The first day of the 12U/14U National Team Identification Series (NTIS) Champions Cup is in the books. Check out the day one action that took place in Cary for both age groups.
Due to inclement weather earlier in the week, Thursday's action for the 12U event was rescheduled.
14U NTIS CHAMPIONS CUP ROUNDUP
SOUTHEAST STRIPES 9, MIDWEST STARS 7
Making big waves in the third inning, headlined by a Jason Spray Jr. double that brought home three runs, the Midwest Stars put up six runs off five hits, jumping out to a big advantage. The Southeast Stripes responded in the bottom frame of the third, scoring two runs. Getting a huge inning in the bottom of the fourth, Southeast Stripes put up seven runs with RBI singles from Joe Colvin and Parker Deese, helping lead the Southeast Stripes over the Midwest Stars.
SOUTHEAST STARS 16, NORTHWEST STARS 5
Southeast Stars came out hot by scoring two runs in the first frame, headlined by an RBI single from Booker Benjamin to give Southeast Stars an early 2-0 lead. In the third frame, the Southeast Stars increased their run total to nine, including clutch hitting from MJ Santana-Riley and Devon Clay, each recording an RBI, with Santana-Riley tying for the team high with two. A solid outing from Trindon Baker solidified the Southeast Stars' win, going 0.2 hitless innings to close out the game.
SOUTHWEST STARS 15, MIDWEST STRIPES 9
Getting things started for Midwest Stripes in the top of the first frame, Cameron Favilla drove in the first run of the game on an RBI groundout. Josiah Lavea-Aldridge of Southwest Stars went 2-for-4 with three RBIs to tie for the team high in RBIs with Lucas Salas, who went a perfect 2-for-2. The Southwest Stars built a lead that was too much to come back from as the Midwest Stars attempted a late rally, scoring six runs in the sixth, but ultimately fell short.
NORTHWEST STRIPES 15, NORTHEAST STRIPES 4
Tallying 15 hits total in the game, Northwest Stripes put up an impressive 15-run performance to pick up the win against the Northeast Stripes. Scoring five runs in the top of the second, the Northeast Stripes were unable to keep up with the fast-paced offense of the Northwest Stripes. Johnny Lee and Jakob Marinaccio both recorded two hits in the game, which was a team high. A four-run sixth inning all but sealed it for the Northwest Stripes, winning by an impressive nine-run margin.
SOUTHWEST STRIPES 8, SOUTH STARS 3
Carried to the finish line by way of a six-run second inning, the Southwest Stripes finished off an all-around performance with a clean seventh inning. Using five hits in the second inning with a bases-clearing triple from Mattias DiMaggio headlining the inning. The Southwest Stars scored their last two runs of the game in the following frame, which included a sacrifice fly from Bryant Ju and an RBI single from Jonah Hargrave to secure the win.
NORTHEAST STARS 16, SOUTH STRIPES 6
The Northeast Stars jumped out to an early lead putting up six runs in the bottom of the first, countering the South Stripes lone run. The Northeast Stars put up an impressive seven runs in the bottom of the fourth leading to a stout lead. Good outings from Braylon Rodgers and Ryne Aimone helped the Northeast Stars carry the lead to the finish line.
