FORT MYERS, Fla. -- After a multiple-hour rain delay, the PG 13u BCS Championship came to a close with a tightly contested match-up between MBA Pride Elite and Team Florida. MBA Pride came out victorious after the weather delay, which didn't seem to lessen the competitive spirits of the two teams.
The Most Valuable Player of the tournament was Donnie Gleneski for Team Florida. Gleneski led the tournament with four home runs and 24 RBI.
The MV Pitcher was Chase Sanguinetti from MBA Pride. He pitched 12 innings and had 2 wins, 12 strikeouts and a 1.75 ERA.
The first round of the 13u BCS Finals followed the script to the letter, with all eight of the top seeds winning to advance to the quarterfinals. Once there, the Nos. 1, 4, 6 and 7 seeds all tumbled, leaving the No. 8 Mizuno Tampa Boltz playing No. 5 MBA Pride Elite in one semifinal and No. 2 Team Florida facing No. 3 Team Elite White in the other.
Team Florida moved into the title game with a 13-10 win over Team Elite White. It smacked out 15 hits in the win, led by Gleneski (2016, Orange Park, Fla.) with three hits, two of which were doubles, and three RBI. Andrew Cash (2016, Flomaton, Ala.) and Brendan Fox (2017, Panama City, Fla.) each had three hits and two RBI.
"This is absolutely a solid field. I think some of the best (13u) talent in the nation is here and I think everybody realizes that," Team Florida head coach Chris Cullen said earlier this week. "We have expectations of winning this tournament; we haven't lost a 13u game since mid-March, We've been on quite a good run ... and so absolutely we expected to be doing what we're doing here."
MBA Pride Elite escaped Mizuno Tampa Boltz, 9-8, in the semifinals, thanks to a home run and five RBI from Jose Ciccarello (2016, Tampa, Fla.).
This was the first PG 13u BCS Finals contested since 2006, but everyone seems to hope it returns bigger and better in 2013.
"Why not get them started early?" MBA Pride Elite head coach Meryl Melendez said earlier this week. "Some of these boys are going into ninth grade right now and they need to be exposed. Perfect Game putting on an event like this is really fitting for these boys because they need to be seen. There are very good teams here - the (East Cobb) Astros, Banditos, Team Florida - all the elite teams in the United States, so why not get them seen early.
"This is a great event and I hope that Perfect Game continues to carry the 13u BCS."