The 2018 Summer kicked off last weekend at the Perfect Game WWBA Memorial Day Tournament where 3 Elite Squad Teams (17u American, 16u National and 15u National) took home the title in their respective age groups. Below is the article from Perfect Game:
For the 15u event, it was a matchup of two Elite Squad programs and it was Elite Squad National who prevailed in the championship game with a 9-2 victory.
For the four games that Elite Squad National played, the pitching staff was excellent as they surrendered just three runs total. In the championship game, Irving Carter (2021, Boynton Beach, Fla.) tossed five innings, allowed three hits and one earned run while striking out seven. Carter was named MV-Pitcher for his efforts.
Offensively in the championship game, Giovanny Cueto (2021, Miami, Fla.), Alex Ulloa (2021, Cutler Bay, Fla.) and Jorge De Goti(2021, Miami, Fla.) all had two hits and a double, with Ulloa collecting three RBI and Cueto and De Goti each plating two runs.
Also collecting two hits in the title game was Justin Quintana (2021, Miramar, Fla.), who would garner MVP honors after going 6-for-12 with a home run and five RBI in the four games.
The 16u championship game featured another pair of Elite Squad programs battling for the championship and it would be a separate Elite Squad National squad that picked up a 3-0 victory over Elite Squad Prospects in the final.
With an offense that posted double-digit hits in their first three games, the championship only featured a combined five hits between the two teams. Instead a strong pitching performance from two National arms in Jordan Carrion, (2020, Miami, Fla.), who struck out five in three innings, and Coby Mayo (2020, Coral Springs, Fla.), who worked the final two innings and also racked up five strikeouts, combined for the shutout.
For the four games, Lucas Nido (2020, Miami, Fla.) produced eight runs at the plate, going 4-for-9 with a double and a home run and was named MVP for the event.
The MV-Pitcher for the event went to Ronaldo Gallo (2019, Miami, Fla.) for Elite Squad Prime, as the righthander threw a five-inning shutout against Elite Squad Rodriguez, striking out nine and allowing just three hits.
In the 18u final, another Elite Squad program rose above the rest as Elite Squad American defeated North East Baseball National 6-1 to take home the title.
Michael Cordova (2019, Parkland, Fla.) worked three scoreless frames with three strikeouts and was followed up by Jack Ronan(2019, Boca Raton, Fla.), who would close out the game with two innings, surrendering a lone earned run.
Andrew Jenner (2019, Coral Springs, Fla.) went 2-for-3 with an RBI and scored a pair of runs in the win and finished the four games for Elite Squad American with five hits in seven at-bats and four RBI.
The MV-Pitcher came from the winning club as Kael Johnston-Royal (2019, Davie, Fla.) was brilliant in the semifinal against Elite Squad National, tossing a five-inning, complete game two-hit shutout with seven strikeouts.
