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PG Series  | PG Series Classic  | 8/6/2018

PG Series crowns 7 champions

Bryan Cooney     
Photo: Alex Ulloa (Perfect Game)

2018 PG Series Classic Championships
10u | 11u | 12u | 13u | 14u | Freshman | Sophomore


FORT MYERS, Fla. – In its fourth year in its existence, the PG Series expanded to offering seven age groups to come together for competition in Fort Myers, Fla., with regions fighting it out for the championship belt given to the winners.

The invite-only  PG Series had offered tournaments from 11u all the way up to its Sophomore Series, but in 2018, 10u players got the chance to test their skills in the PG Series Classic. All participants are able to partake in the PG Series Classic Challenge prior get to playing in games contested between teams created among players from the same region.

Skill testing that allowed players to display their arm strength, exit velocity, speed, agility and reaction were conducted in the midst off all Series participants. They take part in game action to provide the best of both worlds when it comes to what Perfect Game tournaments provide for players looking to see where they can improve upon aspects that can lift their game to a different level as they continue to develop.

With coaches from across the country making the trip to Southwest Florida to get the opportunity to work with players of different age groups, the combination of bringing together kids with coaches with vast college experience made the trip worthwhile for its participants.

One of the coaches who ventured into the PG Series experience for the first time was Cliff Howe, the head coach of Macomb Community College outside of Detroit, Mich. Howe got to work with the Team Deep South in the 13u division and guided Team Southeast to the championship in the Sophomore Series on Sunday. For Howe, the experience of getting to work with two age levels of players was an eye-opener for how far the game has come in the youth ranks.

“I was very impressed with the caliber of players from this sophomore class entering their junior year,” Howe said. “There’s some talent there. There’s several kids that I definitely could see getting a chance to play professionally.”

Howe, who is also an associate scout for the Texas Rangers in the Ohio and Michigan region, is a big believer in youth baseball and knows that the stages of development a player will go through from each age group is important. Having been around the game at a high level as a player and a coach, Howe knows how difficult the transition for younger players can be but stressed the importance of the basics to help his younger players develop as they get older.

“Every year is a different year for these kids, the kids I had in the first week were just making that jump from 60 feet to 90 feet,” Howe added. “You could tell some guys were still adjusting to that, but still it was good to see that many kids had a good foundation of the fundamentals because that what carries over as they add strength and mature.

“That’s when you see the kids turn out like the sophomores I had this week. Both weeks, I had a great experience at a great venue and it’s a great opportunity for these kids to come down to Florida for a week and get some exposure.”

Howe’s Southeast club was victorious Sunday in the championship game as they defeated Team South Florida 5-1 with starting pitcher James Reece (2020, Tunnel Hill, Ga.) working six strong innings of one-run ball while striking out five.

Dalton Pearson (2020, Johns Creek, Ga.) was the star offensively for the champions in the final as he collected two doubles and scored a pair of runs finishing with a 3-for-3 performance at the plate.

For the week, Charles (Cj) Harrison (2020, Winder, Ga.) was a force on the mound and at the plate for Team Southeast as the righthander struck out 16 batters in 10 2/3 innings and batted .429 (6-for-14) to garner MV-Player honors.

South Florida’s Chase Senecal (2020, Jupiter, Fla.) starred on the mound for the week as the righthander went 9 1/3 innings and didn’t allow a single run as he allowed just three hits and struck out seven hitters over two appearances. One of those was a complete game shutout in South Florida’s semifinal victory over Team North to help his team reach the championship game.

In the Freshman Series, team Coastal’s roster consisted of multiple players who won the championship in the 14u division last summer and they pitched their way to a title again this summer. Their 5-0 victory over Team West in the championship capped off a week that saw the pitching staff surrender just four runs in six games.

In the championship game, North Carolina State commit Brandon Hudson (2021, Waxhaw, N.C.) worked six-plus scoreless innings to help send Coastal to victory. Aaron Keel (2020, Cedar Point, N.C.) was 2-for-2 at the plate with a double and two RBI to lead the way offensively.

Mark Marino, who has coached six of the players on this year’s Coastal roster the last three years in the Series events throughout the years, lauded the efforts of Hudson in the title game after making adjustments during the week after starting the week with a start on the mound that was shaky and halted by rain.

“Brandon was able to adjust to some constructive criticism and really listened to what I was seeing earlier in the week,” Marino said. “For him to adjust on the fly in such a short span was really impressive and I was really happy for him to throw like that in the championship game. North Carolina State is getting a good one.”

For the week, Timothy Pate (2021, Fuquay Varina, N.C.) swung that bat well with hits in five of the six contests for Coastal and finished with a .462 average (6-for-13) with five RBI to collect MV-Player honors.

With a roster that shows four players already committed to Power 5 Division I schools, Marino still harped on the basics that carried his team to the title that keyed their success.

“Pitching and defense win championships and to give up just four runs in six games and throw four shutouts in those games is very impressive regardless of who you’re playing,” Marino said. “This was a really competitive group and having six of these kids the last three years, it’s been very cool for me to see their progression. I try to hold them accountable to play the game the right way and they certainly did that and I had a lot of fun watching them win.”

For Team West, Brian Uribe (2021, Camarillo, Ca.) had an impressive showing on the mound over two starts as he tossed 11 innings and collected 13 strikeouts and finished with a 1.30 ERA to earn MV-Pitcher honors for the week.

Pitching was also a key for the 14u Series champion as Team Gulf Coast allowed nine runs in their six-game unbeaten run to the championship as they defeated Team California 5-1 in the final.

MV-Pitcher of the tournament Patch Lyman (2022, Mountain Brook, Ala.) tossed five shutout innings in the final to add to a three-inning performance earlier in the week that saw him strike out six batters to lead the way for Gulf Coast.

Trevor Allan (2022, Panama City, Fla.) had a two-run double in the fourth inning to blow the game open for Gulf Coast and tournament MV-Player Nicolaus Litke (2021, Tallahassee, Fla.) finished his tournament with a 2-for-3 day in the final as he batted .643 (9-for-14) with three doubles and seven RBI.

In the 13u Series, it took extra innings for Team Mid-South to pull out an 11-5 victory over Team Southeast to earn the championship with big hits in the eighth inning coming off the bats of Reece Jordan (2023, Apison, Tenn.), who singled in two runs, and Owen Smith (2023, Colfax, N.C.), who blew the game open with a three-run double.

Mid-South exacted some revenge on Southeast after an earlier defeat in pool play during the week and were aided in large part due to the work of MV-Pitcher Ethan Robinson (2023, Antioch, Tenn.). Robinson worked five strong innings in a semifinal win over Virginia to lead his team to the championship game, collecting 12 strikeouts over eight innings of work across two appearances for the week.

Southeast’s Cooper Milford (2023, Cumming, Ga.) was a menace at the plate for opposing pitchers as he batted .643 (9-for-14) with five extra-base hits and 11 RBI to secure MV-Player honors for the tournament.

The 12u division saw another group of youngsters from team Coastal come away with a championship as they defeated Team North 5-1 in the final. Will Wyles (2023, Williamsburg, Va.) struck out nine batters in 5 2/3 innings to pick up the victory.

Coastal’s Nigel Robinson (2023, High Point, N.C.) was a tough out all week and created havoc on the basepaths as he collected six hits in 10 at-bats with three doubles and stole seven bases to earn the MV-Player award for the week.

For the runner-ups, John DiMarsico (2024, Severna Park, Md.) was outstanding across two outings on the mound as the lefthander struck out 11 hitters over 7 1/3 innings while allowing a run on three hits to earn MV-Pitcher honors for team North.

In the 11u championship game, team North was picked up by a terrific combined pitching effort on the mound from Dominick Patruno (2024, Woodside, N.Y.) and the tournament’s MV-Player, Logan Charboneau (2024, East Haven, Conn.), who each worked three innings to help North defeat the Southeast team 2-1 for the title.

Charboneau went 2-for-3 with a double and scored both runs for North in the championship game, finishing with a .600 average (7-for-15) at the plate for the week. He also collected six strikeouts in five innings on the mound.

For the runner-ups, Tyler Hughesman (2024, Mooresville, N.C.) had a great week on the mound as the righthander struck out seven batters over 6 2/3 scoreless innings over two appearances to help lead Southeast to the championship game and earn MV-Pitcher honors for the tournament.

The inaugural 10u edition of the PG Series resulted in a sublime championship game performance from team Florida’s Landon Ide (2025, Estero, Fla.). Ide struck out 10 hitters in 4 1/3 innings and went 3-for-4 at the plate with a triple, two RBI and three runs scored to lead Florida past team North, 10-1.

Ide finished the tournament went 16 strikeouts in 6 1/3 innings on the mound across two appearances and batted .733 (11-for-15) with eight RBI to secure MV-Player honors for the week.

He was not the only pitcher to have a gaudy performance for team Florida as Bode Handwork (2025, Merritt Island, Fla.) spun a complete game gem earlier in the tournament. Handwork allowed just two hits and didn’t walk a batter while striking out 13 batters against team Puerto Rico and was tabbed as the tournament’s MV-Pitcher for his efforts.
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