Top Gun Back Pack Tournament Game 4: WR 8U Red 12, WR 7U 9

Both 8U Red and 7U Blue won their sunrise games on Sunday at The Factory in Wake Forest, setting up a 10:30 first pitch to determine which team would finish the Top Gun Back Pack Tournament at 3-1 (the Carolina Titans went 4-0 to win the event). 7U jumped out early with a quick 3-0 lead, but a couple of porous defensive innings proved to be their undoing, and 8U overcame the highly questionable pitching of Coach Andy to earn the 12-9 win.

As you would expect in a West Raleigh-vs-West Raleigh game, the contest was highly competitive and well played on both sides. The bottom of the 8U order proved to be the difference, as the final five hitters in their order scored eight runs.

The loss completed play in the Top Gun Back Pack Tournament, with 7U Blue finishing the weekend at 2-2, good for third place in the gold bracket after four games against teams with a healthy smattering of eight-year-olds.

Coach Andy was so pleased with his team's win that he promised to wash Coach Sean's car at the next available opportunity. Look for him soon in the West Raleigh parking lot.

Game 4 West Raleigh 7U scoring plays
First inning
7U got on the board quickly. Trey led off the game with a single, and then Joseph's hard grounder put runners on first and second. A fielder's choice moved two runners into scoring position, and then Chace cleared the bases with a long triple to right-center. Jake's single scored Chace to finish the first-inning scoring.
Score after one-half inning: WR 7U 3, WR 8U Red 0


Fourth inning
Chace led off with his second straight triple. Jake repeated the first-inning format with an RBI single. Joey's fielder's choice set the stage for Bryce's RBI triple. With two outs, Mason scored Bryce with a single to left.
Score after three and a half innings: WR 8U Red 8, WR 7U 6


Fifth inning
Timmy singled and then moved to second after a miscue in the 8U outfield. With one out, The Mad Bunter sacrificed Timmy to third. Trey's speed put him on first and prolonged the inning while Timmy hustled home, and then Gavin earned a two-out RBI single.
Score after four and a half innings: WR 8U Red 12, WR 7U 8

Sixth inning
It looked like a potential rally was beginning when Jake led off with a double. But after a nice play in the 8U outfield retired Joey, Bryce moved Jake to third with just one out. Ben's sacrifice fly scored Jake, but that was all 7U could get in the final frame.
Final score: WR 8U Red 12, WR 7U 9

Game 4 Web Gems

• Asher used the technical defensive technique known as "self-defense" to knock down a grounder back up the middle in the bottom of the first, and threw to first to end the inning.
• Joseph made yet another very good defensive play on a wicked line drive that was crushed by 8U's Bryce.
• After a couple of rough defensive innings, 7U regrouped for the fifth. They recorded their second 1-2-3 defensive inning of the game, which featured a good catch in left-center by Ben to retire the leadoff man.

Game 4 line score	1	2	3	4	5	6	R	H
WR 7U Blue	3	0	0	3	2	1	9	12
WR 8U Red	1	0	7	4	0	X	12	15

Top Gun Back Pack Tournament Game 3: WR 7U 22, Stedman Black Sox 12

In West Raleigh, players never really want to be the home team. Not because they don't like the advantage of batting last, but because being the visitor means one very simple thing: you get to hit first! This was evidenced early on Sunday morning, as Coach Sean broke the news to 7U that they would be the visitor in the early morning start against the Stedman Black Sox (answer to inevitable question of "Where is Stedman?"--Cumberland County).

The response from the 13 players was quick and unanimous: loud cheers.

"Yeahhhh! We get to hit!" In the mind of a West Raleigh baseball player, a season-long road trip would be much preferable to playing any home games.

7U quickly proved just how excited they were, as they scored a first-inning maximum of five runs in the top of the first inning to take an immediate lead. They eventually got at least one hit from every player in the lineup, a complete top-to-bottom performance that included 12 different players scoring at least one run.

In addition, after some defensive hiccups in the early innings, 7U clamped down at the end, facing just seven Stedman hitters over the final two innings to ice the win.

The 22 runs scored were the most scored by any team in a single game in the five-team 8U division. In fact, 55 teams competed in this weekend's Top Gun Back Pack Tournament. West Raleigh's 22 runs were more than any of those 55 teams scored in a single game.


Game 3 West Raleigh scoring plays
First inning
This could take a while, as for the first time this season, West Raleigh scored in every inning. They began with five runs (the first-inning limit) in the top of the first. Trey started it off by beating out yet another single (his teammates have taken to chanting "Speedy Gonzalez" when he comes to bat). Joey tripled, and then Gavin's single scored Joey. After a pair of fielder's choices, 7U had runners at the corners with two outs. Joseph's single scored Chace, and then Ben singled in Bryce. Mason's infield single scored Joseph and invoked the five-run rule.
Score after one-half inning: WR 5, Black Sox 0


Second inning
The hit parade continued. This time, it was Elias, Timmy and Alex stringing together three straight singles, which scored two runs. Asher's titanic moon shot of a bunt scored Alex, and then problems in the Black Sox infield sent Asher all the way to third. That put him in position to tag up and score on Trey's sacrifice fly to deep shortstop.
Score after one and a half innings: WR 9, Black Sox 2


Third inning
Yes, after all that, we're not even halfway through all the runs. West Raleigh got four in the third. For the third straight inning, the leadoff man reached--this time it was Jake with a single. He moved to second on Bryce's single, then scored on Joseph's double to left. After a fielder's choice put runners on first and third, Mason picked up a sacrifice fly. Then Elias had one of the biggest swings of the day, blasting an inside-the-park home run to right that scored two.
Score after two and a half innings: WR 13, Black Sox 6

Fourth inning
West Raleigh got a two-out run. Trey beat out another single, then scored after back-to-back singles from Joey and Gavin.
Score after three and a half innings: WR 14, Black Sox 8


Fifth inning
The leadoff man reached again; this time, it was Jake with a single. Bryce followed with a line shot to right field, and Jake and Bryce hustled all the way around the bases to plate two more runs. Bryce's teammates mobbed him at the plate after his inside-the-park blast.
Score after four and a half innings: WR 16, Black Sox 12


Sixth inning
In the unlimited scoring final frame, 7U had their biggest offensive inning of the season so far. Three straight singles from Elias, Timmy and Alex scored two, and then Asher's fielder's choice scored Alex. With two down and the bases empty, the West Raleigh offense got started again. Joey singled back up the middle, and Gavin crushed an RBI double to left. Chace's line drive to right scored Gavin, and Jake's single scored Jake to provide the final impressive total of 22 runs.
Score after five and a half innings: WR 22, Black Sox 12.

Game 3 Web Gems

• Joseph and Chace teamed up on a fifth-inning double play, with Joseph grabbing a fly ball at third base and then firing across the diamond to Chace to nab the runner venturing too far off first.
• 7U put together a highlight reel-quality sixth inning. It began with Timmy gunning down the leadoff man trying to stretch a single to right field into a double. He fired the ball in with time to spare, hit the cutoff man, and Gavin made the tag at second base.
• On the very next hitter, Joey flashed some quick reactions at third base, snaring a line drive that had been blistered down the line.
• After an infield single, Jake sealed the win by catching a pop fly at catcher.

Game 3 line score	1	2	3	4	5	6	R	H
WR 7U	5	4	4	1	2	6	22	27
Black Sox	2	4	2	4	0	0	12	18

Top Gun Back Pack Tournament Game 2: Carolina Titans 16, WR 7U 7

After a short break to recharge with GoGurt, Gatorade and Frogg Toggs, West Raleigh stayed on the same field (and in the same dugout) for a matchup against the formidable Carolina Titans, a team with a mix of 7s and 8s that draws mainly from the Aberdeen area. Many of those players have played together for a significant length of time, and their experience showed early, as they scored five quick first-inning runs on the way to a 16-7 win.

As Coach Sean noted after the game, it was the first time for many of the 7U team that they were playing a true doubleheader, and the fatigue was evident in the first three innings, when the hard-hitting Titans held a 10-3 advantage. "But I was proud of the way you guys battled," Coach Sean said. "You played much, much better in those last three innings. You battled." The scoreboard reflected the effort, as the Titans--who also defeated the West Raleigh 8U Red team on Saturday afternoon--held a slim 6-4 advantage in the final three frames.

The loss, which was umpired by perhaps the best umpire in Little League history (and, let's be honest, he may have been the original umpire in Little League history), dropped WR 7U to 1-1 in pool play. However, scores from Saturday action show that 7U remains alive in the pool play event, and they're doing it with the only all-7U club in the event.

Expect plenty of familiar faces around The Factory bright and early on Sunday morning, as West Raleigh 8U Red also plays at 9 a.m. WR 7U begins play at 9 a.m. on field 2 against the Stedman Black Sox, then faces 8U Red at 10:30 on that same field. Pregame for the first game begins at sunrise 8 a.m.

Game 2 West Raleigh scoring plays
First inning
After a difficult defensive top of the first, West Raleigh rebounded quickly with three runs in the bottom of the inning. Trey reached on a one-out single, and then Gavin made it two on with a grounder to the left side. With two down, Jake ripped a double, scoring Trey. Joe's bullet through the left side scored a pair.
Score after one inning: Titans 5, WR 3


Fourth inning
Chace scored Trey with an RBI fielder's choice, and then Jake's grounder to second scored Gavin.
Score after four innings: Titans 11, WR 5


Fifth inning
Asher lined a one-out single and then moved to second on Mason's hard grounder to the left side. Elias's grounder put runners at the corners, and Timmy came through with a two-out single to score Asher.
Score after five innings: Titans 12, WR 6

Sixth inning
Bryce led off with a single, then moved to second on Trey's single. Gavin's fielder's choice put runners at the corners, and then Chace lofted a long sacrifice fly that scored Bryce, alertly tagging up from third base.
Score after six innings: Titans 16, WR 7

Game 2 Web Gems

• Joey glided over and made a good catch of a fly ball in left-center to end the second inning.
• Joe made a very similar catch in left-center with a runner on second in the sixth.
• Jake ended the sixth by making a running catch near the right-field line.

Game 2 line score	1	2	3	4	5	6	R	H
Titans	5	0	5	1	1	4	16	13
WR 7U	3	0	0	2	1	1	7	8

Top Gun Back Pack Tournament Game 1: WR 7U 9, Carolina Lumberjacks 3

In the opening game of the Top Gun Back Pack Tournament in Wake Forest--and the opening game of the West Raleigh 7U season--West Raleigh used a potent early offense to grab a 9-3 win over the Carolina Lumberjacks.

The Lumberjacks, a team from Rocky Mount that mixes both 7- and 8-year-old players, reached base just once in their first eight hitters, as solid 7U defense kept them off the basepaths. WR committed just one error in the game and made several highlight-reel plays on the way to the win.

That defense was more than enough to back up an offense that scored a combined nine runs in the second and third innings, keyed by production up and down the order that included hits from nine different players and seven different players scoring at least one run. What could've been a mammoth third inning was short-circuited by the five-run rule, as West Raleigh plated five runs and looked to be on the way to even more with two on and no outs.

There was minimal time to revel in the win, as 7U turned around and played another game immediately following the conclusion of the 9-3 win.

Game 1 West Raleigh scoring plays
Second inning
After going down in order in the bottom of the first, the West Raleigh offense exploded in the second. Three straight singles by Jake, Joey and Bryce loaded the bases, and then Ben picked up the first RBI of the day on a fielder's choice. After another fielder's choice, Elias got a big one-out single that scored a pair of runs. Alex completed the scoring with single to left that scored Elias.
Score after two innings: WR 4, Lumberjacks 0


Third inning
For the first--but probably not last--time this season, 7U utilized the five-run rule, sending five runners across the plate before the Lumberjacks recorded a single out. Trey got it started with a leadoff single. Joe's grounder to the right side put two men on for the heart of the order, and Gavin, Chace and Jake knocked three straight RBI singles. Joey's single loaded the bases again, and then Bryce invoked the five-run rule with a two-run single back up the middle.
Score after three innings: WR 9, Lumberjacks 0

Game 1 Web Gems

• On the second Lumberjacks hitter of the game, Chace made a nice scoop at first base on the way to a quick 1-2-3 inning.
• With a runner on second in the second, Joe made a slick diving stop at third base that likely saved a run.
• The Lumberjacks threatened in the fifth, loading the bases with no outs. But after Bryce got the first out by grabbing a popout at second, Mason caught a sinking liner in left-center, then fired to second base to record the inning-ending double play.
• The solid outfield play continued in the final inning, as Joe made a smooth catch of a fly ball in left-center to retire the Lumberjack leadoff man.

Game 1 line score	1	2	3	4	5	6	R	H
Lumberjacks	0	0	0	2	0	1	3	9
WR 7U	0	4	5	0	0	X	9	12