“Once again the Sluggers would like to take a moment to thank all the staff of Crystal day on Saturday and barely squeaking NCI Carolina Sports and Nation’s for yet another great weekend of top notch baseball,” by in the second game to come back to said Jeff White of the 9U Carolina Sluggers. “The competition is always tough and to date, the field and play as solidly and as Team photos courtesy of Sky’s the Limit all have shown great sportsmanship. You guys and gals attract some great teams and we enthusiastically as they did on Sunday. Photography; action shots - Baseball The Magazine are proud to be a part of it. Especially having to play the same team To prove how tough the competition was, after losing the first game of the day to a very that beat you the day before and not t was a perfect weekend for strong 29ers team, the Sluggers barely made the Gold round by winning a nail biter that being intimidated says a lot for these youth baseball as teams con- went into extra innings against a tremendously talented Carolina Prowlers. If we hadn’t had kids. Iverged on the Charlotte, North a great catch in right field by Gavin Barker, who in turn threw a strike to Marshall Raper at Once again, I would like to thank our Carolina area for Nations Baseball’s home, blocking the plate to get the runner tagging from third. Also we had some great pitch- sponsors Auto Bell, Hinson’s Electric of Ultimate NCI on April 17th through ing by Justin Jarvis and Davis Hurd. Without that, we would have never made it to the Gold Kannapolis, and Tony’s Garage of April 19th, 2009. round on Sunday. Kannapolis. They truly are a great group “What an event!” Tournament On Sunday the Sluggers came to play with tremendous pitching performances by Brian of sponsors and great friends of kids. I Director Don Mason said. “The teams McKinsey, Gavin Barker, Matt Stevens, and Jason White. There were stellar defensive plays encourage anyone in the area of these by Drew Lord, Davis Hurd, Austin Hyde and Ryan O’Kelly, and the hot bats of and key hits businesses to use their services and played hard. The players gave it their Carolina Sluggers Wildcat Baseball all. It was truly a great baseball week- by Matt Stevens, Jason White, Drew Lord, Justin Jarvis, Austin Hyde and Gavin Barker. support them when possible.” The final end. With a paid National I was extremely proud of how our boys bounced back from losing the first game of the results for the 9U were: 1. Carolina Championship berth up for grabs in Sluggers 4-1; 2. Wildcat Baseball 3-2; each division it was exciting! We 29er Prep 3-1; 4. Carolina Twins 2-2; 5. would like to thank the City of Garnet Crush 3-1; 6. Charlotte Gastonia Parks & Recreation, Gaston Hurricanes 2-2; 7. Lake Norman County Parks & Recreation, and Copperheads 2-2; 8. Carolina Prowlers 1- Mecklenburg County Parks & 3; 9. East Coast Crew 1-3; 10. Rutherford Recreation for the tremendous job County Pirates 0-4. they did in making this tournament a In the 10 Select division, the huge success.” Cherryville Roadrunners crushed the In the 9U division, the Carolina Lake Norman Bears 10-0 in their first Sluggers went 4-1 for the weekend, game. The damage continued as they scoring forty-nine and only allowing defeated the Southside Charlotte Royals thirty-seven to cross the plate. Wildcat 11-1 in the first meeting and 6-1 in a re- Baseball settled for second as they match. The East Lincoln Mustangs were posted a 3-2 tournament record. 29er Prep Carolina Twins working their way through the bracket as they went undefeated in their first four games, taking on the Lake Norman Bears 12-1, the Titans 10- ULTIMATE NCI 2, and in a re-match, the Lake would like to thank all of the kids for their hard forward to our next opportunity to play Nations Norman Bears 12-2 and the West work leading up to the tournament and the Baseball.” Union Warriors by a close 4-3 win. parents for all of the support they provide the The final results for the 10U Select were: 1. The next game would be between kids and coaches on a daily basis. We look Cherryville Roadrunners 4-0; 2. East Lincoln the two undefeated teams still stand- ing, the East Lincoln Mustangs and the Cherryville Roadrunners. The Roadrunners would keep the momentum moving forward as they defeated the Mustangs 13-1 to win all the marbles. Coaches Heath Jackson, Greg Crocker, Chris Brooks, and Ron Treadway wrote in to tell us, “The Cherryville Roadrunners are a 10U team formed with eleven kids from our local area. We have a great group of boys who love baseball and work really hard to learn the game. We try to teach the boys the basic fundamentals of baseball that will NC Force Carolina Heat help them prepare for middle and high school ball. These boys really have bonded as a team and not only are becoming better ball players but better young men. Baseball is a game of up and downs and you have to react to all situations, just as in life, so we stress good sportsman- ship, manners, and most of all respect for the game and all people who take their time to promote base- ball. The NCI was a great experience for our team and we played some great teams. Nations Baseball and Crystal Carolina really are doing a Carolina Storm Gastonia Rangers great job in providing tournaments for our boys to take part in. We would like to thank Crystal Carolina and all the people involved in mak- ing dreams like these come true. We would also like to tell all our spon- sors and friends thank you for the donations of time, money, and resources to help these boys become better ballplayers. To the families of our boys, we want to say thank you for your time and dedica- tion to your kids and you are blessed to have young men with the work ethic and determination to become Cherryville Roadrunners good people as well as better base- Huntersville Hawks ball players. Last but not least, we want to tell all the kids how proud we are as coaches and how we enjoy the time we spend with them. The Cherryville Roadrunners look forward to the rest of the and the challenges ahead. GO ROAD- RUNNERS!” Mark McGinnis of the East Lincoln Mustangs had this to say, “This was the team’s first experience playing in the Ultimate NCI tourna- ment. The baseball was great and the teams were great. We could not have enjoyed ourselves more. I East Lincoln Mustangs GC Mudcats ULTIMATE NCI Mustangs 4-1; 3. West Union Creek Clash 3-1; 3. Steele Creek Rage 2-2; 5. Norman Dawgs 1-3; 11. Carolina Warriors 1-3; Warriors 2-2; 3. South Charlotte East Rowan Red Sox 2-2; 5. Tigers 3-1; 7. 12. Lake Norman Cobras 0-4. Royals 3-2; 5. North Carolina Titans 2- Upper Cleveland Crushers 2-2; 7. Matthews In the 11U Open division, the Carolina Heat 2; 5. Carolina Saber Cats 0-4; 5. Lake Grizzlies 1-3; 9. Carolina Knights 2-2; 10. Lake were the team to beat as they burned up the Norman Bears 0-4. In the 10U Open division, the tough NC Force dropped their first game against the Southside Americans 8-5, but rallied back to win three straight against the Carolina Copperheads 10- 6, KM Blue Sox 10-0 and the Carolina Storm 9-1. Settling for a second place win, the Carolina Storm worked the Carolina Bulldogs 4-1, KM Blue Sox 9- 2 and Southside Americans 7-4 before losing their last game to the Force. Robbie Pope of the 10U NC Force commented, “Great Weekend! The NC Force guys played well. The Ultimate NCI was a good tournament, which anytime you are playing baseball is Carolina Copperheads Stix Baseball great. The guys really played good on Sunday, defeating a good Carolina Storm team in the Championship game.” The final results for the 10U Open were: 1. NC Force 3-1; 2. Carolina Storm 3-1; 3. Southside Americans 3- 2; 4. KM Blue Sox 1-4; 5. Carolina Copperheads 2-2; 6. Carolina Bulldogs 1-3. In the 11U Select division, the Carolina Copperheads posted wins over the Steele Creek Rage 15-4, Carolina Warriors 10-1, East Rowan Red Sox 11-9, Mallard Creek Clash 12-2 and the tough Rowan Longhorns Rowan Longhorns Southside Bombers 7-6 to capture the crown. The Rowan Longhorns were working hard in the bracket also, but managed a 3-2 record to secure second place and Mallard Creek Clash weren’t too far behind posting a 3-1 record for the weekend putting them in the third spot. Walt Bundy from the Mallard Creek Clash expressed, “Nothing beats a sunny spring day at the ballpark and it was an especially great time at the Ultimate NCI Tournament. Our pitch- ers were bringing heat and our batters were getting hits from both sides of the plate. Although we didn’t achieve Mallard Creek Clash Alexander Cougars our goal of winning the tournament, it was still a good learning experience for the boys. We’ll be back stronger next time. Of course, none of this would be possible without our wonder- ful sponsors which include The Remi Group, Metrolina Tire & Auto, Friendly’s of Huntersville, Dairy Queen of Mallard Creek, Aqua Detox, BACE Corp., and Northlake Dentistry. Thanks from the Mallard Creek Clash Coaches, players and parents!” The final results for the 11U Select were: 1. Carolina Copperheads 5-0; 2. Rowan Longhorns 3-2; 3. Mallard ULTIMATE NCI Jordan Belote, Daniel Belsito, Matt Ball, Mark Petryna, Tavern on the Tracks, Flagstone Conor Elliott and Ryan Sweetman. Many Fine Homes and the Robinson/Elliott/Smith thanks also go to our sponsors and we are Law Firm.” grateful for their support: Anzi Pizza, Nothing The final results for the 12U Select were: 1. but Noodles, Carolina Business Solutions, Dr. Dallas Wildcats 4-0; 2. Hickory Hurricanes 4-

Dallas Wildcats Lake Norman Wildcats

Hickory Hurricanes Carolina Eagles

bracket, going undefeated 4-0 for the weekend. Supply, and South Point Family Dentistry. The second place Gastonia Rangers were working Also, thanks to our parents who support and hard by winning their first three games, sending encourage the team tremendously. them to meet the Heat in the championship game. Congratulations Dallas Wildcats!” The championship game was a close game and in “The 12U Southside Stealth team of the end it would be the Carolina Heat keeping the Charlotte, North Carolina recently competed charge and taking the win 3-2. in the Nation’s Baseball Ultimate National The final results for the 11U Open were: 1. Championship Invitational,” said Greg Ball. Carolina Heat 4-0; 2. Gastonia Rangers 3-1; 3. “The Stealth had a very strong showing, fin- Southside Stealth Gaston Crusaders Huntersville Hawks 2-3; 4. GC Mudcats 1-4; 5. ishing in third place with their only losses Carolina Sluggers 2-2; 6. 1-3. coming against the tournament champion. As In the 12U Select division, it was a close battle a team, the Stealth led the tournament in runs between the Dallas Wildcats and the Hickory scored and also had the best differential Hurricanes. Both teams came out of the box ready between runs scored and runs allowed. to play and defeated everyone they faced. The two Individual performances of note include: Matt scrappy teams met for the final game and what a Ball had a perfect game going until the fifth show it was. Dallas Wildcats took the win by one inning and pitched a complete game six run (9-8) and took the bragging rights for the next inning shutout, striking out ten, no walks, and year. allowed only three hits; Bradley Kendall Chris Neal of the Dallas Wildcats told us, pitched four innings, allowing only one run “Team-work and perseverance is what it took for us and two hits; Jordan Belote led the team’s to win the Ultimate NCI tournament. The team bat- offense with eight hits including three doubles ting average was .449 for the weekend and the and one ; Conor Elliott had seven defense and pitching was exceptional. Thank you hits with one ; On base leaders were to our sponsors C & J Machine Co., Concrete Carolina Patriots Spartanburg Bombers ULTIMATE NCI 1; 3. Southside Stealth 3-2; 4. Carolina Patriots 2-2; 5. Carolina Pirates 2-2; 6. Denver and won the next three straight defeating Earl Hiatt of the Stix told us, “We had a great families for their support. Thank you Ultimate NCI Nations Baseball tour- Ballbusters 2-2; 7. Carolina Outlaws 2-2; 8. Park Sharon Hawks 1-3; 9. Rowan Raptors 1- Carolina Cobras 6-2, Carolina Sting, in a sec- great tournament at the Ultimate NCI. We Baseball The Magazine and Nations Baseball nament hosted by Crystal Carolina 3; 10. Southside Bulldogs 0-4. ond meeting, 7-4 and finally the Southside loved playing three games on Sunday to get for highlighting our team and all these great Sports was extremely positive. It is In the 12U Open division, Stix Baseball started the weekend by knocking off the Bombers for the crown by 8-4. our championship win. Thanks to all of our young players. Our motto: ‘Always Do Your priceless when you are involved in Carolina Bulldogs in their first game 4-1, but the Carolina Sting took the wind away when Best!’” tournaments that are run profes- they defeated Stix Baseball 8-1 in the second game. Stix Baseball came back re-charged The final results for the 12U Open were: 1. sionally, played at great facilities and Stix Baseball 4-1; 2. Southside Bombers 3-2; bring in top quality competition. 3. Carolina Sting 3-1; 3. Alexander Cougars 3- Everyone wins - ESPECIALLY THE 1; 5. Charlotte Crush 2-2; 5. Carolina Bulldogs KIDS!” 1-3; 7. Carolina Cobras 1-3; 7. Carolina The final results for the 13U Rattlers 0-4. Select were: 1. Alexander Cougars In the 13U Select division, the Alexander 5-0; 2. Lake Norman Cougars 4-1; Cougars turned in an exceptional record of 5- 3. Charlotte Pirates 2-2; 3. Carolina 0, scoring twenty-nine and only letting eight Bucks 2-2; 5. North Carolina Vipers runs cross the plate the entire weekend. The 3-1; 5. Carolina Venom 2-2; 7. Lake Norman Cougars weren’t too far behind Carolina Bulldogs 1-3; 7. CBC as they posted a 4-1 tournament record, only Cougars 1-3; 9. South Charlotte allowing nineteen. Wildcats 2-2; 10. Mooresville Royals Chuck Alexander of the Alexander Cougars 1-3; 11. Burke Phantoms 0-4. commented, “Our team’s experience at the In the 13U Open division, The Alexander Cougars Carolina Pride B.C. Lake Norman Wildcats were stunned, dropping the first game to the Gaston Crusaders 9-2, but went on to rally and win three in a row, starting with the Carolina Eagles 12-0, next was the Gaston Crusaders 11-1 and finally, the Carolina Eagles in a re-match 4-1. “Don Mason does a great job with the Nations Baseball tourna- ments and the NCI was no differ- ent...GREAT JOB,” said Chuck Breeden of the Carolina Eagles. Greg Smith from the Gaston Crusaders 13U commented, “The Ultimate NCI was a great tourna- Lake Norman Cougars Carolina Jays CS Baseball ment. It had all the amenities you could ask for when playing baseball; plenty of good competition, out- standing baseball, good umpires and great facilities to showcase it all. Special thanks to Crystal Carolina Sports, Nations Baseball and Baseball The Magazine for a job well done. I would also like to say thank you to all our parents and fans for their continued support. Our team really enjoyed the experience.” The final results for the 13U Open were: 1. Lake Norman Wildcats 3-1; 2. Carolina Eagles 1- 3; 3. Gaston Crusaders 2-2; 4. Carolina Bucks CBC Cougars Watauga Baseball Spartanburg Bombers 2-2. In the 14U Open division, Carolina Pride B.C. went 3-1 for the weekend scoring twenty-eight and only allowing seventeen. The Carolina Jays settled for the second place trophy by finishing 3-1 with third place going to CBC Cougars 3- 1 and the Carolina Blast placed fourth with a 1-3 record for the weekend. In the 14U Select division, CS Baseball won the bracket with Watauga Baseball hot on their heels placing second and rounding out the top three were the Squad. Charlotte Pirates Carolina Blast Hit Squad