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.
