just as Keel was sliding home and his slide knocked the ball loose as the tag was attempted that gave the championship belt to Carolinas head coach Mark Marino and his team.
“Two good clubs that deserved to be here and it was a great ballgame,” Marino said. “From the first day of testing and our practice day, I stressed to the kids that you control and what you can control between the lines and I felt like each day our team got better. Seeing the progression, their hard work paid off.”
George, a participant in last year’s 13u PG Series on the Carolinas team that came up short in the championship game, was given another shot on the mound by Marino who had faith in the righthander and it paid off with George going the distance to pick up the victory.
“I had all the confidence in the world in Cooper and for him the way he pitched, he was lights out,” Marino said. “He did a great job.”
Spending the week with his team gave Marino the chance to instill a style of play that favored an aggressive style.
“After these seven days, it felt like we had been together all summer,” Marino added. “They came together quickly, adapted to me and they handled everything so well. We had a lot of fun together.”
Holton took Most Valuable Player honors for the tournament, as the lefthander went 2-0 for the week on the mound, including an 11-strikeout showing in their opening game of the tournament, but his best work was done at the plate. There he went 13-for-23, good for a .565 average, and he had eight extra-base hits including two home runs, leading multiple offensive categories for the event.
“This whole Series I had a lot of fun for the first time doing everything,” Holton said. “From the competition to the testing we did before the games started, it was all really great.”
Holton enjoyed the camaraderie with his Carolinas teammates, adding to the whole Series experience.
“We all fought hard and tried picking each other up if somebody did something wrong,” Holton said. “We pulled through in the championship and everyone had a piece in it.”
Runyan picked up the Most Valuable Pitcher award thanks in large part to his semifinal effort getting Gulf Coast to the title game. For the week, the lefthander went 2-0 with 10 strikeouts in 10 1/3 innings.
2017 14u PG Series Classic MVP: Carter Holton
2017 14u PG Series Classic MV-Pitcher: Eli Runyan
