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Tournaments  | Story  | 7/19/2018

16u Super25 showdown set

Bryan Cooney     
Photo: Brandon Haston (Perfect Game)

FORT MYERS, Fla. – Although the 16u PG Super25 field consisted of just 11 teams, the cream rose to the top as Thursday’s semifinal matches produced two games that went right down to the wire. The East Cobb Astros fought off SWFL Nation 2020 with a 7-5 victory, while eXposure 16u Prime only needed a first-inning run to advance to Friday’s title game with a 1-0 victory over Panama Mutiny-Banditos International. The two wins sets up a matchup of the two top teams throughout the tournament at jetBlue Park.

Going unbeaten in their five pool play contests, the Astros pitching staff had allowed just six runs. With a deep staff at their disposal, Vanderbilt commit Miles Garrett (2020, Stone Mountain, Ga.) was waiting in the wings and got the nod on the hill for East Cobb to try and send them through to Friday’s title game.

SWFL made life not so easy in the first for Garrett. With one out, after Garrett issued a one-out walk to Alex Freeland (2020, Cape Coral, Fla.) and a single to right from Chase Chatman (2019, Cape Coral, Fla.), Cole Cothren (2020, Plant City, Fla.) put SWFL ahead 1-0 by plating Freeland with an RBI groundout to second. Garrett kept the damage to just that.

The Astros offense went to work in the second inning, with Ethan Stamps (2020, Madison, Ga.) getting the inning started with a single to left. After an error and a hit batter, East Cobb would pick up two runs for free with two outs after a bases-loaded walk and another hit batsmen before Brandon Haston (2020, Douglasville, Ga.) blasted a bases-clearing triple to the fence in right to put the Astros up 5-1.

Garrett put up two zeroes after the first, but ran into trouble in the fourth after two walks and a single loaded the bases with one out for SWFL. Garrett induced a ground ball to third that could have resulted in an inning-ending double play, but the throw to second was wide and ended up in right field to allow two runs to come in. Garrett departed and Zachary Murray (2020, Sugar Hill, Ga.) was tasked to put the fire out and hold East Cobb’s lead.

After a groundout to second that got SWFL a run closer at 5-4, Murray issued back-to-back walks before ending the threat by getting a ground ball to second for a fielder’s choice to keep the Astros ahead.

East Cobb added a run in the bottom of the fifth, taking advantage of more wildness from SWFL pitching. Two walks led to a runner reaching third before a misplayed fly ball in right field with two outs allowed the Astros to move ahead 6-4.

SWFL generated a chance to have a big inning in the sixth as an error and two walks loaded the bases without an out recorded. Murray did well to pick up a strikeout, surrender a run on a groundout and end the threat with another strikeout to keep the Astros ahead 6-5.

Haston gave East Cobb their two-run cushion back in the home half with a single up the middle for his fourth RBI of the game, sending the game to the seventh with Murray trying to close the game out on the mound.

After issuing a one-out walk, Murray was lifted for Stamps on the mound, and the move proved to be a winning one in the end for East Cobb. Stamps picked up a strikeout and a groundout to third to sew up a spot in the championship game for the Astros.

Their opponent in the title game had an equally tight contest to negotiate as eXposure starter AJ Montijo (2020, Marietta, Ga.) looked to keep the fine pitching performance going that his team had showed in its five pool play games. With only six runs allowed – the same amount that East Cobb’s pitching staff had allowed entering Thursday – eXposure’s offense had been the strongest out of any team as they had produced 58 runs in their five contests, 20 more runs than any other team in the field.

That offense immediately gave Montijo a lead to work with in the first as Reuben Church (2020, Maryville, Tenn.) lined a single to left to bring in Gehrig Ebel (2020, Signal Mountain, Tenn.), who had reached on a one-out error.

Banditos starter Alexander Ayala (2020, Miami Lakes, Fla.) surrendered another single before picking up back-to-back strikeouts to hold the margin at just a run with a lot of game left for his club to get on the scoreboard.

In the fourth, Montijo was put into a tough spot after a one-out error was followed up with a single to make it first and third, but the right-hander got the next batter to hit a comebacker to him and he started a 1-6-3 double play to keep eXposure’s lead intact.

The Banditos again worked a rally in the fifth as Montijo walked the leadoff man on four pitches. On an attempted sacrifice bunt down the third base line, the throw across to first was wide to open the door for another chance to either tie or take a lead for the Banditos.

After Montijo induced a ground ball to third that resulted in a force play for the first out, the ensuing batter hit a line drive to short that Church grabbed and doubled up the lead runner at second to quickly extinguish the threat and keep eXposure out front.

With his shutout still going into the seventh, Montijo issued his third walk of the game to give the Banditos a leadoff baserunner, and made it even more dicey as he hit the next batter to put the tying run at second. South Carolina commit Lukas Cook (2020, Knoxville, Tenn.) was called upon to try and figure out a way to put out the fire and send his team to the championship, and he received helped thanks to a terrific defensive play to get two outs on one pitch.

With the Banditos attempting to put down a bunt to move the runners up to second and third, Cook threw an 0-2 pitch out of the zone that was offered at for a strikeout, but the ball skittered away from catcher Cameron Fisher (2019, Knoxville, Tenn.). The lead runner on the play attempted to move up to third, but the Ole Miss commit fired a strike to third to nail the runner, bringing eXposure an out away from victory.

Cook got the final out on a ground ball right at the bag at first, sealing the deal for eXposure and setting up a championship game that is expected to be just as competitive as the action on Thursday was.

Montijo finished with six strikeouts and just two hits allowed in his six-plus innings of work, outdueling Ayala, who struck out 10 in five innings and also allowed just two hits and the lone run of the game, which was unearned to pick up the tough-luck loss for the Banditos.
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