Braves 12u North Finished 2nd at Cooperstown
The Richmond Braves North 12U Baseball team just completed an historic trek through the Cooperstown Dreams Tournament where they finished second out of 104 teams. For the week of June 20, the Braves compiled a 10-1 mark, with wins against teams from Georgia (2), Florida (2), North Carolina, Colorado, Maryland and Delaware among others. The Braves went as far as any team ever from Virginia, falling just short in the final, losing to the South Florida Hitmen 7-3.
The Braves opened up pool play with 14 – 0 shellacking of the Mooresville (NC) Blue Angels. The Northerners tallied 16 hits and four home runs in the win. JT Carter racked up 3 RBIs and 3 hits in the game including one of the HRs. The other HRs came off the bats of Matt Keay, Jason Pan, and Colin Tuft. Braves pitchers Ben Eldridge and Tio Graybill combined to allow only one hit for the game.
Game two of pool play pitted the Braves against the Brunswick (Ohio) Stars who had just come off a riveting, come-from-behind win against the PG Select Blue Sox. The Braves left little to chance in this game, smacking 13 dingers as they cruised to victory 24-1. Offensively, Ben Eldridge pounded three HRs in 3 AB with 5 RBIs. Not to be outdone, James Triantos and Colin Tuft each went 4 for 4 with Triantos contributing 2 HRs and 7 RBIs, and Tuft adding another HR. Ryan Mills and Matt Keay teamed up to limit the tough Stars lineup to only 3 hits and one run.
Day two of the tourney meant two more pool play games, this time against the PG Blue Sox Select Blue and the Lincoln Way (IL) Blue Demons. The Northerners finished the game off almost before it started, pounding out 15 runs in the bottom of the first while cruising to a 19 to 2 victory. The Braves were again led at the plate by Triantos who pounded out three hits, four RBI and a grand slam. Connor Hale and Nick Morgan also homered for the Tribe. Nick Morgan and JT Carter took care of the pitching duties, holding the Blue Sox to only three hits.
After lunch, the Braves were pitted against the Blue Demons from Lincoln Way Illinois. Following a recurring theme, the Braves bought out the lumber early and often and pounded the Demons into submission 17 to 1. JT Carter and Colin Tuft led the attack with 2 home runs apiece. Connor Hale and Kyle Parizek also went deep. Meanwhile, Jason Pan and Tio Graybill continued the mastery on the mound, combining for a one hitter.
The four game ransacking put the Braves in great position going into the final stretch of pool play. Of the 104 teams in the tourney, the Braves sat at the #5 seed with two tough pool play games, against the Sandy Spring (GA) Wildcats and the North Tampa (FL) Titans, left on the slate.
Connor Hale took the ball for the game against Sandy Springs and was absolutely masterful. Hale held the Sandy Plains Wildcats hitless over four innings, allowing no earned runs, walked two and struck out 10. Ryan Mills came in to close the door and nail down the no-hitter, striking out two. Offensively, the Northerners pounded out six runs in the opening three innings. A two-run home run by JT Carter during the first inning, and a solo home run by Nick Morgan and a two-run home run by Tio Graybill in the second inning supplied the early offense. Kyle Parizek also homered for the Braves in the fourth inning.
With a 5 – 0 record, the Braves only needed one more win to assure themselves a top 10 seeding and strong positioning for the playoff tourney. Standing in their way was a scrappy team from North Tampa who also had a 5 – 0 record. The Braves showed no mercy to a series of Titan pitchers, pounding out 15 hits and 6 HRs on the way to an 18 to 4 pummeling. Matt Keay led the way with 2 HRs and 4 RBIs. Nick Loria, Tio Graybill, Ben Eldridge and James Triantos also homered. On the bump, Triantos threw two perfect innings before handing the ball over to Keay who closed out the victory.
The 6 – 0 record positioned the Braves perfectly for the playoff run. They ended up tied for the #3 seed but ended up the #4 seed due to a lost coin flip.
First up in the single elimination tourney was the Piedmont (DE) Bulldogs. The Bulldogs, seeded #37 in the tournament, were on a roll, having just completed a 15 – 0 thumping of the Arlington (TN) Tigers (#29 seed). The Bulldogs featured a pair of aces who could each throw in excess of 70 MPH and were saved for their matchup with the Braves. They ‘dogs proved to be an ample adversary. The Bulldogs took an early lead in the game with a couple of HR’s in the first and third innings. The Braves fought back in the bottom of the third with a HR by Ryan Mills and a couple singles by Nick Loria and Jason Pan with Loria scoring on Pan’s hit. The Braves then took a 5 to 2 lead in the fourth thanks to HRs by James Triantos and JT Carter, but the Bulldogs tied it again in the top of the 5th with a 3 run HR. The Braves finally went ahead for good in the bottom of the 5th thanks to some timely hitting and smart base-running. On the hill, Ryan Mills started and kept the Bulldogs off balance while Triantos came on to earn the win.
With the victory against Piedmont, the Braves earned their way into the sweet 16 and a matchup against the Colorado Golden Miners who were the 20th seed. The Miners, who were in their third playoff game of the day, had little pitching left and mounted little resistance against the Braves who rolled to a 10 to 0 lead on their way to a 10 to 1 victory. The Braves pounded out 5 HRs in the contest with Nick Morgan leading the way with 2. Colin Tuft, James Triantos, and Kyle Parizek also hit round-trippers. On the bump, Ben Eldridge, Jason Pan, Tio Graybill, and Nick Morgan combined to hold the Miners to only one hit.
Despite the triumph over the Miners, rest was only short-lived for the Braves. Waiting for them the next morning was a spot in the Elite 8 and a matchup with another tough Florida team, the Tampa Tribe. The Tribe, who were the #37 seed, earned their seat at the table with an upset win over Team Velocity of Nevada, one the pre-tournament favorites.
With a night of rest, the Braves sent Matt Keay, one of the staff aces, to the mound. The Braves jumped out to an early lead with a HR by James Triantos in the first. They then extended their lead to 2 to 0 in the second before the Tribe halved the lead in the top of the third. Keay kept the Tribe at bay until the Braves bats finally woke up in the bottom of the third inning. Keay and Connor Hale homered in the third as the Braves tallied 6 runs and broke open a tight contest. Hale homered again in the 5th along with JT Carter as the Braves took a 12 to 1 lead. The Tribe team refused to go down without a fight as they scored 8 runs in the top of the 6th to narrow the final margin to 12 to 9. Tio Graybill came on for Keay to nail down the victory and secure the trip to the final four.
For the first time in the playoff bracket, the Braves were not the higher seed in the semi-final. Waiting for them was the tournament #1 seed, Team Gwinnett/Dacula (GA). Team GD had steamrolled their way through the tourney and seemed a well rested group. The Braves decided to peg their chances on lefty Connor Hale to see if he could replicate the gem he threw in pool play. After a scoreless first inning, the Braves drew first blood in the second when Colin Tuft went deep with a solo HR. Team GD countered in the bottom of the third with a 5 spot as they hit a grand slam followed by a solo HR. Down 5 to 1 in the top of the 4th, the Braves refused to die as James Triantos pounded out a 2 run HR followed immediately by a solo shot by Ben Eldridge. Hale held Team GD scoreless in the bottom of the fourth and then tied the game in the 5th with a two out RBI single. After giving up a couple seeing eye singles in the bottom of the 5th, Hale gave way to Triantos who struck out Team GDs 3rd and 4th hitters to get out of the inning. With growing crowds watching both semi-final games from the nearby hillside, Nick Morgan hit a heroic and majestic 3 R HR in the top of the 6th to put the Braves up for good 8 to 5. From there, Triantos nailed down the victory and the trip to the Cooperstown final.
After a few hours to refresh themselves, the boys were caravaned into the main stadium with cheering crowds along the route. Their foe would be the South Florida Hitmen, the tourney’s #2 seed and survivor of a tough 5-4 semi-final matchup. After the pre-game festivities and fireworks, the game started with a flourish as the Braves took an early 2 to 0 lead in the first as James Triantos pounded his 9th HR of the tourney. Ryan Mills, though fatigued, used his guile to set the Hitmen down in order in the first. Unfortunately, the excitement was short-lived as the Hitmen punched through 3 in the second and then tallied 4 more over the next three innings to take a commanding 7 to 2 lead. A sixth inning HR by Kyle Parizek proved to be too little-too-late for the Braves as the Hitmen closed out a 7 – 3 victory and the Cooperstown Championship.
Despite the loss, the tourney proved to be historic for both the Braves and Virginia baseball. By making the final, the Braves progressed further than any other team ever from Virginia. For the week, the Braves outscored opponents 144 to 35, out hit opponents 138 to 49, and out-homered opponents 55 to 9.
The tournament wrapped up a 41 and 6 campaign by the Braves for the Spring 2015 season. Between the Fall 2014 and Spring 2015 season, the team won 6 tournaments, finished second in 3 tourneys and 3rd in 3 others. Between the two seasons, the team logged a 68 and 11 record.