THE WORLD'S LARGEST AND MOST COMPREHENSIVE SCOUTING ORGANIZATION
|
1,511
MLB PLAYERS |
12,794
MLB DRAFT SELECTIONS
1,511
MLB PLAYERS |
12,794
MLB DRAFT SELECTIONS
Players
Teams
Events
Sign in
Create Account
×
Sign in
User Email
Password
Forgot password?
Toggle navigation
Sign in
Events
EVENT TYPES
Full Event Schedule
Showcases
Tournaments
PG Series
Girls' FastPitch
Leagues
Youth Tournaments
PG in Your State
SPECIAL EVENTS
PG All-American Classic
14U PGSBF
|
13U PGSBF
|
12U PGSBF
FEATURED
2021 WWBA National Championships
2021 PG World Series
2021 PG Invitational National Championship
PG SOFTBALL
Rankings
PLAYER RANKINGS
HS Class of 2021
HS Class of 2022
HS Class of 2023
HS Class of 2024
HS Class of 2025
HS State Rankings
College Player Rankings
Draft Player Rankings
Rankings Portal
TEAM RANKINGS
High School Top 50
TRAVEL TEAM RANKINGS
18U
National
|
Regional
17U
National
|
Regional
16U
National
|
Regional
15U
National
|
Regional
14U
National
|
Regional
13U
National
|
Regional
12U
National
|
Regional
11U
National
|
Regional
10U
National
|
Regional
COLLEGE RANKINGS
2021 Preview Index
Division I Top 25
Division II Top 50
Division III Top 25
NAIA Top 25
JUCO Top 25
Recruiting Class Rankings
TOP RANKED PLAYERS
2021 - Jordan Lawlar
2022 - Elijah Green
2023 - Thomas White
2024 - Derek Curiel
PG Rawlings Preseason All American
Preseason All American
Preseason Underclass All American
TOP RANKED TEAMS
Division I - Louisville
HS - IMG Academy, FL
17U - Canes National 17
16U - Team Elite 16u Scout Team
RECRUITING
RECRUITING MENU
Advanced Search
College Commitments
College Interests
College Portal
Uncommitted Prospects
Recruiting Class Rankings
Recommend a Prospect
EVENT RESULTS
Showcase Results
Tournament Results
Top Event Performers
All-Time Event Records
Content
PG EVENT CONTENT
Showcase Articles
Tournament Articles
PG Player Features
All Articles
HIGH SCHOOL CONTENT
High School Portal
Top 50 HS Teams
2021 Preview Content
Scout Blogs
PG HS Showdown
Preseason All-Americans
Preseason Underclass All-Americans
All HS Content
MLB DRAFT CONTENT
Draft Portal
Draft Player Rankings
PG Draft Pick Database
MLB Draft Order
All Draft Content
COLLEGE CONTENT
College Portal
2021 Preview Content
College Top 25
College Player Reports
All College Content
RECENT ARTICLES
Weekend Preview: Week 9
Summer Preview: 2025 Catchers
JUCO Notebook: April 15
Scouting Notebook: North Carolina
ALUMNI
PG ALUMNI
MLB Players
Drafted Players
College Commitments
MLB Player of the Day
Apr 15, 21
Nick Solak
Rangers
3-5, 1 HR, 2 RBI, 2 R
NOTABLE MLB PLAYERS
Bryce Harper
Christian Yelich
Javier Baez
Gerrit Cole
Manny Machado
Carlos Correa
Mike Trout
Nolan Arenado
Cody Bellinger
Francisco Lindor
Alex Bregman
Freddie Freeman
PG CARES
DEVELOPMENT
About
About Perfect Game
About PG
Testimonials
PG Athlete Safety Program
Job Opportunities
PG Facilities
Staff Directory
FAQ
Shop
×
PERFECT
GAME
.TV
Tournaments
| Story | 10/12/2019
SC Panthers fit to be tied
Jeff Dahn
Photo: Cooper King (Perfect Game)
JUPITER, Fla. – It’s a phrase that’s been uttered time and time again throughout the history of athletic competition, even if in this age of extra innings, overtimes and sudden-death finishes it’s not quite as relevant as it once might have been.
But it is relevant during pool-play games at Perfect Game tournaments throughout the year, and it goes a little something like this: “Settling for a tie is a little like kissing your sister” which is meant in the context that a tie doesn’t offer any palpable reward – except when it does.
The South Charlotte Panthers 2020 and the Scorpions Honor the Game skirmished to a 0-0 tie in their pool-play finale at the PG WWBA World Championship on Saturday morning in front of dozens of scout-laden golf carts, an outcome that handed the pool championship to the Panthers based on tie-breaking criteria.
South Charlotte outscored its three pool-play opponents by a combined 15-4 compared to Honor the Game’s 13-5 cumulative total. That runs-against differential was good enough for the Panthers to earn the automatic bid into Sunday’s 32-team playoff field; the Scorpions Honor the Game earned one of the nine wild card berths into bracket-play.
“We had scouted (the Scorpions) a couple of times and we knew they were an outstanding ballclub with some real competitive kids and they played the game the right way,” long-time South Charlotte program owner/head coach Don Hutchins told PG postgame on Saturday.
“Most times ties do feel like kissing your sister, but this one really didn’t because … we threw the ball really, really well, they threw the ball really, really well,” he said. “There was some offense but not a lot, and at the end of the day we come out at 0-0 and that moves us into tomorrow and the playoffs, which is what you come down here to do.”
There wasn’t a lot of offense because the pitchers from both sides who took their turns on the mound were nothing short of stellar.
Cooper King
got the start for South Charlotte and did absolutely everything that could have been expected of him. A 6-foot-3, 180-pound top-500 2020 right-hander and a North Carolina State commit, King worked five sparkling, shutout innings, allowing just two hits while striking out six and walking one.
He threw just 73 pitches, watched his fastball reach 90 mph and was especially effective with his 73 mph slider.
“That was a really good team … and they were playing, like, awesome,” King told PG postgame. “They had a lot of energy at 8 a.m. and we came out and played really good defense. We didn’t hit much but we did enough to keep the pressure on and it was just a really good game.
“It felt good out there,” he added. “The slider was working well; I was really able to get into my legs and throw it kind of hard.”
King gave way to
Cameron Arnold
, a top-500 2020 left-hander and another N.C. State commit – there are seven on the Panthers 2020 roster – and he didn’t miss a beat. Arnold finished it off with two hitless, scoreless innings of relief with three strikeouts and one walk.
South Charlotte managed just four hits, two more than the Honor the Game squad. 2022 No. 138-ranked middle-infielder
Parker Byrd
tripled and
Aiden Evans
,
Jacob Cozart
and
Carson Kelly
each rapped singles.
“They did a great job pitching, both Cooper and Cameron; they dealed the whole game,” Byrd said. “We were just trying to get them some runs.”
Many of the players on the Scorpions Honor the Game also played on the Scorpions 2021 Founders Club team that finished as runner-up at last week’s PG WWBA Underclass World Championship in Fort Myers, so they were used to playing in pressure situations.
2021 right-hander
Tj Melani
got the start for the Scorps and matched King’s effort for five innings, allowing the four hits while striking out nine and walking one.
Brandon Neely
, another 2021 righty, threw two perfect innings, striking out two. They did their part but neither side was able to push across a run.
The South Charlotte Panthers 2020 reached this point of the tournament by beating the PG Navy Select, 11-1, in its pool-play opener and the fabled Ohio Warhawks, 4-3, in their second game. Outstanding performances from the mound carried the day earlier in the week just like they did on Saturday.
2020 right-hander
Rhett Lowder
, a top-500 Wake Forest commit, allowed one earned run on three hits with seven punch-outs in the win over the PG Navy. 2021 righty
Jake Hunter
, a No. 431-ranked East Carolina recruit, gave up one earned run on four hits with five strikeouts in six innings of work against the Warhawks.
“We lined-up out pitchers at the beginning of pool-play; we knew we needed to throw our best guys,” Hutchins said. “We just lined them up and they came through for us.
Rhett Lowder
led off the first game for us against Perfect Game Navy and threw a great game.
“He’s probably our number-one arm and they may not have been our number-one competitor, but I’ve been coming down here for 20 years and I’m a big believer in you’ve got to win that first one and go forward.”
While the Scorpions Honor the Game was recognized from the outset as an underclass team, the South Charlotte Panthers 2020 could by all rights be identified as an underclass team, as well.
The starting lineup featured the 2022 Byrd at second base, the 2022 Evans in center, 2022
Matt Heavner
at short, 2022
Graham Smiley
as the designated hitter, 2021
Carson Kelly
at third and 2021
Sam Yelton
at catcher.
“We’ve got a very young team this year,” Hutchins noted. “We just have the three teams – that’s all I ever have – and we just made the decision to roll with what we thought was our best guys in the program.”
Byrd agreed: “All these boys are great; it’s the best of the organization,” he said. “We’ve had a lot of fun these past three days and now we’re looking forward to the next day.”
As he gets ready to prepare his players for what lies ahead on Sunday, Hutchins took a moment to look back at Thursday morning when the Panthers beat the Rawlings National Scout Team-Sticks, 4-2, in an exhibition game.
It might not have seemed very important to casual observers at the time, but in reality it was all part of Hutchins’ master plan.
“We kind of have to go into (pool-play) thinking that we’re not going to bring kids down here and then (not) give them a chance to be on the mound,” he said. “Luckily enough we played an exhibition game … and we were able to put three or four of those guys in. All of those guys will be ready (Sunday) with very limited work; it’s a win-win.”
Before the South Charlotte Panthers 2020 even arrived here on Florida’s central Atlantic Coast, Hutchins gathered his young team together and tried to give them an idea of what to expect at the PG WWBA World Championship. His message, it turned out, was a simple one.
“He just told us to go out and try to win,” Byrd said. “He told us these boys are going to throw hard (and) there’s going to be some really good teams out here so just go out and compete and do your best. … Just take a two-strike approach and get your job done.”
The South Charlotte Panthers 2020 may have figuratively kissed their sisters Saturday morning, but they’re in a good place now because of it. They’re playing at least one more meaningful game on Sunday, and that gives everyone a reason to smile.
“I love Perfect Game tournaments,” King said. “This is something you’re working for all throughout the season and now that you’re here it’s pretty cool.”
Give us your feedback
RELATED ARTICLES
14u Florida Elite Scout Notes
Select Festival alum Jacob Kendall continued to swing a hot stick and finished the tournament with an incredible .700 batting average as our scouts look at some standouts from the Florida Elite Championship.
SoCal Showdown Scout Notes
Ethan Porter, a 2025 from Costa Mesa, Calif., is an intriguing two-way prospect. He showed his abilities both on the mound and at the plate this weekend at the SoCal Showdown.
14u Backyard Brawl Scout Notes
Scout notes are now available for the Perfect Game 14u Backyard Brawl, held in Atlanta over the weekend.
Texas Twelve Takes South Spring WS
Texas Twelve 14u Black dominated at the Perfect Game South Spring World Series, tacking on 11 runs in the championship game to cruise to a victory. Justin Michaelis won MVP honors, while teammate Dane Perry took home the MV-Pitcher award.
SHOP PERFECT GAME
HEADWEAR
SHIRTS
SHORTS
LIFESTYLE
HOODIES
GLOVES
About Perfect Game
::
Contact us
::
Terms of Use
::
Privacy Policy
::
Testimonials
::
Job Opportunities
PG Athlete Safety Program
COVID-19 Update
Event Guidelines
Message from Jerry Ford
Copyright 1994-
2021
by Perfect Game. All rights reserved. No portion of this information may be reprinted or reproduced without the written consent of Perfect Game.