Top Gun 9u Summer World Series Recap June 2019

35 teams competed across 3 divisions in the 9u age group at the Top Gun Summer World Series this past weekend in Rocky Mount. Among those 3 teams, 8 of the top 20 teams in North Carolina were in action as well as 1 ranked team from Virginia. The D1 division featured 2 matchups of our #2 (Dirtbags Black) and #3 (Canes Baseball NC - Harris) teams in North Carolina, in rematches of the finals from the Triple Crown Border Wars from earlier this spring.

9u
D1
NC #3 Canes Baseball NC - Harris was impressive this weekend, going 7-0 on their way to the 9u D1 title.

6 of the top 20 teams in North Carolina took part in the 7-team D1 division near Rocky Mount this past weekend. #13 West Raleigh Blue earned the #1 seed for bracket play after posting a 12-0 win over #9 East Coast Elite and a 9-1 win over #16 Dirtbags East on Friday, as well as a 6-3 win over the LBC Lightning and a 10-9 win over NC #5 HPT HiToms. #3 Canes Baseball NC - Harries earned the #2 seed in the Gold bracket after going 4-0 in pool play with an 8-7 win over the HPT HiToms, a 13-8 win over the LBC Lightning, a 2-1 win over #2 Dirtbags Black, and a 13-7 win over East Coast Elite. Dirtbags Black received the #3 seed after going 3-1 in pool play with a 6-1 win over the LBC Lightning, an 11-0 win over the HPT HiToms, and a 15-0 win over the East Coast Elite, in addition to their loss against the Canes.

Only the #1 seed received a bye into the semifinals for Sunday. In the quarterfinal games, #4 seed HPT HiToms rolled to a 9-3 win over #5 seed Dirtbags East, #2 seed Canes - Harris topped the LBC Lightning 9-8, and #3 seed Dirtbags Black blanked East Coast Elite 10-0. In the semifinals, the HPT HiToms blanked West Raleigh Blue 5-0 and Canes - Harris again got the better of Dirtbags Black with a 7-4 win. In the finals, Canes - Harris finished off a 7-0 weekend with an 8-0 win over the HPT HiToms.

Instant Analysis

To us, it appears Dirtbags Black and the Canes set themselves apart from this field. Dirtbags Black's two losses both came at the hands of the Canes and were by a total of 4 runs. Meanwhile they outscored their other 4 opponents a combined 42-1. But major credit should go to Canes - Harris from this weekend. They topped the #2 Dirtbags twice and scored wins over the #5 (x2), #9, and #13 teams in North Carolina in an impressive 7 game run. Their wins over the Dirtbags avenged the Canes' lost against the Dirtbags earlier this spring in the Triple Crown Border Wars final. For the spring, the Canes moved to 35-7 and have won 15 games in a row since their loss against the Dirtbags. With their two losses this weekend, the Dirtbags moved to 24-4 this spring.

Predicted champion: Dirtbags Black

Champion: Canes Baseball NC - Harris

 

D2
#8 NCABC Fungo - Piscorik was impressive at the D2 SWS, going 6-0 on their way to the title.

The 9u D2 division was comprised of 9 total teams, including NC #8 NCABC Fungo - Piscorik, #17 NCDB Rivercats, and Virginia #8 757 Dirtbags Platinum. Fungo - Piscorik lived up to their lofty ranking in pool play, going 4-0 and earning the top seed in the Gold bracket with a 15-3 win over the NCDB Rivercats, an 11-5 win over West Raleigh Red, a 14-0 win over Carolina Rampage Baseball, and an 18-1 win over NSA Select. The Youngsville Phantoms scored the #2 seed in the Gold bracket after going 3-1 in pool play with a 6-3 win over Area Stars Orange, a 13-3 win over 757 Dirtbags Platinum, a 9-3 win over Carolina Rampage Baseball, and a 6-4 loss against the FV Wildcats.

#1 seed Fungo - Piscorik received a bye into the semifinals. In the #4/5 play-in game, #4 seed FV Wildcats edged past 757 Dirtbags 10-9. In the semifinals, the Youngsville Phantoms topped Area Stars Orange 5-3 and Fungo - Piscorik scored an 11-3 win over the FV Wildcats. In the finals, Fungo scored a 9-4 win over the Phantoms to take home the 9u D2 title.

Instant Analysis

Fungo - Piscorik is now 29-8 this spring,  including 19-2 in their last 21 games. They have clearly established themselves in the upper echelons of the 9u age group. It is always a difficult balance finding the right level of competition, but it appears it's time for Fungo to move up to the D1 ranks as they compete quite well at that level.

Predicted champion: NCABC Fungo - Piscorik

Champion: NCABC Fungo - Piscorik

 

D3

19 teams faced off in the 9u D3 division this weekend in Rocky Mount. The Carolina Freedom scored the top seed in the 8-team Gold bracket after going 4-0 in pool play. On Friday, the Freedom topped NCABC Fungo Red 8-5 and the Gastonia Raptors 15-0. On Saturday, the Freedom notched a 16-6 win over Wayne County Dingers and a 19-1 win over the Holly Springs Atoms. The North Wake Grays received the #2 seed in the Gold bracket, posting a 4-0 record in pool play with a 23-2 win over the Carolina Copperheads, a 10-2 win over Outlaws Baseball, a 14-4 win over NOVA Battle (VA), and an 11-5 win over the Carolina Crushers. The RBI Raptors also went 4-0 in pool play and earned the #3 seed in the Gold bracket. They scored a 14-1 win over the Wolfpack and a 24-3 win over the Carolina Copperheads on Friday. They followed that up with a 13-3 win over NCABC Fungo Red and a 13-9 win over Rocky Mount Marshals 2028.

In the quarterfinals on Sunday, #1 seed Carolina Freedom scored a 12-4 win over Carolina Thunder Gold, #2 seed North Wake Grays fell 12-8 against #7 seed Cleveland Wildcats, #3 seed RBI Raptors topped #6 seed Carolina Crushers 13-1, and #4 seed GRIT fell 15-12 against #5 seed Sandhills Scrappers. In the semifinals, the Carolina Freedom edged the Scrappers 5-4 and the Raptors notched an 8-4 win over the Cleveland Wildcats. In the finals, the Freedom finished off a 7-0 weekend with a 12-3 win over the RBI Raptors.