In addition to Elite World Series Berths being available in the Major Divisions, teams were playing to receive the exclusive Cinco De Mayo Champions Bat Bag Tags. Keep your eyes open for future tournament offerings of these awesome keepsakes.
Big League Dreams:
8-Under:
The only Elite World Series qualifying bracket splitting into two brackets on Sunday was the 8-Under. Only the Top 5 Seeds would have an opportunity to compete for the berth. Diamond MVP lost their first game of Pool Play without scoring a single run. They bounced back in Game 2, and didn't allow a single run. By not giving up a run in their second game, they advanced to the Gold Bracket as the 5th Seed by allowing one less run than the 6th Seed.
Now in the Gold Bracket, Diamond MVP started playing like the Championship team we've seen from their organization. Moving to the Semifinals with a gritty 5-4 victory, they were up against the 1st Seed SGV Hustle, the team that shut them out on Saturday. The Hustle hadn't given up a single run up to this point. Diamond MVP weren't going to let that streak continue. Only giving up three runs against the hard hitting Hustle, Diamond MVP put up 7 runs, moving them to the Championship Game.
Now up against the 2nd Seed Cali Gamers, Diamond MVP would have their work cut out for them. The Gamers had only given up 2 runs the entire tournament. Now on their third game of the day, Diamond MVP continued to play like they were on their first. They gave up four runs again, but timely hitting and clutch at bats put five runs across the plate, giving Diamond MVP a hard earned 1st Place finish.
9-Under:
The 9-Under Easton Elite have been doing two things all season long. First, they've constantly played up to the 10-Under Division. 9-Under and 10-Under play on the same field dimensions, so this results in playing against better teams. Secondly, they've been consistently improving all season long. Improving their finishing position in almost everything weekend, they claimed their first 1st Place finish last month by winning the 10-Under Fools Gold.
Now with the taste of 1st Place in their memories, they were expecting nothing less while playing the best 9-Under teams in Southern California. After moving on to the playoffs as the 2nd Seed, they escaped a close quarterfinal game with a 5-4 victory.
Not looking to leave anything to chance in the next two games, they outscored their opponents 24-7 in the next two games to take home the Championship, and the chance to represent Southern California at the end of the season.
10-Under:
With 12 teams all vying for the Championship and the Elite World Series Berth, the 10-Under Division had to have Saturday night playoffs at the conclusion of Pool Play. Eight Teams had to play Saturday night playoffs games to advance to the Quarterfinal games on Sunday.
5th Seed Team California was one of those Eight Teams. After winning their quarter final game, they advanced to play the 4th Seed Diamond MVP. Holding them to just 3 runs, Team California moved on to the Semifinals to face the Northern California LaMorinda Trojans. An 8-4 victory put Team California in the Championship game against the 2nd Seed So Cal Knights.
Despite being on their sixth game of the weekend, Team California kept their minds focused. While they did start to get tired, they didn't give up. Up against the hard hitting Knights, Team California held them to 5 runs, and did what they had to do to get 6 runs across the plate. This was Team Califonria's Second NIT victory this season, boding well for them when they go to the World Series.
11-Under:
In Major Divisions, every team has the potential to win the tournament, regardless of their seed heading into playoffs. Other times, the best teams prove why they were the 1st or 2nd Seed. In the 11-Under Major, Diamond MVP only gave up 2 runs in Pool Play, moving them to the Playoffs as the 2nd Seed. Having only lost two games all season, Diamond MVP showed why they consistently field some of the best teams in the country. After giving up just two runs in their first two playoff games, they advanced to the Championship game against the 1st Seed. Not changing their approach at all, they didn't give up any runs, and took home their 3rd 1st Place Finish in four tournaments played this season.
12-Under:
After a tough trip to Arizona, the Bakersfield Heat were looking for redemption, and to clinch a 1st Place finish.
After going 2-0 in Pool Play, they advanced to Playoffs as the 2nd Seed, meaning they would have to win three games to take home the World Series Berth. Not looking forward to a long drive home to Bakersfield empty handed, the Heat buckled down and proved just how good of a team they are. Winning their quarterfinal game easily, they advanced to the Semifinals for a tough game. After 6 brilliant innings pitched by Vincent Rangal, Nick Salas came in to close the game, giving the Heat a 4-3 victory.
Now in the Championship game against a resurgent LA Clash, the Heat had another tough game ahead of them. Mimicking the previous game almost perfectly, the Heat managed to shut down the Clash offense, holding them to just two runs, giving them the opening to score the 3 need to take home 1st Place, and some much needed redemption after the previous tournament.
13-Under:
Even the best teams can lose team as the weekend moves on. The SY Titans and Lamorinda Spartans were the 1st and 2nd Seeds headed into Sunday. After received stellar pitching performances to get them both to the finals, both teams were running light in the pitching department, despite swinging the bats.
In what turned out to be a slug fest, the Lamorina Spartans earned their fourth 1st Place finish of the season with a wild 11-10 Championship victory, improving their overall record to 23-1 on the season.
Thank you to all the teams that played in the Cinco De Mayo Super NIT, and good luck to the Major teams advancing to the World Series Events. Here is a list of the Champions and Runner Ups.
See you on the fields
-AC
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