KNOXVILLE, Tenn
–The Silicon Valley Renegades, the No. 8 ranked team in the
Nation and No. 1 team in California, finished their season by
capturing the United States Youth Baseball Association World Series
National Championship in Knoxville Tennessee last week.
KNOXVILLE, Tenn –The Silicon Valley Renegades, the No. 8 ranked team in the Nation and No. 1 team in California, finished their season by capturing the United States Youth Baseball Association World Series National Championship in Knoxville Tennessee last week.
The Renegades finished their season with an impressive record of 50-10 and competed with some of the best teams in the Nation from the states of Arizona, California, Georgia, Ohio, Texas, Illinois, Utah and many more.
Last year the Renegades went 8-1 in the USYBA World Series but came up short by losing to the World Series Champions, the Georgia East Cobb Mudcats.
In the pool play, the Renegades defeated Ohio Winning Edge 8-3, Knoxville Thunder Gold 12-5, Ohio Lebabon Lighting 6-2 and lost to Georgia’s West Cobb Bandits 8-6.
Although the Renegades did not win their pool, their record and runs allowed qualified them to be seated as the fourth place team in the championship round.
Renegades 21, Thunder Red 5
The Renegades started out strong by defeating the Tennessee Thunder Red in the first round by batting .645 in the game.
In the first inning, the Renegades tore into the Thunder Red pitching by getting seven hits in row and scoring eight runs in the first inning.
James Perez went 4-for-4. Lopiccolo, Justin McPherson, Hassan Beyah, Nick Chapa, James Coon, Mike Dinner and Tucker Laurence all had two hits.
Renegades 8, Wolves 7
In the second game, the Renegades went head on with the No.1 seed in the tournament the Georgia Woodstock Wolves. After giving up three runs in the first, the
Renegades came back to tie the score. McPherson doubled to drive in Jason Smith and Perez, who both singled. Lopiccolo also had an RBI hit in the inning.
The score stayed tied until the third inning when Laurence hit a double to right center scoring Barber from second. Beyah got a base hit up the middle, scoring Laurence to make the score 5-3.
In the fourth inning, the Renegades picked up a two-out base hit to tie the score. In the fifth, Beyah started the Renegades off with a walk. He then stole second and third base. With one out, McPherson had an RBI hit and scored on Lopiccolos’ triple. With Nick Chapa up to bat, the pitcher threw a wild pitch in the dirt, allowing Lopiccolo to score.
The Renegades gave up two more runs in the sixth inning. Blair and Smith pitched a great game keeping the Wolves offense, striking out eight batters.
Renegades 12, Bandits 7
In the third round of the playoffs, the Renegades defeated the West Cobb Bandits from Georgia, who had gave them their only lost in pool play.
Beyah went 1-for-3 with three walks, Barber was 3-for-4 with two RBIs, Laurence went 2-for-4 with three runs scored, Smith was 2-for-3 with two runs and an RBI and McPherson was 2-for-3 with three RBIs.
The Renegades got great pitching from their starting pitcher Barber, who had five strikeouts.
Renegades 14, Stars 6
In the championship game, the Renegades defeated the Tennessee Stars, who had come back to defeat the West Cobb Bandits in the losers bracket. The Renegades came into the game well rested, and the pitchers had fresh arms.
The Renegades got on the board early, scoring 12 runs in the first inning. Although the Tennessee Stars settled down and allowed only two more runs in the game, they could not over come the fast start from the Renegades.
Every player contributed in the victory. Beyah went 3-6, Chris Barber was 1-for-2, Lopiccolo was 2-for-3, Laurence was 2-for-4, Perez was 2-for-3 with 3 RBIs, McPherson went 2-for-3, Michael Dinner went 2-for-4, Blair was 2-for-3, Chapa went 1-3 and Coon was 2-for-4.
Noble Enriquez and Smith made great defensive plays. But the biggest difference in the game was the outstanding pitching by the Renegades starter Coon, who pitched four innings striking out five batters.
During the eight games played in the USYBA World Series, the Renegades had a team record for batting in a tournament with an average of .456 and a slugging percentage of .611 and a on base average of .595.
