The Evoshield Canes took the 12U gold bracket title at the Top Gun Spring Nationals, shutting out the Maroon Crush 16-0 in a game shortened to three innings by the run rule.
Don't take the wins while playing up for granted. From what we can tell, looking back at Triangle-area Top Gun tournaments this spring, only two other local 11U teams have played up. Their combined record is 3-5. The EvoCanes got more wins than that this weekend alone.
The surge really began in the semifinals, when they looked a little lost while falling behind GBI Blue 9-1. From there, however, they outscored the opposition 29-1 over the next five innings. Sixteen of those runs came in the title game, and also came in only two innings. Just as a reminder from yesterday: this is not normal, folks.
The championship win over the visitors from Roanoke, Va., included terrific hitting, stellar pitching and error-free defense. It also featured the first opportunity for this group to try and master the art of the post-championship photograph. How do you like your celebratory photo? A little more traditional?
Today, they also created a new kind of photo: the felfie. Look at Andrew's impressively long arms!
Felfie, of course, is shorthand for "fake selfie." Because here's how the Canes actually got the above photo:
First inning
Gavin reached with one out and alertly went to second on an error throwing in the ball. He took third on a fielder's choice, then scored on an error. Chace singled Drew to second. Ashton singled to load the bases. Andrew singled in a pair. JT drove in Ashton. Andrew scored on a first and third play.
Score after one inning: Canes 5, Maroon Crush 0
Second inning
Bryce walked. Jake walked. Gavin doubled a grape through a pinhole (after hearing the opposing coach say that phrase, the Canes correctly noted, "That sounds like something Coach Bruce would say") to score Bryce. Drew walked. Chace hit a two-run single. Andrew walked. JT scored Drew. Ben was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded, scoring Chace. Brady, using the aerodynamics from his adult large jersey to create a wind tunnel, singled in a pair. Bryce cracked a two-run single. Colin reached on a shot to the left side. Drew singled home Bryce. Asher drove in Colin.
Score after two innings: Canes 16, Maroon Crush 0
Pitching Performances
Using the all-Ash mound strategy, featuring players who look so similar they're tough to tell apart, Ashton threw the first two innings and Asher finished it up in the third.
Dugout wisdom
It felt like this game had multiple classic comments that will live for years, along the lines of Coach Biscuit, the magic bat or "Schni-day". It began before the game even started. During the pregame head coach meeting at home plate, the umpires issued the usual instructions, and then the coaches shook hands. "Good luck," Coach Sean told the Maroon Crush coach, who would soon be spotted downing a Big Gulp in the first base coaching box. "Have fun."
Coach Big Gulp held on to Coach Sean's hand with a serious look on his face. "Oh no," he said. "We don't have fun. When we play baseball, there are a lot of angry coaches and shouting."
Even a renowned wordsmith like Coach Sean couldn't really come up with anything to say in response to that one, other than, "Uhhhhhhh...OK." He did eventually get his hand back, though.
Later, after Colin laced a key hit, Asher coined a new phrase, saying, "I'm coo-coo for Kimble Puffs!" Maybe you had to be there. Trust me, it was funny.
Around the time that inning ended, with the Canes having plated 11 runs in the frame and leading 16-0 while the Maroon Crush didn't have a hit, Coach Big Gulp gathered his team around him and began shouting--really shouting, at a level that was a little uncomfortable because it was so obviously shouting--at his team. His gems included, "They don't hit the ball harder than you!" However, this particular tournament was scored using the "how many runs did they get" method rather than the "how hard did they hit it" method evidently used in Roanoke, so the 16-0 lead was allowed to stand.
Dugout wisdom
It felt like this game had multiple classic comments that will live for years, along the lines of Coach Biscuit, the magic bat or "Schni-day". It began before the game even started. During the pregame head coach meeting at home plate, the umpires issued the usual instructions, and then the coaches shook hands. "Good luck," Coach Sean told the Maroon Crush coach, who would soon be spotted downing a Big Gulp in the first base coaching box. "Have fun."
Coach Big Gulp held on to Coach Sean's hand with a serious look on his face. "Oh no," he said. "We don't have fun. When we play baseball, there are a lot of angry coaches and shouting."
Even a renowned wordsmith like Coach Sean couldn't really come up with anything to say in response to that one, other than, "Uhhhhhhh...OK." He did eventually get his hand back, though.
Later, after Colin laced a key hit, Asher coined a new phrase, saying, "I'm coo-coo for Kimble Puffs!" Maybe you had to be there. Trust me, it was funny.
Around the time that inning ended, with the Canes having plated 11 runs in the frame and leading 16-0 while the Maroon Crush didn't have a hit, Coach Big Gulp gathered his team around him and began shouting--really shouting, at a level that was a little uncomfortable because it was so obviously shouting--at his team. His gems included, "They don't hit the ball harder than you!" However, this particular tournament was scored using the "how many runs did they get" method rather than the "how hard did they hit it" method evidently used in Roanoke, so the 16-0 lead was allowed to stand.
Championship Web Gems
- The pitching was good enough that there weren't a whole lot of tough plays in the field. Sorry, web gem fans.
Championship line score
|
1
|
2
|
3
|
4
|
5
|
6
|
R
|
H
|
Maroon Crush
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
X
|
X
|
X
|
0
|
1
|
Canes
|
5
|
11
|
X
|
X
|
X
|
X
|
16
|
8
|
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