643
DP Cougars Pralgo come out on top
EMERSON,
Ga. – Wednesday marked the championship day for the 2015 WWBA
National Championship Qualifiers, as four final teams for both age
groups (16u and 17u) stepped on the field with high hopes of winning
a paid invitation to the WWBA National Championship in July. The
round of semifinal games were full of drama and two of them even
ended in walkoff wins.
The
eventual 17u runner-up Mizuno Rebels came back from a three-run
deficit with two outs in the final inning of their semifinal game to
earn a spot in the 17u championship against the 643 DP Cougars
Pralgo, who would prove to be the best team in this competition.
The
643 DP Cougars, led by Coach Danny Pralgo, went a perfect 5-0 in pool
play and their playoff games were no different. Their quarterfinal
against Troy Post 70 was their closest game, as they barely escaped
with a 5-4 win. Their semifinal win was less interesting, as they
handled the GBSA Rays 7-1. Their game against the Rays featured
consistent hitting all the way through, and the Cougars finished with
10 hits. Their hot bats would continue into the championship game
against the Mizuno Rebels.
They
started off that first inning hot with a hit batter and a bunt for a
base hit. What followed was another bunt; as you can tell, the 643
program has this whole bunting thing down. They put an extreme amount
of pressure on Rebels when they were on the basepaths, and that would
only continue as the game progressed.
The
Cougars are dangerously good at getting runners into scoring
position, and they know that once the man is in position he is most
likely going to score. When you watch these guys play, you can sense
the confidence that they have at the plate with runners in scoring
position. They find the holes better than almost any team. It didn’t
help the Rebels that their starting pitcher couldn’t find the zone
in the beginning, but they quickly put in a reliever that was able to
slow down the Cougars. Unfortunately for the Mizuno Rebels the
pitching change simply wasn’t enough as the game finished with the
Cougars on top, 6-0.
Patrick
McDonald of the 643 Cougars was honored with the MV-Pitcher award. In
many of the games, McDonald made a difference with his bat, but it
would be his work on the mound that earned him this coveted award. He
relied heavily on his fastball, but when he needed a strikeout, his
breaking ball was devastating. In six innings he allowed two earned
runs and had 14 strikeouts. Not to mention, he also hit .476.
“My
go-to pitch was my fastball; I was locating that very well,”
McDonald said. “When I was ahead in the count, I would come with my
curveball, and that was getting me strikeouts, but I wanted to live
and die by my fastball.
“I
was surprised by the competition this week. The team that we played
in the finals had only let up two runs in pool play, so we knew it
would tough to score runs in this game. This tournament was big for
us because we got a lot of players back that we had been missing this
summer. Those guys really added the extra push we needed to win this
qualifier.”
Nicholas
Webre of the Mizuno Rebels would not go unnoticed in this tournament
as he won the MVP award. Webre was phenomenal this week and provided
a spark at the top of the lineup that the Rebels needed. Webre had
three hits in the championship game and finished with a .500 batting
average, a .654 on-base percentage, six RBI, and a home run.
“I
was looking to hit the ball the other way every time,” said an
excited Webre. “When you try to pull it, you end up coming off the
ball and not making solid contact, so I just wanted to make sure I
was hitting it up the middle or away.
“That
away approach was big for me this week. When I have that approach, I
hit better. Our mindset this week was to just improve as a team.
We’re proud of what we accomplished this week.”
The
643 organization has been in the final four of almost every
tournament this summer. They are certainly creating a reputation as
one of the best teams in the nation, but Coach Pralgo wants to make
sure that these guys stay humble.
The
Cougars have big tournaments coming up for the rest of the summer,
including the 17u WWBA National Championship that they just won a
paid invitation to. As long as they can keep up this winning attitude
and humble mindset, there is a chance that they could be winning many
more championships.
“This
tournament was a total team effort,” said Coach Pralgo. “All of
our pitchers contributed and threw strikes and let our defense play
behind them. We were able to manufacture runs when we needed them and
win some ball games. Anytime you can finish a tournament strong, it
builds confidence.
“We
do this so these kids can enjoy the game and achieve their future
goals, and these guys are really showing their ability to play great
baseball. The road only gets harder and the competition only gets
better, so we just have to stay humble and focused.”
2015
17u WWBA National Championship Qualifier runnerup: Mizuno Rebels
2015
17u WWBA National Championship Qualifier MVP: Nicholas Webre
2015
17u WWBA National Championship Qualifier MV-Pitcher: Patrick McDonald
643
DP Cougars Sterling take home 16u trophy
The
Dallas Dodgers and the 643 DP Cougars, led by coach Ryan Sterling,
squared off Wednesday afternoon in the 16u WWBA National Championship
Qualifier title game. This title game was one for the books, and it
may have been the most exciting game of the entire tournament. It
started off slow, and for a little bit, it looked like the Cougars
would have this win in the bag. But the Dodgers had other ideas.
The
game started off with the Cougars taking the lead in the second
inning, but the Dodgers would answer back, the last time they would
do so until the last inning of the ball game.
This
particular 643 team is a team that comes at you quick. They don’t
waste any time putting runners on, and once they’re on, you better
believe that they will be moving them over with a little bit of small
ball. They even successfully executed a suicide squeeze in the fifth
inning that gave them yet another run.
At
the beginning of this game, the story was the errors that the Dodgers
were making and how the Cougars were taking advantage of them. The
end of the game is when the real drama came in, when the Dodgers made
a last inning push to get them a walkoff win. They scraped away run
after run, until they finally tied it up and sent the game to extras.
The
Dodgers were all too used to the situation of coming back from behind
in the last inning, seeing as they walked off twice during this
tournament. They were hoping that the third time would be charm in
this championship game, but the Cougars came back in the top of the
eighth inning and put up two runs to make the score 9-7. That is how
the game would finish, and the 643 DP Cougars 16u Sterling would be
crowned champions.
“I
was looking for first pitch fastballs, and just hoping to drive the
first one that came across the plate,” said Drew Walters, who was
named the event's Most Valuable Player. “In the cages I was trying
to stay on the ball and try not to pull off of it. Really, I was
trying to get to that left-center gap for extra-base hits in order to
put my team in a better position to win.
“We
faced both hard pitching and slow pitching but we seemed to adjust to
both. I think this tournament is good for us because our pool game
that we lost had us low, but we battled back and were able to come
back and win the whole thing.”
The
Dodgers had a shining star of their own; Jake Lyons. Jake Lyons was
great in the innings that he pitched, and any time that he takes the
mound the Dodgers have a good chance to win the game. Lyons has an
intimidating stature and a deceptive motion that many hitters had
trouble with. He was called upon to start a very important semifinal
game in which he threw a complete game in which he struck out eight
and only allowed one run. The game finished 2-1, so holding that
sliver of a lead on such a large stage is definitely Most Valuable
Pitcher caliber play.
“My
fastball was great this weekend,” exclaimed Lyons. “I was really
dialed in with that pitch and anytime I brought in on the hands, they
couldn’t touch it.”
“My
main goal was to attack the zone consistently. I really mentally
prepared for this week, so anytime that I was put in a pressure
situation, I was able to relax. Moving forward, I think if we keep
playing this good of competition, I think our team is going to be
very good.”
This
tournament was big for the Cougars, and coach Sterling was very proud
of the way that his guys were able to take adversity and turn it into
fuel for winning ball games. They came into this tournament very
confident, but their confidence was a bit shaken when they lost their
pool game against Team Combat Aces. Once this team knew that their
back was against the wall, they stepped up their game and played with
a sense of urgency that was unmatched.
“We
slipped up in pool play and it really gave us an itch,” said
Sterling. “We got lucky to be in the playoffs, so we did not want
to waste this opportunity.
“Anytime
you win a tournament, it is special, but I think this tournament was
a culmination of everything we have been trying to do this summer.
Moving forward, we now have a sense of confidence that has been
lacking, but we need to stay humble. This tournament is just a
stepping stone to get better.”
2015
16u WWBA National Championship Qualifier champions: 643 DP Cougars
Sterling
2015
16u WWBA National Championship Qualifier runnerup: Dallas Dodgers
Black 16u
2015
16u WWBA National Championship Qualifier MVP: Drew Walters
2015
16u WWBA National Championship Qualifier MV-Pitcher: Jake Lyons
