Saturday in Surprise put everything on the line for 16U’s premier talent as the road to glory is down to two teams vying for gold. Let’s take a look at how all the high stakes action played out.
Click here to view scores from every game throughout the tournament.
Quarterfinals
SoCal Birds White 16U 9, PFA National 6 (8)
The SoCal Birds and PFA National traded punches all morning, with PFA dropping a four-spot in the first inning only to be countered by a SoCal four-spot of its own in the third inning. The two sides each went on to tack another run on the board, knotting things up at 5-5 through the seventh. Extra-innings would be the deciding factor, where the Birds piled up another four-run inning – this time in the game's latest stage. Mason Beckman, Brecken Stranahan and Eric Turpin laced three singles in a row to score four runs and give pitcher Max Eldrige enough of a cushion to close out PFA National and secure a spot in the semis for SoCal.
Stacked National 16U 10, San Diego Show 3
A sixth inning onslaught flipped the script for Stacked National in order to advance past the San Diego Show in what was a very competitive game conversely to what the box score may show. Stacked National trailed 3-1 heading into the sixth inning until an offensive eruption ensued. Stacked went on to run up a nine-run sixth that included six hits, two doubles, a triple and 13 batters sent to the plate. The late game surge would suck the momentum out of thin air for San Diego, as Stacked National closed things without a scratch.
CBA Victus San Diego 9, GBG Vegas 2027 8
An all round high-level game of baseball took place between CBA Victus San Diego and GBG Vegas 2027 which saw everything come down to the last pitch of the game. GBG Vegas showed a truly valiant effort in hopes of coming back in the final inning. GBG’s first two batters were retired and then with two-outs, the squad put together three-straight singles to reel back in and put some serious pressure on CBA Victus. Victus pitcher Declan Higgins issued a game-ending fly out that allowed his team to successfully escape the almost comeback. GBG recorded 18 hits in the contest, but fell just short in a triumphant win for CBA.
TB SoCal 2027 7, SD Padres Scout Team 2027 5
TB SoCal used a five-run fourth inning to ultimately decide the fate of this one, as no runs were scored from the fourth inning onward for either side. The fourth inning included four-straight hits for TB SoCal, including a two-run single by Luke Martinez to give TB SoCal a lead it wouldn’t relinquish. Pitcher Ryan See was rock solid on the bump, posting four innings of scoreless baseball which included eight strikeouts in the effort to slam the door on the SD Padres Scout Team. The TB SoCal program now has advanced to the final four in both the 16U and 17U age divisions at Champs Arizona in 2025.
Semifinals
Stacked National 15, SoCal Birds White 2
Stacked National jumped out early and didn’t give the SoCal Birds a sliver of momentum in an utterly dominant blowout. Stacked National put on nine runs in the first two frames before SoCal could even send nine batters to the plate. The offensive tirade was piloted by Tosh Whitworth, who went 2-for-3 with a home run, a double and three RBIs. Whitworth’s huge afternoon took center stage as Stacked secured its spot on Championship Sunday in a run-rule shortened four-inning beatdown.
TB SoCal 5, CBA Victus San Diego 2
A balanced attack on both sides powered TB SoCal to punch its ticket to the gold medal game after a 5-2 win over CBA Victus San Diego. Jackson Alba got the party started in the third inning with a two-run single to uncork the scoring. Cooper Stevenson was great on the mound as he worked 4.2 scoreless innings while adding six strikeouts. CBA Victus San Diego later showed up in the biggest moments, as the team rallied for a two-spot to tie it up at 2-2 in the bottom of the sixth. TB SoCal returned the favor as the red-hot weekend of Ryan Burgess rolled on in the top of the seventh. The SoCal slugger ripped a two-run double to put his team right back on top before Owen Dunne would add another insurance run via an RBI single. Pitcher Robert Bering then slammed the door on Victus to book a reservation for Sunday in Surprise.
On Deck
The gold and bronze medal games will be held at Surprise Stadium, the Spring Training home of the Texas Rangers and Kansas City Royals on Sunday morning.
The bronze medal game between CBA Victus San Diego and SoCal Birds White will start the day, with first pitch slated for 8:00 AM MST.
The gold medal game between TB SoCal and Stacked National will follow suit at roughly 11:00 AM MST.
TB SoCal comes in as the only team with a 7-0 perfect record, as Stacked National stands at 6-0-1. Stacked National is looking to avenge a runner-up performance in 2024’s 16U gold medal game as TB SoCal is in search of its second gold medal all-time in the 16U division.
Fans and players alike are encouraged to follow the action through social media on @USABaseEvents or with pitch-by-pitch updates on GameChanger
