CARY, N.C. – The first day of the 12U/14U NTIS Champions Cup is complete, and it delivered plenty of exciting moments. The day was highlighted by big offensive outings, strong pitching performances, and a walk-off win. Read up on the top moments from Cary.
WILLIAMS GOES GRAND
14U Southeast Stripes’ Landon Williams came up clutch for his team in its 17-2 win over the South Stars. In the fifth inning with the bases loaded, he hit a line drive to left center field for an inside-the-park grand slam.
FUDURIC DRIVES IN FIVE FOR MIDWEST STARS
14U Midwest Stars’ Johnny Fuduric went 3-for-3 in his team’s opening game of the NTIS Champions Cup. His first hit was a bases-clearing double, while his second and third hits were both RBI singles.
PENA GOES FOR EXTRAS
14U South Stripes’ Alex Pena tallied three hits, and they were all for extra bases. He hit a triple in his first at bat, which was followed by a bases-clearing double and a two-RBI double to drive in a combined five RBIs on the day.
SOUTHWEST TRIO TURNS IN MULTI-RBI OUTINGS
Three players from the 14U Southwest Stripes – Bryant Herdina, Matthew Lobis, and Luke Upton – all had multi-RBI outings in the team’s 14-4 win over the Northwest Stripes. Upton had a game-high three RBIs while Herdina and Lobis had two apiece. The trio combined for seven of the nine RBIs tallied by the squad.
ZACH GREMPKA OR ZACK GRIENKE? 12U RELIEVER NOTCHES EIGHT K’S
One of the best pitching performances from the 12U slate came in relief, as Zach Grempka took the mound for the Midwest Stripes and mowed hitters down for four innings. The young right-hander punched out two batters across his first two innings, then struck out the side in each of his last two frames. His best trip to the bump came in the bottom of the fourth, when he fell one ball short of an immaculate inning and retired the side in 10 pitches.
12U MIDWEST BATS REIGN SUPREME
Both Midwest squads started off strong at 12U NTIS, as the Midwest Stripes racked up 10 hits and 12 runs to beat the Northeast Stripes and the Midwest Stars piled on eight hits and six runs to top the Southeast Stars. Parker Hopp was especially impressive at the plate for the Midwest Stripes; Hopp drove in three runs on two doubles to the gap to propel his team to victory. For the Midwest Stars, a collective effort drove the offense, with six different Stars hitters collecting hits and four Stars driving in runs.
SEVEN PLAYERS POST THREE-HIT DAYS AT THOMAS BROOKS PARK
Harper Luckenbach, Joey Rawlings, Mikey Garza, Alexander Bird, Blake Bachman, Grant Colvin, and Koda Graziadei each notched three hits on the afternoon during 12U action. Luckenback and Rawlings contributed their three base knocks to the 11-hit barrages of the South Stripes and Northeast Stripes, respectively. Meanwhile, the nine combined hits of Garza, Bird, and Bachman pushed the Southwest Stars to a 12-5 victory. Finally, in the last game of the evening, Graziadei’s trio of both hits and RBIs helped the South Stars down Colvin’s Southeast Stripes.
JOSIAH KYLE WALKS IT OFF FOR 12U SOUTH STARS
The 12U opener saved its best game for last, as the South Stars and Southeast Stripes duked it out for six innings in the final game of the day. With the time limit approaching in the bottom of the sixth and the game tied at 5-5, Josiah Kyle stepped to the plate for the South Stars with runners on second and third and the infield in. Kyle showed no signs of feeling the pressure, as he roped a 2-0 pitch up the middle for the walk-off single and a South Stars victory.
