Georgia Team Elite falls to the undefeated Canes American 17U
GLENDALE, Wis. (BVM) — On Friday morning in its third and final round robin game of the Geico City Series at MSOE Raider Stadium, Georgia Team Elite fell to the Canes American 17U team in extras, 10-7.
In a game that started with two innings of clean baseball, the Canes broke things open in the top of the third inning by hanging four runs on Team Elite starting pitcher Will Simmons. A bases-loaded two-RBI double from Eastern Carolina commit Dixon Williams got things started, and his teammate, TCU commit Zach Wadas, followed him up with a two-RBI hit of his own.
However, Team Elite responded in the bottom half of the inning, cutting the lead in half by scoring two runs on separate passed balls. Then after a couple of more scoreless innings, Team Elite completed its comeback, knotting things up at 4-4 thanks to a two-RBI single from its everyday catcher and Oklahoma commit, Dillon Lester.
“They fight, the kids fight, that’s our MO,” coach Jamie Crane said following the game. “We aren’t going to give up, the game is never over.”
This was true as their comeback effort took a culmination of three innings and they even had a chance to walk it off in the bottom of the seventh. The Canes granted Team Elite’s leadoff batter a free base with a hit by pitch, continuing to create some self-inflicted harm. Then a balk and a walk led to runners on first and second with no outs, but Team Elite went down 1-2-3 following their promising start.
In extras, it took until the ninth inning for some action to happen, and it was all Canes American. In the top of the ninth they put up six runs, capped off by a homerun, creating a comfortable 10-4 cushion heading to the bottom of the inning. While Team Elite was able to mount a miniature comeback once again, it was ultimately too little too late. It scored three runs to make it 10-7, and that’s where the game would finish.
They completed pool play with a record of 1-2, missing their chance to compete for the championship on ESPNU Saturday. But the experience and lessons learned from playing in this high-profile event were the real reward.
“It’s good for those kids to get into a situation like this, have to travel and play out of town in a different environment, different umpires, and in some cases, even different rules,” Crane said. “I think the biggest thing is them growing as players, becoming more diverse, and understanding that if they do get to come back next year they know what to expect.”
An invite back would be well-received by Team Elite. For much of the squad, it was their first time in Milwaukee and it did not disappoint.
“(Milwaukee is) A fun town, good dining, going to see the Brewers,” Cane said. “It’s different from Georgia in a lot of ways so it’s been fun, we got to see the city, something new we haven’t done before.”
This event wrapped up the summer schedule for Team Elite as they will begin fall play the week after Labor Day. With four to five events lined up on its fall schedule, many of these Class of 2022 and 2023 players will get to continue impressing collegiate scouts and building upon the Georgia Team Elite name.
