Some of the best teams in the state of North Carolina will be in action at the Top Gun sites this weekend. Unfortunately this will be a rain-shortened weekend with the forecast of rain and cold washing out play for Sunday. Nevertheless, it should be another great weekend of Top Gun play. Check out the preview for insights into who’s playing where.
Charlotte
8u
The #6 Lake Norman Vipers will be in action this weekend in Charlotte and will face Coul-Oak Diesel the Carolina Spinners on Saturday. Both Coul-Oak and the Spinners will also take on Team 24 Gamecocks – Clayton (SC) on Saturday in this 4-team field.
9u
There are no ranked 9u teams in the Charlotte field this weekend, but the North Carolina teams will have to deal with an excellent South Carolina team in Team 24 Gamecocks – Ashley (SC). The Gamecocks will face the Stealth Elite Eagles and SBA Canes – Red in their two games on Saturday.
10u
There will be two 10u divisions this weekend, National and American, with 14 teams in total. Although there are no ranked teams in either field, there should be lots of good competition in the two divisions. In the National division, the NCCF Defenders will look to try and get their spring moving in the right direction with games against the Davidson Force and the Stealth Elite Orioles. In the American division the previously ranked Triple Crown Lookouts will face the Carolina Spinners and the Panthers in their two Saturday games.
11u
Similar to the 10u age group, the 11u age group will be divided into an American and National division. #11 Athlete’s Lab Crushers will get their spring started against Team USA Diamond King and an excellent Carolina Astros team. The #13 OTK Saints are also in the American division and will also take the Carolina Astros as well as the LKN Attack on Saturday. The National division should be wide open. SBA Canes – Walker/Patterson will look to build on a successful start to their spring. They’ll face Myers Park Trinity and the Carolina Heat NC in their two opening games on Saturday.
12u
The 12u age group sis also divided into an American and National division. #2 Minion will be the headliner of the American division and they’ll face Copperheads – Shabosky and Team 24 Gamecocks – Wilson in their opening games on Saturday.
Greensboro
8u
The Carolina Young Guns, HYAA Hawks, and Reidsville Luckies will play a round robin event on Saturday in Greensboro.
10u
#11 Alamance Patriots will start their spring off this weekend in Greensboro. They’ll face the GBC Prospects and the North Wake Cardinals on Saturday. The Prospects will also go against the HYAA Hawks, while the Cardinals will meet up with the Randolph Regulators on Saturday. Also on Saturday, the Regulators will go against the HYAA Hawks in their other pool play game.
12u
The South Rowan Hammerheads and the Randolph Rattlers will play a double-header on Saturday in Greensboro.
Snow Hill
9u
#20 GBI Express will make their spring debut this weekend in Snow Hill. They’ll take on Smash Baseball and Bomberz Baseball on Saturday. Smash will also face Eastern Impact on Saturday. The Wilson Reds are another quality team in this field. They’ll face an excellent Cape Fear Elite EPJ team as well as the Wayne County Arsenal – Futures on Saturday. Cape Fear will also take on Wayne County in their other Saturday game.
10u
There are no ranked 10u teams in the Snow Hill field this weekend. 9u #2 Dirtbags Black will get their feet wet with open bases by playing up in the 10u division this weekend in Snow Hill. It should be a competitive age group for them and they’ll face 9u PITT413, who are also playing up in the 10u age group, and Carolina Armor – Blue.
11u
There are no ranked 11u teams in the field this weekend, but their are several quality teams looking to either start or build upon successful starts to the spring. The Carolina Braves will be looking to build on their 4-2 start this spring and will face the Carolina Wood Ducks and the Burgaw Nationals on Saturday.
12u
Much like the 11u age group, there are no ranked 12u teams in the field for Saturday. The Youngsville Punishers are one team looking to build on a successful fall and start to the spring season. They’ll take on the RBI Raptors and the Pitt County Diamond Dawgs on Saturday.
Wake County
8u
#2 Carolina Threshers will be in action on Saturday in Knightdale. They’ll face the NCDB Rivercats and the Youngsville Phantoms in their two Saturday games. NCDB and the Phantoms will also face one another on Saturday morning.
10u
10u #1 Canes NC – Gilchrist will get their first action of the spring this weekend. As the only ranked team in this field, they’ll be the heavy favorites in this field. They’ll take on the South Wake Storm and the Walk Off Academy Warriors in their two games on Saturday.
11u
#9 Cleveland Wildcats Elite will be the only ranked 11u team in the field this weekend in Knightdale. They’ll face the Triangle Sports Hawks and the Carolina Pirates in their two games on Saturday.
12u
The 12u age group features a large, 11-team field for his Saturday-only event. Although there are no ranked teams in this field, there are several quality teams which should make for an intriguing, competitive day of games. Rawlings Prospects NC was a team that made some appearances in our top 20 this past fall before ultimately dropping out. They’ll take on the Cary Wildcats and the Durham Blues on Saturday. Dirtbags Black are also in the 12u field, and will face the Clayton Stampede and the Bandits on Saturday. The Orange County Crushers are another team poised for an excellent spring. They’ll face the Carolina Freedom and the Cary Wildcats in their two games on Saturday.
13u
13 #20 Walk Off Warriors will get their spring started this weekend. They’ll face the Five Star Wildcats and 12u #17 Carolina Thunder in their two games on Saturday. The Thunder, who are playing up this weekend, will also face the Riptide on Saturday. 12u #3 Legends Baseball will also be playing up this weekend. They’ll face the Five Star Wildcats and the North Wake Thunder in their two games on Saturday.
Charleston SC
Shipyard Park will host its opening weekend for Top Gun this weekend. While the vast majority of teams playing this weekend are from SC, we wanted to highlight some of the North Carolina teams making the trip to Charleston.
10u
#18 Belmont Bandits, who made their debut in our top 20 this week, will get a stiff test on Saturday in Charleston. They’ll face two excellent teams from SC in the SC Jets and the East Coast Snipers. On Sunday the Bandits will be playing up in the 11u age group. They’ll face the Beaufort Count Bombers (SC) and the Junior RiverDogs (SC) on Sunday. This should be an excellent test for the Bandits early in their spring season.
11u
On Sunday, the Raptors will face off against the Summerville Sharks (SC) and the Summerville Vapor (SC).
12u
In the 12u age group, two teams from North Carolina will be making the trip to Charleston. The Carolina Sluggers will face the Bulls Bay Bandits (SC) and the Junior RiverDogs (SC) on Saturday. The Corinth Pirates will take on the Seawolves (SC) and Dungeon Dogs Baseball (SC) in their Saturday slate.