Holiday Classic Recap - December 27th, 2012

The holidays are behind us.  Hopefully you were able to spend as much quality time with family and friends as we were able to.  The last two years had Christmas and New Years falling on a weekend, so we had two weeks of no baseball at the end of each year.  This year finds us playing right before Christmas and New Years again.  The tournaments may be smaller, but the level of ball being played is still high caliber.

Strike Out Hunger Recap - December 15, 2012

Every year, the Strike Out Hunger is our way to give back to the community.  Sometimes we get caught up in the competition of youth baseball, we forget out fortunate we really are to be playing baseball in December while there are families struggling to put food on their tables.  Every year, we are overwhelmed with generosity by our teams with the amount of food that we are able to donate on their behalf.  So thank you for putting ERA and batting averages on the back burner for a moment, and helping make someone's Holidays a little brighter.

Thanksgiving Recap - November 29th, 2012

Thanksgiving Super NIT

Presented By:

The Thanksgiving Super NIT is our first Super NIT of the season.  This year we had plenty to be thankful for.  Between the impeccable weather and great baseball (not to mention being no where near any Black Friday crowds), there were few ways I would rather be spending my Holiday weekend.

USSSA Southern California Sponsorship

Did you play in the 2012 Thanksgiving Super NIT?  Want to be entered in a drawing to win five free tournaments from USSSA Southern California?  Well it's super easy.

To qualify, your team has to play in the following three tournament:
1. Thanksgiving Super NIT - November 23-25, 2012
2. MLK Super NIT - January 19-21, 2013
3. Bat Wars/Cinco De Mayo - May 4-5, 2013

Once you play in all three tournaments, you will be automatically entered in a drawing for the chance to win five free tournament entries for future tournaments.

To be eligible, the entries must be by the same team with the same USSSA registration number and the team must actually participate in all three tournaments. No transferring of entries between teams. Entry into each of the events is not guaranteed Each team must enter each tournament by filling out an online application. USSSA takes no responsibility for teams being shut out of one of the tournaments. The drawing will be made at the May 4/5 Bat Wars event. All decisions on the sponsorship will be made by USSSA So California and are final.
The Bat Wars/Cinco De Mayo tournament will sell out early, so if you plan on participating in all three events, be sure to enter early.

See you on the fields

-AC

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Harvest Recap - November 21st, 2012

This time last year, the 2012 Season had already had its fair share of rainouts.  Thanks to our out of character warm weather this year, we haven't had a single rain out in the 2013 Season.  Even when it does rain, it's not enough to knock us off the fields.  At Fountain Valley, the rain that fell merely watered the fields and made them look fresher than ever.  In San Clemente, only one field needed some Quick Dry, and she was ready to play.  With a warm Thanksgiving weekend ahead, it might be a while before our first rainout (and that's fine with us).

Veterans Day NIT Recap - Nov 14th, 2012

Before we get onto our recap, let's take time to remember why we are able to play baseball year round.  The countless sacrifices by the men and women given to protect this country.  Grandparents, mothers, fathers, sons, daughters, sisters, brothers, friends, all have been affected in one way or another by this country's servicemen and women.  Us at USSSA Southern California thank you all with every part of our being for the sacrifices you have made to let us do something as minor as playing baseball on a beautiful November weekend.

Legend Recap - November 6th, 2012

The Major League Baseball Season may be over with football and basketball in full stride (hockey is no where to be found), but that doesn't mean that we won't stop playing.  With incredible November weather and 2013's schedule shaping up nicely, we will be playing baseball until next spring when MLB starts up again.

Halloween Haunt Recap - October 31st, 2012

The Halloween Haunt was a sea of pink all weekend long.  Between pink Halloween Haunt Tournament Shirts, pink Baseball First shirts, pink trophies, pink award bats, pink uniforms, pink socks, pink umpires, and parents and family members in pink, it was a great weekend to help raise awareness and money for breast cancer research.  USSSA Southern California donated over $3,000 from merchandise sales alone this weekend.  Thank you to all the teams that participated, and everyone who purchased merchandise to help Strike Out Cancer.

The Monster Recap - October 23rd, 2012

Sorry for the lack of updates recently.  The busy October tournaments have kept our focuses elsewhere.  Here is a list of the Winners and Runner Ups from the October 20-21 Monster.

See you on the fields

-AC

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Columbus Day Classic Recap - October 17th, 2012

Columbus Day Classic Recap

9-Under – Fountain Valley Sports Park:

Scoring runs is the name of the game in 9-Under.  SGV Hustle scored a whopping 65 runs over the course of the weekend.  Giving up just 16 runs in four games, they were able to clinch 1st Place for the weekend.

10-Under – Fountain Valley Sports Park/El Dorado Park, Long Beach:

The 10-Under Tournament took teams between Fountain Valley Sports Park and El Dorado Park in Long Beach.  The Gold Bracket made its way back to Fountain Valley for the playoffs on Sunday.  The Tritons got revenge from Saturday’s matchup with the Kings.   An 8-5 victory put them in the finals against 1st Seed Rampage.  Rampage advanced to the finals with a 5-0 semifinal victory.  They kept that energy alive with a Championship win to take home first place.

Oktoberfest Recap - October 9th, 2012

Big League Dreams Riverside

11-Under:

The OC Bandits and Mid Valley Warriors Elite both headed into Sunday with a 2-0 record.  They had both giving up only six runs, and their run differential was only three runs apart.  It’s no surprise that we saw both of them in the championship game.  The 1st and 2nd Seeds battled with out, with the Mid Valley Warriors holding on to an 8-5 lead to win the championship

12-Under:

The So Cal Storm had a long road ahead of them on Sunday.  After winning their Quarterfinal game, they upset the 1st Seed from Pool A to face the 1st Seed from Pool B in the Championship game.  They had met Eaters BBC on Saturday, and despite giving them a run for their money, came up just short 3-2.  Facing them again, they fought hard, but were unable to wake their bats up as the Eaters barely escaped with a 1-0 win.

Fall Classic Recap - September 25th, 2012

12-Under HB Vikings playing at the Huntington Beach Sports Complex (click to enlarge)

The Major League Baseball regular season is coming to a close, but by no means is it going to be an easy road for most teams.  I wasn’t sure what to think of the two Wild Card playoff spots at the start of the season, and I will admit it needs some tweaking, but it has made for an exciting (and stressful) final few weeks of the season.  Baltimore is sitting on top of the AL Wild Card, but with 4 teams nipping at their heels, they are a bad week of baseball away from missing the playoffs.  I’m excited to see how the next few weeks pans out, and to see how the dual wild card pans out.

Big League Dreams

9-Under:
The Orangecrest Crush entered Sunday as the 3rd Seed because of an 11-11 tie on Saturday.  They intended to show why they should have been the first seed on Sunday.  After upsetting the 2nd Seed, they advanced to the finals to face the 1st Seed So Cal Outlaws.  Both teams fought hard, but the crush were able to sneak past the Outlaws 8-6

Indian Summer Classic Recap - September 18th, 2012

Hart Pony, Santa Clarita
The Indian Summer Classic took us to a new location in Santa Clarita.  Hart Pony’s facilities are right down the street from Six Flags Magic Mountain, and have been hosting teams for many years now, including our Mustang All-Star team 18 years ago.  Local teams jumped at the opportunity to play close to home, and the weather may have been hot, but bats were even hotter on the field.

Patriot Recap - September 12th, 2012

The 2012 Patriot found us all around Southern California playing baseball.  Let’s jump park to park and take a look at all the exciting baseball that took place

Big League Dreams

11-Under:

Redondo Samurai had a great start to the tournament.  Giving up just three runs on Saturday, they went into Sunday as the 1st Seed.  In their Semifinal Game, they found themselves facing the Agoura Aces again.  The Samurai had won their first encounter, but the Agoura Aces were not going to make it easy for the Samurai.  Both teams had hot bats, but the Samurai were able to hold off the surging Aces, 11-8.  On the other side of the playoff brackets, So Cal Quakes were facing Dynasty Baseball for the second time this tournament.  Quakes were able to pull out a 5-4 win on Saturday, and on Sunday the game looked incredibly similar.  Quakes were able to pull off another one run victory to head to the Championship Game against the Samurai.  Quakes took advantage of their momentum and the cooled off bats of the Samurai to take home first place with a 13-4 victory.

Mercury Recap - August 22nd, 2012

Mercury Recap

12-Under

After a team dropped from Saturday’s games, the 12-Under had to be rearranged to accommodate the three teams that were still ready to play.  A little unorthodox, Sunday’s games turned into a three game round robin, the team with the best record on Sunday took home the 1st Place trophy.  Pomona Titans were able to win both of their games on Sunday, and take home the Championship

13-Under

In the 13-Under, five teams took advantage of the smaller tournament to get accustomed to the bigger field size.  One team didn’t seem to have a problem with it at all.  IE Elite Orange went undefeated all weekend, giving up only 2 runs on Saturday in their run to the Championship

High School Division

It’s rare to get enough teams for a 15/16-Under tournament in California.  Once the players start High School Baseball, they can play almost year-round with their high school teams.  After the games on Saturday, we were left with two undefeated teams.  1st Seed AV Stealth took on 2nd Seed Cucamonga Dirtbags in the finals, and the Stealth were able to keep their undefeated streak alive, and claim the first place trophy.

Thank you to all the teams that participated in the Mercury tournament.

See you on the fields

-AC

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Upcoming Touranments

August 25-26 – Season Opener 

We are kicking off the 2013 Season with an incredible promotion.  Cal Spirit Wear will be giving away free uniform tops to teams playing in the 8-Under and 10-Under divisions.  Each team will receive 10 free jerseys.  Jerseys will be mesh with two buttons.  Each one will have one color team names and numbers.  If teams participating in this offer wish to upgrade to multiple colors, the option will be available at an additional cost.

August 13th, 2012 - Summer Blast Recap

Before the start of the 2013 Season, Southern California Baseball showed the rest of the country just how good we are.  In the 2012 Elite World Series, Southern California teams by far did the best of all the states participating.  In the 9-Under division, San Diego Show took 1st Place, Oakley Stingrays took 3rd Place, and So Cal Outlaws Elite took 5th Place.  In the 10-Under, BPA Rawlings Elite took 2nd Place.  So Cal met in the finals in the 11-Under, with Oakley Stingrays taking 1st Place and SY Titans taking 2nd Place.  The 13-Under So Cal Rebels took a well-deserved 3rd Place trophy.  Team Phenom continued to show why they are the best 12-Under team in the country.  They went undefeated, and outscored their opponents 86-7 over eight games. 

Congratulations to all the Southern California teams for their incredible performances in the 2012 Elite World Series.

August 2nd, 2012 - 2012 World Series Recap

The 2012 World Series started off with a bang with our incredible Opening Night.  Over five thousand people in the park with ten vendors, Opening Ceremonies, skill competition, team dinner, pin trading, and so much more were just the start of the incredible week of baseball.   We’ll be taking a look at each age division, the games, the playoffs, and the unexpected.

July 24th, 2012 - Opening Ceremonies Recap

World Series Recap – 7-24-12

On a typical tournament weekend, Big League Dreams Chino Hills will have at most, eighteen teams in their park; twelve teams playing on the six fields, and six more waiting to play on those fields.  If you estimate that each team brings approximately 50 people per team (12 players, 3 coaches, roughly 35 parents and siblings), then you’re looking at about 1,000 people maximum in the park at any given time.  The Opening Ceremonies for the 2012 Western World Series aimed to push Big League Dreams Chino Hills to their limits.  By 5:00 PM, there were over 80 teams in the park, plus 10 different vendors, along with the extra USSSA and Big League Dreams staff called in to help run the park.  A safe estimate would say that there were over 5,000 people in the park, trading pins, shopping, socializing, and generally having a good time.

July 16th, 2012 - Summer Slam Recap

Due to the high workload for next week's World Series, I will unfortunately be unable to write a blog post for the Summer Slam.  Thank you to all the teams that participated.  Here is a list of the Champions and Runner Ups.

July 10th, 2012 - Independence Recap

Independence – July 7-8, 2012

8-Under:

The 8-Under tournament saw a lot of fresh faces this weekend.  In Sunday’s playoff games, TABB Red met up with Park Bums again.  On Saturday, these two teams had met in their second games, but ended in a 6-6 Tie.    In Sunday’s game, there had to be a winner though, and TABB Red stepped up, upsetting the higher ranked Park Bums.  Heading into the Championship game, TABB Red faced the only undefeated team, So Cal Mulisha.  After a hard fought game, TABB Red took home a win with a 7-6 upset.

July 3rd, 2012 - Firecracker NIT Recap

Weekend Recap 7-3-12

Firecracker NIT – June 30th – July 1st, 2012

7-Under:

The 7-Under Chino Hills Thunder is always playing up in 8-Under tournaments, and if they’re not winning them, they’re giving the older boys a run for their money.   If they do that well in the older division, then you know they’re going to do well in an actual 7-Under tournament.  In their first three pool play games, they didn’t give up a single run, and even though they gave up 4 runs in the championship game, they scored 20, giving them the first place trophy.  We will be seeing the Thunder in championship games for years to come.

All Star Extravaganza – June 23-24, 2012

The annual All Star Extravaganza is the perfect for All Star teams to get a couple more games together as a team before their All Star tournaments start.  Bringing together All Star teams from all over Southern California, teams are able to play new teams from regions that they might not get to normally face in regular All Star play, as well as travel teams. 

8-Under East:

The 7-Under Chino Hills Thunder always seem to find themselves in the Championship games of 8-Under tournaments.  These young men will be a force to reckon with when they are 8 years old.  Coming into Sunday as the 1st Seed, they advanced to the championship game with a close 8-7 win.  They would face Charter Oak for the Championship.  Charter Oak continually has one of the strongest All Star programs in California, and this weekend was no different.  They beat Southern California rivals Los Alamitos in a hard fought 3-2 game to advance to the finals.  They were able to keep the momentum going with a 6-3 Championship win.

8-Under West:

Palisades sent two teams to compete in the 8-Under West division.  Both teams went 2-0 on Saturday giving up just 8 runs in the four games that they played.  They entered Sunday as the 1st and 2nd seeds.  2nd Seed Palisades was upset by the 3rd Seed Cheviot Aces.  The 1st Seed Palisades had their backs though, and were able to take home the championship to cap off their undefeated weekend.

9-Under:

The 9-Under Championship saw a matchup of two undefeated teams.  La Crescenta and Northside All Stars had given up just 10 and 11 runs respectively up until the championship game.  Northside was able to keep their momentum going an walk away with the 1st Place trophy.

10-Under East:

Upsets was the word of the day in the 10-Under East division.  5th Seed Chino Hills Red upset the 4th Seed to advance to face 1st Seed Whittier Pony.  They didn’t let that get in their heads though, and upset Whittier with a 9-5 win to advance to the finals.  On the other side of the bracket, 3rd Seed Ladera Grays A had a great game against CY Black and squeeze by with a 1-0 victory to advance to the finals.  Despite being their third game of the day, Chino Hills Red put up a great battle, but Ladera Grays fought to a 4-3 victory to win a hard fought (and stressful) championship.

10-Under West:

 The 10-Under West was full of upsets as well on Sunday.  4th Seed Hart Blue won their quarter final game easily to advance to the Semifinals where they would face 1st Seed Newport All Stars.  They kept their bats hot for a 6-3 win to advance to the finals.  The other Semifinal game was a wild one.  2nd Seed Palisades and 3rd Seed Santa Monica had a slugfest, with Santa Monica edging them out 15-14.  Santa Monica was unable to keep the bats alive in the championship game, and Hart Blue took home the win, and the upset 9-4

11-Under:

And the upsets don’t stop there.  Every game in the Gold Division was an upset with the lower seed beating the higher seed.  5th Seed So Cal Panthers woke their bats up for Sunday’s games.  They beat the 4th Seed, the 1st Seed to advance to the finals, and the 3rd Seed in the Championship Game to clinch first place.  They outscored teams 30-12 in their three games on Sunday in their run to their underdog Championship.

12-Under East:

1st Seed Los Amigos Bronco didn’t plan on getting upset on Sunday.  After going to 2-0 on Saturday, they remained undefeated on Sunday to clinch first place.  They outscored their opponents 39-5 in their four games on the weekend, cruising to a championship.

12-Under West:

The Gold Division in the 12-Under West saw a Championship game between the 1st and 2nd Seeds. Both teams were undefeated heading into the final game, having only given up 14 runs total in the six games they played.  The championship game was truly anybody’s game.  2nd Seed Corona Pony was able to beat 1st Seed West Covina Red 5-1 and claim First Place

13-Under:

The 13-Under division saw a healthy mix of All Star teams and Travel Teams.  On Sunday, the Championship game was between a travel ball team and an All Star Team.  Both Cal Crush and Cheviot Pony were undefeated headed into the final game.  Cheviot Pony was able to shut out Cal Crush and take home the Championship.

Thank you to all the teams that played this weekend.  We wish all the All Star teams best of luck in their All Star Season.  Here is a list of the Champions and Runner Ups.

See you on the fields

-AC

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June 19th, 2012 - State Championship Recap

They teach us to catch.  They teach us to throw.  To swing a bat.  To throw a curveball.  From baseball, to driving a car, to tying a tie, to learning to shave, our dads help us out every step of the way.  But they teach us so much more.  How to be a good person, how to treat others the way they should be treated, how to live, laugh, and love.  I’ve been fortunate enough to work with my father for the past 12 years, to learn from his ways, not just in business, but in life.  So thanks to all the fathers that have done so much for us.  We can only hope to be half the men that you are when we have children of our own.

June 16-17 – State Championships

The 10-Under, 12-Under, and 14-Under teams came back to compete in the second weekend of the State Championships.

10-Under AA:

After an evenly matched Saturday, Sunday’s games were up for grabs for anyone.  The Lunada Bay Berrics proved that by upsetting both the 4th Seed, and the 1st Seed to make it to the championship game.  The third game of the day proved to be too much for them though, as the Fontana Seminoles were able to walk away with the win.

10-Under AAA:

With only four teams in the bracket, all the teams would play each other once before the top two seeds would face each other for the championship.  SWAT Baseball and SGV Dukes met on Saturday with the Dukes winning 6-2.  History would not repeat itself on Sunday though, with SWAT Baseball edging out the Dukes with a 3-2 win.

10-Under Major:

The 10-Under Major saw a collection of some of the best 10-Under teams in Southern California, along with the 9-Under So Cal Outlaws, who are headed to the 9-Under Elite World Series.  IE Elite Orange cruised into Sunday with the 1st Seed, giving up zero runs on Saturday, but were stopped in their tracks on Sunday with an upset by 8th Seed OC Sun Devils.  The Sun Devils however were unable to keep the magic alive against the 4th Seed SGV Hustle, who advanced to the finals with that semifinal win.  However, they were unable to keep the hot streak alive when they faced the 2nd Seed VSA Vipers.  VSA Vipers came to the plate with hot bats and good pitching, and were able to take home the 10-Under Major State Championship.

12-Under AA:

Whittier Kaos never looked back after starting the tournament.  Outscoring their opponents 36-9 over the course of the weekend, they took home the 12-Under AA State Championship with no problem.

12-Under AAA:

ABD Aztecs had a comeback story right up there with the best on Sunday.  After upsetting the 1st Seed, they headed into the semifinal game against the 4th Seed.  After a close 4-2 win, they advanced to the finals to face the 2nd Seed So Cal Redwings.  The Aztecs were able to keep their bats hot and their pitching hotter with a 5-1 win to solidify a great Sunday of baseball.

12-Under Major:

The 12-Under Major saw a matchup between the number one and two teams in Southern California.  Team Phenom cruised to the championship game, giving up only 6 runs leading into the finals.  On the other end, San Diego Show had only given up 9 runs.  San Diego Show were able to keep their momentum alive to top Team Phenom 10-4.  Both teams will be headed to the Elite World Series, where they will most likely meet again and represent Southern California in the best way possible.

14-Under:

With four teams in the bracket, Sunday’s championship game was a rematch of the first game of the tournament.  In the first game, Baseball West Coast was able to squeak by No Fear 8-7, but No Fear wasn’t going to let that happen again.  After a hard fought game, No Fear came out on top 4-2 to take home the State Championship.

Thank you to all the teams that participated in our State Championship tournaments.  Here is a list of the Champions and Runner Ups.

See you on the fields

-AC

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June 12th, 2012 - State Championships Recap

Weekend Recap – June 12th, 2012

Southern California State Championships – June 9-10, 2012

The annual State Championships always bring out some of the best baseball of the year.  Teams that have qualified for the Elite World Series in Florida have to participate in this event, so ever year the Major Divisions are war zones with some of the best teams in the country.  This tournament is split into two weekends, with the 8-Under, 9-Under, 11-Under, and 13-Under playing for the State Championship the first weekend, and the 10-Under, 12-Under, and 14-Under playing on the following weekend.

8-Under – With a healthy mix of All-Star teams looking to play a couple more games before their All-Star tournaments begin and some of the best travel teams in Southern California, the 8-Under Division shaped up to be a great tournament.  In the AAA Playoffs on Sunday, the 7-Under Chino Hills Thunder was looking for redemption.  Losing two tough games on Saturday, both by only 1 run, they came into Sunday ready to show the big boys they came to play.  They were on the winning side of two close games, and took home the AAA Playoff Championship.  In the Major Playoffs, 3rd Seed Mid Valley Elite upset the 2nd seed to advance to the finals where they would face the red hot Charter Oak Gold.  They were unable to keep the momentum up for their third game of the day, and Charter Oak Gold took home first place.  We wish them good luck in their upcoming All-Star tournaments.

9-Under – The 9-Under Oakley Stingrays and San Diego Show will both be representing Southern California at the Elite World Series in August, although Oakley Stingrays played like they were already there.  Outscoring opponents 42-8, they went undefeated all weekend to take home the 9-Under State Championship.  Best of luck to both teams in Florida, we know you’ll represent Southern California with pride.

11-Under Major – After Saturday’s games, the 11-Under Major bracket was split perfectly.  There were four 2-0 teams and four 0-2 teams.  Sunday wasn’t quite as evenly split.  Three of the four quarter final games were upsets, with an 0-2 team beating a 2-0 team.  So Cal United and the SY Titans both upset teams that had beaten them on Saturday.  The only team that didn’t get upset was the 1st Seed BPA Rawlings.  They took that momentum all the way to the final game, where they kept their undefeated streak alive.  BPA Rawlings outscored their opponents 39-3 in their 5-0 run to be crowned the State Champions.

11-Under – Six teams made the drive out to beautiful Birdsall Park in Temecula for the 11-Under mixed division.  Xplosion had a wild ride leading to the finals.  After winning their quarter final game, they upset the 1st Seed in Pool B with a wile 13-10 win.  They would advance to face Temecula Gamerz, but the hometown heroes were able to hold off the surging Xplosion to clinch first place.

13-Under Major – Home Runs, Triple Plays, walk off hits, we saw a little bit of everything in the 13-Under Major this weekend.  Battling the windy conditions down in San Clemente, these boys played some incredible baseball.  Riverside Riot went into Sunday ready to cause some upsets.  The 6th Seed beat the 3rd Seed in the quarter finals, and the 2nd Seed in the semi-finals to advance to the Championship game where they met Mizuno Coyotes. They were unable to keep the magic alive, and the Coyotes won the final game of the day.  The Mizuno Coyotes are heading to the Elite World Series in August, and if they play like they did this weekend, we know they will do very well.

13-Under AAA – The Majors weren’t the only division playing great baseball in San Clemente. The AAA division was the most evenly matched of the weekend.  Heading into Sunday it was anybody’s tournament to win.  So Cal Bombers upset the 1st seed and advanced to the Championship where they faced the 2nd Seed Tustin Thunder.  Tustin Thunder was able to hold off the Bombers with a 4-0 win.

13-Under AA – The High Desert Flames went into Sunday’s games with something to prove.  After winning their quarter final game, they upset the 1st Seed with a convincing 7-3 win to advance to the finals.  They faced the Menifee Bulldogs in the finals, who had barely edged them out on Saturday.  The Flames were unable to avenge their Saturday loss, and the Bulldogs won the Championship 6-1.

Thank you to all the teams that played in the State Championships this weekend.  Here is a list of the Champions and Runner Ups.

Summer Heat – June 9-10, 2012

Just because there wasn’t a State Championship for the 12-Under and 14-Under this weekend, doesn’t mean that they get the weekend off.   Nineteen teams came out to give it their best and get warmed up for next weekend’s State Championships.

12-Under AAA – Some weekends everything goes according to plan.  The top two seeds meet in the Championship game and you could have predicted how the weekend was going to turn out.  Other weekends remind us why baseball is the most unpredictable sport, and that’s why we love it.  This was one of those weekends for the 12-Under AAA.   So Cal Storm, after losing both of their games on Saturday, got their revenge on everybody.  They beat the 2nd Seed from Pool B in convincing fashion before advancing to meet the 1st Seed from their pool, T2 Black.  T2 Black had beaten Storm on Saturday, but Storm wasn’t going to let that happen again.  After going up early, the Storm cruised into the Championship game against the Diamond Dawgs.  Diamond Dawgs had also won over the Storm on Saturday, and once again, the Storm had other plans in mind.  Both teams were on their third games of the day, but that didn’t stop their match-up from being a hard fought game. So Cal Storm was able to hold onto a 4-2 victory, and cap off an incredible Sunday run.

12-Under AA – With only two teams that weren’t 1-1, the 12-Under AA was incredibly evenly matched.  With upsets all throughout Sunday’s playoff games, only one team was set on not getting upset.  1st Seed So Cal United fought hard in their quarter final for a 4-3 win.  After that their bats woke up for their quarter final and championship games, where they outscored opponents 27-6 in those two games alone.  They went 5-0 on the weekend to clinch the 1st Place trophy.

14-Under – The 13-Under Lifeletics Fury Elite were unstoppable on Saturday.  Going 2-0, and only giving up 1 run, no one would have expected their quarterfinal game.  They faced Riverside Rage, who scored the only run Lifeletics gave up on Saturday, in a slugfest by both teams.  Lifeletics gave up 10 runs, but scored a whopping 18 to win 18-10 and advance to the finals.  They faced So Cal Brewers and couldn’t quite wake their bats up for the final game.  The Brewers took home a 7-0 victory and the championship trophy.

Thank you to the teams that played in the Summer Heat tournament.  Here is a list of the Champions and Runner Ups.

State Championships – June 16-17, 2012

The second weekend of the State Championships is coming up.  The 10-Under, 12-Under, and 14-Under will have their chance at the Championship.  As with last weekend, teams will receive State Level 1 Ranking Points, and the winners of each division will receive custom State Champions T-Shirts.

Click here for more information.

Legacy – June 23-24

The Legacy tournament will be played at Big League Dreams West Covina and Riverside.  There are still openings available. 

Click here for more information.

All-Star Extravaganza – June 23-24

The All-Star Extravaganza is our annual tournament for All-Star teams only.  This is the perfect tournament to get a couple more games together before the All-Star season starts.

Click here for more information.

See you on the fields.

-AC

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June 4th, 2012 - Empire Recap

Empire - June 2-3, 2012

One weekend after our Memorial Day Tournaments, we shifted gears with our Empire Tournament.  Twenty-Three teams headed out to Big League Dreams Perris to enjoy the brand new and beautiful facilities. 

In the 10-Under, 1st Seed No Fear met the 9-Under Cal Select in the championship on Sunday.  Cal Select was playing up this weekend and proving that they could hang with the big boys.  No Fear pulled of a tight victory against Cal Select on Saturday, winning 3-2.  Cal Select had a different outcome for their second matchup in mind.  They came out swinging the bats and won the championship 10-4.

The 12-Under division saw the 1st Seeds from Pool A and Pool B heading to the finals.  So Cal Pride and Murrieta Wolverines were both undefeated heading into their game against each other.  After a hard fought pitcher’s duel, So Cal Pride was able to come out on top with a 3-1 win.

13-Under San Diego Cherokees entered Sunday with revenge in mind.  After winning their quarter final game, they advance to play No Fear in the Semi-Finals.  No Fear had beaten the Cherokees on Saturday 3-2, but Cherokees came out swinging and one 13-1 to get their revenge.  In the finals they would face Riverside SWAT.  It took them 8-Innings, but Riverside Swat was able to edge out the Cherokees by the score of 8-7.

The 14-Under was a very interesting tournament.  On Saturday, there were three ties in just seven games, and everyone had either a win or a tie.  Only No Fear went 2-0, and they intended to keep that streak alive on Sunday, although it wasn’t as easy as they would have hoped.  In the Semi-Final game, they had to go 9 Innings before they could edge out a 6-5 win.  In the Championship game, they had to go extra innings yet again before scoring 4 runs in the top of the 8th inning to take home first place.

Thank you to all the teams that played out in Perris this weekend.  Here is a list of the Champions and Runners Up.

June 9-10, 2012/June 16-17, 2012 – State Championships

The 2012 State Championships will be taking place the next two weekends.  The 8U, 9U, 11U, and 13U divisions will be playing on June 9-10.  The 10U, 12U, and 14U Divisions will be playing on June 16-17.  All teams participating will receive State Level 1 Ranking Points, and the winners of each division will receive custom screen printed State Champions T-Shirts.

June 9-10, 2012 – Summer Heat

Due to extra field time available, we will be running a 12-Under and a 14-Under tournament this weekend.  Teams playing in this tournament will receive regular USSSA Ranking Points.  Entry fee is only $300, but there is only one 14-Under spot available.  Please contact Craig for more information.

Click here for more information

See you on the fields

-AC

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May 29th, 2012 - Memorial Day Recap

Every year, Memorial Day sneaks up on us with three days of incredible baseball across all ages and divisions.  To better understand how massive our Memorial Day weekend is, take a look at these numbers.  We had 205 teams participate in our Memorial Day Tournaments this year.  Those teams played in a total of 490 games.  Those games were played on 37 different fields in Southern California at 5 different parks.  One hundred and twenty-five different umpires were assigned to umpire 968 umpire assignments.  Of those 490 games, 66 of them were shutouts, 147 games were won by two runs or less, and 22 games ended in a tie.  In total, there were 5940 runs scored this weekend!

Memorial Day Super NIT – Major Division

The Major Divisions this year had more at stake than normal.  Winners of each age group won a berth to the 2012 Elite World Series.  The most talented teams from the area competed this weekend in the most hard-fought baseball games of the year.

In the 9-Under division, the So Cal Bees were looking to take home first place as well as the World Series Berth.  Going 4-0 on Saturday and Sunday, and clinching the 1st Seed, things were looking good, until the Stingrays had revenge in mind.  The Bees bested the Stingrays on Saturday in a close 5-4 game, which only motivated the Stingrays further.  On Monday afternoon, the Stingrays won their Semi-Final game 16-4 to face the So Cal Bees.  After a hard fought game, the Stingrays emerged the victors with an 8-6 victory.

The 10-Under division saw a Championship game between two undefeated teams.  La Morinda Immortals took on the 1st Seed BPA Rawlings in the finals.  BPA Rawlings kept their undefeated streak alive with a win to clinch the World Series Berth.

11-Under SC Mayhem and Oakley Stingrays met on Monday afternoon with the same record of 3-0-1.  Both teams had to battle in their semi-final final games to advance to the finals before SC Mayhem took home the championship.

The 12-Under Phenom continued to show why they are one of the best teams in the country.  Giving up only 6 runs through 4 Pool Play games, they advanced to Monday’s playoffs as the 1st Seed.  It wasn’t easy sailing on Monday though, as they advanced to the finals with a tight 7-6 win where they would face the Razorbacks.  After a hard fought game, Phenom took home a 7-5 win, as well as first place trophy. 

The most even division of the weekend was the 13-Under Majors.  Every team had at least one win.  There were no undefeated teams, and only one mercy.  Westlake Coyotes advanced to Monday’s playoffs as the 1st Seed.  So Cal Pride and Hawks Platinum met in the Semi-Final game Monday morning.  These two teams didn’t face-off on Monday, so no one knew what to expect.  After a well-pitched game, So Cal Pride advanced to the finals with a 4-1 victory where they would face the Coyotes.  Westlake Coyotes were looking to repeat what happened on Saturday when the two teams met.  The effects of a hard fought three day tournament were starting to show for both teams as pitching reserves were running low.  By the end of the game, the Coyotes came out on top with a 13-12 victory in a slugfest of a final game.

ABD Amour, Gonzalez Academy and Showcase were all undefeated going into the 14-Under Playoffs on Monday.  Armour and Gonzalez were 3-0-1 and Showcase was 2-0-2, tying both Armour and Gonzalez.  Knowing this, Monday’s games were definitely going to be battles for the teams.  Gonzalez and Showcase met in the Semi-Final game where Showcase was able to squeeze by with a 5-4 victory.  In the Championship game, Armour and Showcase battled hard before Armour came out on top with a stressful 6-5 victory.

Congratulations to all the Major teams for an incredible weekend of baseball, and best of luck to those going to the Elite World Series.  We know you’ll represent Southern California well.

Memorial Day Super NIT – AAA/AA Divisions Big League Dreams

The Majors weren’t the only teams playing baseball all weekend.  We had teams from all different age groups playing passionate baseball all weekend

Pico Pride had beaten FCBA Cobras in their first meeting, but the Cobras weren’t going to let that happen again the finals.  They woke their bats up, and took home the Championship trophy in the 7-Under Division.

Giving up only 11 runs in 5 games over the weekend, the 8-Under Oakley Stingrays never had anything other first place in their sites.  They cruised to an undefeated weekend and championship trophy by outscoring their opponents 48-11 in those 5 games.

The 10-Under So Cal Cobras and 11-Under Pomona Titans also had great weekends.  Each team went undefeated in their divisions to take home first place.

Excitement found its way to the 12-Under playoffs.  3rd Seed won a close Quarter-Final game to face the 2nd Seed BPA Rawlings.  After pulling off that upset, they advanced to the finals to face 1st Seed Whittier Kaos.  Storm, now playing their third game of the day, played like it was their first.  Winning 10-0, they capped off a three game Monday outscoring opponents 29-4.

Undefeated TC Twins met undefeated Tustin Thunder in the 13-Under AAA/AA Finals.  The Twins out lasted the Thunder with a 9-6 victory to finish off their undefeated weekend.

The 14-Under AAA was a story of redemption.  Whittier Kaos snuck into Monday’s playoffs as the 5th Seed by 2 just runs.  They cruised through their Quarter-Final game with a 13-5 win that took them to the Semi-Finals against the IE Wolfpack.  IE Wolfpack had beaten Kaos the previous day 4-2.  Looking for some revenge, Kaos buckled down and got their revenge with a 4-3 win to advance to the finals.  The hard part wasn’t done yet though.  They had to face the 2nd See STC Future Propsects in the finals.  Despite arriving at the park 8 hours prior, and having played two games already, Kaos kept their composure and took home a much deserved first place trophy with a 4-3 upset.

Thank you to all the teams that played at BLD West Covina, Chino Hills and Riverside

Big League Dreams Cathedral City

Every Memorial Day, we run a small tournament at Big League Dreams Cathedral City for the teams in that area.  BLD Cathedral City was the first one open in Southern California, so it’s always fun to run a tournament there for the nostalgic feelings.  A small tournament doesn’t mean small baseball though.

The 10-Under Ruffnecks only gave up 13 runs in their undefeated run to the championship. 

The 11-Under Mayhem lost to the Palm Desert Patriots on Saturday, but got their revenge against them in the Semi-Finals on Monday with a 5-4 win.  That win sent them to the championship game, where they upset the 1st See Westlake Stars with an exciting 5-4 victory.

The 12-Under was full of upsets on Monday.  4th Seed Desert Knights took the Westlake Stars to extra innings before scoring a game winning run in the 9th inning to take them to the Championship game.  The 3rd Seed FCBA Cobras upset Peabody Premier in the Semi-Final game with a 5-2 victory.  Both the Cobras and Knights were on their third game of the day heading into the Championship.  The Knights were unable to keep up the energy after their extra-inning game, and the Cobras won 4-0.

Team Combat Red never slowed down all weekend in the 14-Under division.  They outscored opponents 49-21 in the undefeated trip to first place.

Thank you to all the teams that played out in Cathedral City.  Glad we could take the tournament to you this weekend instead of making you drive to us.

FVPB/USSSA Memorial Day Tournament

This was the 4th year in a row that we have partnered up with Fountain Valley Pony Baseball to run their Memorial Day Tournament.  Every year, this tournament is a great way for All-Star teams to play together before their All Star Season starts, and to see some good competition from our AAA and AA teams.  Set at Fountain Valley Sports Park, we used all 15 fields to house the 86 teams participating in this tournament.  Ranging from 6-Under to 12-Under, great baseball was spread across 15 beautiful fields for three longs days.

If you’ve never watched a 6-Under baseball game, then you are missing out on a fantastic experience.  With coaches pitching to their own team, these young boys play their heart out on every play of the game.  There are defensive coaches in the field to help the kids know where to play and throw the ball once it’s been hit.  There are hundreds of parents yelling with every ball put in play.  And there is one poor umpire trying to keep the controlled chaos in check.  As soon as the ball is put into play, everything starts moving.  Players to the ball.  Coaches off the field.  Runners around the bases.  Parents yelling where to throw the ball.  And when that ball makes it to first to get the out, you would think they just won the World Series, when in fact, that was the end of the 2nd Inning.  It is the most stressful, entertaining, and heartwarming game of baseball you’ll ever watch.

Our 6-Under tournament this year saw a team travel down from Northern California to compete, as well as three local All-Star teams, and two travel teams.  When Monday rolled around, both host teams from Fountain Valley had made the playoffs, and were set to play each other in the Quarter-Final game.  Fountain Valley A was victorious over Fountain Valley B to advance to the finals.  Charter Oak didn’t have quite as easy of a time in their Quarter-Final Game.  They had to fight and scratch against the Titans for their 11-10 victory.  Heading into the finals, the old rivalry between Charter Oak Pony and Fountain Valley Pony was rekindled, and Charter Oak took home the 11-8 win. 

The 8-Under was split into three separate tournaments, Red, White, and Blue.  The 8-Under Red was all All Star Teams.  The host team, Fountain Valley A, was able to best the field of All-Star teams and take home the first place trophy.  They’ll be hoping for the same outcome against these teams once the All-Star season starts.  In the White division, we saw some All Star B Teams, some travel teams, and even a 7-Under team.  Monday’s playoffs were all travel teams, and the HB Scrappers were able to stay undefeated by giving up only 3 runs the entire tournament. The 8-Under Blue was filled with all All-Star teams.  Hart B looked strong, going undefeated and taking home the first place trophy.

There was a nice mix of All-Star and travel teams in the 9-Under division, but one team stood out as the fore-runners.  Fountain Valley based US Stars looked comfortable on their home fields, and had an undefeated weekend, outscoring opponents 50-13 in their five game run to the championship.

The 10-Under division was also split into Red, White and Blue tournaments.  The 10-Under Red had some of the most exciting playoffs that I’ve seen in a long time.    3rd Seed Los Alamitos A upset the home crowd favorite Fountain Valley A with a close 2-1 victory.  That win took them to the finals to meet up with Hart Red.  In the final game, both teams scored a run in the 2nd Inning.  The game would be scoreless for the next 6 innings.  Both teams were playing absolutely perfect defense.  If a runner got on, he was thrown out stealing or left stranded.  It wasn’t until the top of the 8th inning when Hart went ahead 3-1.  They were able to hold on to the lead to take home the first place trophy.  I know both teams are going to do well in their All-Star tournaments, and that they’ll probably meet again.

In the 10-Under White, Tustin Scorpions got revenge on the HB Oilers when it mattered most.  The HB Oilers were able to beat Tustin Scorpions late on Sunday night.  That win gave the Oilers the 1st Seed and the bye straight to the Championship on Monday.  Scorpions were able to take a win in their Semi-Final game to advance to the finals.  They didn’t let their momentum slow down, and took home the Championship with a 5-4 win over the Oilers.

The 10-Under Blue was a very even division.  With no undefeated teams and everyone having at least one win, it was anybody’s trophy to take.  HB Bombers clinched the 1st Seed and took advantage of it by staying well rested, and winning the championship with a 4-1 victory.

The 11-Under was a big and crazy division.  With 12 teams in the division, we saw a little bit of everything in these games.  We had close games, we had high scoring games, we had three ties, but heading into Monday, we had a very strong Gold Playoff Bracket.  As if it were scripted, 1st Seed So Cal Defenders met 2nd Seed Los Alamitos A in the Championship game.  Both teams were undefeated heading into the final game, but the Defenders were able to keep their streak alive with a 6-1 win.

We finally come to the 12-Under brackets, which had the most excitement all weekend.  Split into Red, White and Blue as well, all three divisions had nonstop action all weekend.  The 12-Under red was made up of five strong travel teams.  So Bay Slammers were 1-1 on Saturday and had two ties on Sunday.  They snuck into Monday’s playoffs as the 3rd Seed.  Beach Baseball Club had the last game of the day on Sunday, and after doing some careful bracket calculations, they determined they had to win if they wanted to advance to Monday.  With a 7-2 victory, they moved on as the 2nd Seed.  WLABA Yaks had an unorthodox run to the 1st Seed.  They gave up 18 runs in their first four games, yet had a 3-0-1 record.  No matter how out of control the games got, they were able to regain composure and find a way to win games, even high scoring ones.  Monday’s playoffs saw the So Bay Slammer’s bats wake up after a lazy Sunday.  They breezed through the Semi-Final Game with a 9-1 victory and had a hitting fest in the championship game with a 10-0 victory.

Rox Baseball had the hardest weekend of any team in the 12-Under Blue.  Advancing to Monday’s playoffs as the 4th Seed, they had to win 3 games to clinch the Championship.  After a smooth Quarter-Final victory, they had to face 1st Seed Los Alamitos Bronco A.  The game was a pitcher’s duel, as it moved into the 9th Inning tied 1-1.  In the top of the 9th, Rox scored 2 runs giving them a 3-2 lead.  Los Alamitos battled in the bottom of the 9th for 1 run, but Rox were able to hold on to a 3-2 victory to take them to the Championship game.  After an exciting, and exhausting game like that, it’s hard to come back and play a 3rd game in a day, especially against the HB Oilers.  The Oilers had gotten the best of the Rox on Saturday with a 5-2 win and were looking to repeat, but Rox weren’t going to go down easy.  The Rox were leading 2-1, heading into the bottom of the 6th, that’s when the HB Oiler’s bats started to wake up.  After stringing together multiple hits, they tied the game 2-2.  With two outs and runners at 2nd and 3rd, the batter roped a ball to left field to clinch the comeback victory for the Oilers. The Oilers may have won, but the Rox were a very close second and deserve commendation for their excellent baseball on Monday afternoon.

The 12-Under White had its fair share of excitement.  St. Hedwig A clinched the 1st Seed by being the only undefeated team of Pool Play.  They advanced to the finals with a big win over RSM Storm, and it looked like nothing could stop them…nothing except 2nd Seed HB Total Baseball.  Heading into the bottom of the last inning, St. Hedwig was up 4-2.  HB Total Baseball wasn’t going to give up though.  A triple into the gap brought in one run and base hit tied the game at 4-4.  In the top of the 8th, St. Hedwig scored a run putting them up 5-4.  With two outs in the bottom of the 8th, HB Total Baseball had runners on 2nd and 3rd.  A wild pitch brought home the tying run.  The very next pitch, the left-handed batter sent a line drive into right for the walk off win.  Shortly after the game was over, the jets that flew over the Angel game flew over the park and broke formation to head back to Long Beach.  Talk about the perfect end to an incredible weekend of baseball, and a reminder to the brave men and women that allowed us to play baseball on a perfect Monday afternoon.

Thank you to all the teams that played this weekend.  Year after year, you make our Memorial Day tournaments the best out there.  We’ll see you guys again next year.

May 19-20th - Spring Classic Recap

Traditionally, a full moon is the bearer of strange behavior, bad news, and odd events.  On Sunday, the annual solar eclipse brought us some exciting (and strange) baseball.  In San Diego, the Angels and Padres were finishing off their first interleague series of the season in a truly strange fashion.  As the 2-2 game moved into extra innings, line ups were starting to wear thin.  The Angels had suffered multiple injuries, requiring some creative defensive changes.  Albert Pujols moved from first base to third base, Bobby Wilson moved from catcher to first base, Howie Kendrick moved from second base to left field.  The strangest part came in the bottom of the 13th inning.  San Diego Padres’ starting pitcher Clayton Richard (who is scheduled to start today’s game), pinch hit with two outs in the bottom of the 13th.  After driving a single to left, Will Venable hit a single to left center.  Howie Kendrick, now playing left field, bobbled the ball allowing Richard to score all the way from first. 

2012 Spring Classic – May 19-20, 2012

With Memorial Day fast approaching, the Spring Classic was the perfect tournament to have a week before our biggest tournament of the year.  With games at Steed Park in San Clemente, beautiful summer weather, and great baseball all weekend, it was the perfect calm before the storm.

The 10-Under OC Sundevils met with BPA Rawlings twice on Sunday.  In their first game of the day (their final pool play game), the Sundevils were able to give BPA Rawlings their first loss to clinch the 1st Seed.  BPA Rawlings were able to find their game for the Championship game though, and took home a hard fought 4-2 win.

In the 11-Under division, the two undefeated teams from Saturday met for two games on Sunday.  In their pool play game, No Fear managed to beat the So Cal Mustangs by one run.  Aiming to keep the championship from being a close game, No Fear jumped out to an early 6-1 lead.  The So Cal Mustangs weren’t going to give up that easily though.  In the top of the 6th inning, they scored 7 runs to give them an 8-6 lead.  The Mustangs brought in their closer in the bottom of the 6th, who quickly struck out three batters in a row to clinch the championship.

The 13-Under Gold was evenly matched all the way through. All five games on Sunday were won by one run.  In the quarter finals, the So Cal Outlaws Black met up with their brother team, So Cal Outlaws Blue.  The game was tied 5-5 going into the bottom of the sixth.  Outlaws Black had the bases loaded, but a clutch strikeout kept the game tied going into the seventh.  Outlaws Blue were unable to hold on though, when a sacrifice fly scored the walk off winning run for Outlaws Black.

No Fear went undefeated on Saturday, but due to runs allowed, were the 3rd Seed overall, meaning they would have to win three games on Sunday to win the championship.  They won their quarter final game 2-1, and upset the 2nd Seed in the semi-final game with a 3-2 win to advance to the Championship game against the 1st Seed Irvine Rox.  No Fear jumped out to an early 3-0 lead over Irvine Rox.  Once the Rox found their footing though, they took a 5-3 lead going into the 6th inning.  No Fear wasn’t done though, scoring three runs and holding the Rox for the 6-5 win.

Thank you to all the teams that played this weekend.  Here is a list of the Champions and Runners Up.

Memorial Day Super NIT– May 26-28, 2012

Memorial Day is finally here.  With teams from all over the country, you can be sure that there will be some great baseball played this weekend.  Teams playing in in the Major Divisions will receive triple ranking points on usssa.com and the winner of each division will receive a 2012 Elite World Series Berth.  All other divisions will receive double ranking points on usssa.com. 

We will be playing at four parks, including Big League Dreams Cathedral City (separate tournament), with over 100 teams.

FVPB/USSSA Memorial Day – May 26-28, 2012

2012 marks the 4th year that USSSA has partnered with Fountain Valley Pony Baseball to run their annual Memorial Day tournament.  This tournament always fills Fountain Valley Sports Park to capacity, and is a great tournament for All Star teams from all over Southern California to get experience together before All-Star season starts.  With 86 teams signed up to play, this year will be no different. 

2012 World Series – July 23rd-July 29th, 2012

The World Series is quickly approaching.  We currently have teams from eight different states signed up to play, including six teams flying all the way over from Hawaii!  This is always a great tournament and we look forward to it every year.  If you are not sure if your team is qualified to play in this tournament, please email Craig at CCiandella@aol.com.

See you on the fields

-AC

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