BURLINGTON, N.C. – The 2026 Collegiate National Team opened its exhibition slate on Saturday at Burlington Athletic Stadium in Burlington, North Carolina. The Stars began the day with a 9-1 victory over the Greeneville Flyboys, while the Stripes closed out the doubleheader with a 6-1 win over the Burlington Sock Puppets.
Stars 9, Greeneville Flyboys 1
- Stars starting pitcher Aidan King set the tone early, striking out the side in the bottom of the first and adding two more strikeouts in the second, recording two shutout innings and five total strikeouts. The Stars broke through in the third as a walk and an Anthony Pack Jr. single put two runners on before Derrick Pitts opened the scoring with an RBI double to right field. Gavin Kelly followed with an RBI single to left, giving the Stars a 2-0 lead.
- Wylan Moss took over the mound in the fourth and struck out two in his first inning of work. The Stars extended their lead in the fifth as two walks and a Ryker Waite single loaded the bases for Pack Jr., who launched a grand slam to right field to give his team a commanding 6-0 lead.
- Moss added another strikeout in a scoreless fifth, finishing his outing with three strikeouts over two innings while allowing just one hit and one walk.
- The Flyboys scored their lone run in the sixth on an RBI double, but the Stars answered immediately in the seventh. Waite led off with a single, Thomas Ealey reached on an error, and Landon Hairston brought home a run with a sacrifice fly to center. Kelly followed with an RBI double to push the lead to 8-1.
- Walker Hooks, Jackson Sanders and Jackson Barberi each worked 1-2-3 frames to close out the game. The trio combined for four strikeouts.
- The Stars added one final insurance run in the ninth when Hairston hit his second sacrifice fly of the game to center field, scoring a runner from third to make it 9-1. The Flyboys were unable to cut the deficit, sealing the Stars’ 9-1 victory.
Stripes 6, Burlington Sock Puppets 1
- The Stripes struck first in the top of the opening frame when Nico Partida doubled before Hogan Denny sent a two-run home run to center field, giving them a 2-0 lead.
- The Sock Puppets got on the board in the second after an error allowed a runner to score from third, cutting the deficit to 2-1.
- Partida answered in the top of the third, leading off the inning with a solo home run to left field to extend the Stripes’ lead to 3-1.
- Ethan Lund took over in relief in the third and struck out two in a 1-2-3 inning before tallying two more strikeouts in another perfect frame in the fourth.
- The Stripes added to their lead in the fifth with a pair of runs. A leadoff walk and a Partida single put two runners aboard before a wild pitch brought home the first run. A Burlington error by the shortstop allowed another run to score, making it 5-1.
- Adding another insurance run in the sixth, Chris Ramirez drew a leadoff walk and later scored on a dropped third strike and throwing error by the pitcher, extending the lead to 6-1.
- Cameron Appenzeller, Marcelo Harsch, Zach Strickland, and Joshua Whritenour each threw one shutout inning to close out the 6-1 victory, combining for six strikeouts.
Up next, USA Baseball’s Collegiate National Team Training Camp will take the field at American Legion Post 325 Field in Danville, Virginia, on Sunday for a doubleheader. The Stars will face the Johnson City Doughboys at 1:00 p.m. ET and the Stripes will play the Danville Otterbots at 5:30 p.m. ET.
