The quarterfinals round of the 14U Champs NC tournament kicked off on Thursday. Four teams kept their gold medal hopes alive, and slapped their stickers into the semifinals. Read below to catch up on all of today’s action.
ZT National Prospects 5, SBA Bolts National 3
A close, hard-fought matchup between ZT National Prospects and SBA Bolts National saw ZT walk out with the win. SBA Bolts struck first in the opening frame. Kayden Lucas drew an opening walk, and ultimately worked his way to third base before scoring on a pick-off attempt to first base. ZT responded an inning later, squaring the game at one thanks to an RBI single from Micah Delos Reyes. ZT began to break away in the fourth and shot out to a 5-1 lead. Four singles and a fielder’s choice saw ZT’s first five batters of the inning reach safely. SBA answered in the fifth, when Lucas roped an RBI single and quickly advanced to third in the process. A defensive miscue from ZT allowed Lucas to score and make it a 5-3 ballgame. That score would hold up the rest of the way, and ZT sealed the deal on a double play in the seventh.
Canes National 7, TBT Phillies Scout 6
A back-and-forth contest made for an instant classic in a thrilling, walk-off win for Canes National. TBT Phillies got the scoring started in the second inning following a double from Kingston George and an RBI single from Jhunior Cordero to take an early 1-0 lead. TBT struck again in the third, putting up another run off of a Luca Briggs RBI sac fly. Continuing to put the pressure on, TBT added another pair of runs in the fourth to take a 4-0 edge. In the bottom half of the fourth, Canes National broke through thanks to a two-RBI single from Walker McCrory and a wild pitch, cutting the deficit to 4-3. In the sixth, the Canes strung together three singles, with the third tying the game at four. Later in the inning, an RBI ground out from Ellis Kelley gave Canes National their first lead of the game. However, TBT wouldn’t go away quietly; a leadoff double to begin the final frame followed by a hit batsman allowed for a Kolt Hampton RBI single to even out the game once more. A batter later, Briggs came through with his second RBI of the game, putting TBT back in front going into the bottom half of the inning. Leading off the inning for Canes National, Holden Howard smacked a massive home run over the right field wall to square the game. The Canes emerged victorious thanks to a crucial defensive miscue which brought Corbin Little home in dramatic fashion.
USA Prime National 5, Wow Factor National 0
USA Prime dominated in a shutout performance over Wow Factor National. All five runs were accumulated in the bottom of the first inning. Noah Osterman kept his hot offense going, leading off with a single for USA Prime. Superb plate discipline by USA Prime saw four consecutive walks to take a 2-0 lead. Easton Mauler roped an RBI single up the middle which brought in two more runs. The final run of the contest was delivered by Ashton Aguailar on an RBI sac fly to cement a 5-0 advantage. On the defensive side, starting pitcher Luke Rohlfs pitched a gem, throwing a complete game with nine strikeouts, two hits, and no runs to advance his squad into the semifinals.
PRD 9, Furia National 4
PRD rounded out an exciting slate of quarterfinals matchups with a 9-4 victory over Furia National. PRD wasted no time getting on the board. Cash Kelly singled as the leadoff batter and followed by stealing second. Dean Conway reached on a defensive miscue which allowed Kelly to advance home and crack open an early 1-0 lead for PRD. Keeping the momentum rolling in the following inning, PRD added three more runs to take a commanding 4-0 lead. Antonio Ciccone IV roped a double, followed by Teddy Thanopoulos’ RBI single. Jaden Godette drew a walk and then Ernesto Juarez knocked in a two-RBI single. In the top of the fourth, Furia National found some life, and squared the game at four apiece. Using a combination of singles, walks, and hit batsman, Furia found themselves back in the game. It was all PRD the remainder of the contest. The following half inning, PRD regained the lead, when Juarez hit an RBI single, followed by Conway’s two-RBI double to take a 7-4 advantage. Thanopoulos put the game out of reach with a two-RBI triple in the fifth to help PRD advance to the semifinals.
