USA Prime National 9, PRD 7
Absolute chaos ensued in the gold medal game to cap off an action-packed week at the 15U North Carolina Championships. USA Prime National won 9-7 in a tale of two halves that included storming back from a 7-0 deficit and using a grand slam to swing the momentum in their favor. The win also marked the USA Prime program’s second gold medal of the summer.
PRD went 2-1 in pool play, and advanced into bracket play as the five seed. In their quarterfinals matchup against CBA/Orioles Scout Team, Mateo Mier delivered a 10-strikeout performance, and a huge seventh inning helped move them into the semifinals. PRD beat ZT National Prospects in a 2025 14U Champs NC championship game rematch 6-3 to advance to their second consecutive gold medal game as a program.
USA Prime National rolled through pool play, going 2-1, and surrendering their lone pool play loss to PRD. Despite the loss, they entered bracket play as the three seed, and topped the Texas Twelve Red Sox 9-3 to advance to the semifinals against SBA Bolts National. A late rally put them ahead for good, and the USA Prime program advanced to its second championship game of the summer in Cary.
PRD wasted no time putting the pressure on early. Macgraw VanWormer drew a walk, then Romeo De La Torre was hit by a pitch. An errant throw by USA Prime National allowed VanWormer to advance home and give PRD an early advantage. Jonah Hargrave followed with an RBI single to bump the lead to 2-0 after the first frame.
An inning later, PRD kept its foot on the gas, loading the bases after a trio of singles. Ajay Hermosura advanced home on a wild pitch, then De La Torre came through with a three-RBI double to bump PRD’s lead up to 6-0 early.
The fourth inning added fuel to PRD’s fire after Evan Thompson’s RBI single brought VanWormer home and established a daunting 7-0 edge. However, USA Prime National wouldn’t go away so easily.
A series of miscues from PRD’s defense resulted in a loaded basepath. Then Tristan Blalock, who pinch-hit for Talon Sweat, mashed a momentum-shifting grand slam over the left field wall to cut the deficit to 7-4.
"I was just finding my pitch to hit and just waiting on the fastball,” Tristan Blalock explained after the game. “I got my first pitch and took it."
A three-up, three-down top of the fifth kept USA Prime’s spark alive, which they carried into the bottom half of the frame. The opening two batters both walked, and Cooper Holland’s RBI double brought home Charlie Blalock. The following batter, Damian Rivas, hit a sac fly to right field, and cut PRD’s lead to one heading into the sixth inning.
Another quick inning on defense allowed USA Prime’s offense to stay hot. Tyler Hickman opened the bottom of the sixth frame with a single, then Tristan Blalock continued his big-time play and recorded a single to put runners on the corners with one out. Jordan Owens’ two-RBI double brought both home, and gave USA Prime its first lead of the contest. Xavier Rodriguez’s RBI triple added some insurance and marked nine unanswered runs for USA Prime.
To open the final frame, De La Torre drew a walk, and Hargrave singled with two outs to keep his squad alive. Chaos unfolded when USA Prime brought in Lucas Borges to close out the contest. With Borges toeing the rubber to make his first pitch and the PRD baserunners stretching their leads, Borges stepped off to make a pickoff move. Thinking it was a balk, the PRD runners advanced bases before realizing there was no call. Borges raced to tag out Hargrave, ending the championship thriller in shocking fashion.
"We just came out there, and we were gonna fight through all seven innings however long it took us to get it,” said Tristan Blalock. “I know some people in the stands and the other team were just hoping to run-rule us so they could go home early, but we were gonna fight. We're gonna fight till we're dead."
