LIVE: From the Under Armour Southeast Tournament

Becky Oldham: We're There

For the updated tournament schedule and game results, visit the Team One web site.

Tuesday, June 10 - Day 5

The championship round of the Under Armour Southeast Tournament was underway early Tuesday morning as Diamond Vision Elite defeated the Palm Beach Clippers (18) 2-0 in a close match-up, advancing to the next round. They would face the number one seed, Palm Beach PAL, who had a bye in the first round. Orlando Baseball Academy, the Columbus Explorers and Treasure Coast Young Guns also advanced to the second round. In their first game of the championship round Palm Beach PAL handled Diamond Vision Elite with a 3-0 victory. Their win secured a match against Orlando Baseball Academy to determine who would advance to the championship game. Meanwhile, a very exciting game began to unfold on the neighboring field. In a back and forth match-up, the Columbus Explorers battled the Treasure Coast Young Guns in a game that took them into the 14^th inning. Enforcing the International Tiebreaker Rule , starting the inning with a runner on second base, the Columbus Explores mustered enough offense in the bottom of the 14^th to score the winning run, defeating the Young Guns and advancing to the championship game.

The Explorers would face the winner of another exciting match-up that was underway between the Orlando Baseball Academy and Palm Beach PAL. Orlando jumped to an early lead but Palm Beach staged a rally, coming from behind to defeat the Orlando Baseball Academy 4-3 to advance to the championship. Having thrown a few of their fielders on the way to their 14-inning victory, the Explorers headed into the championship game to face the number one seed Palm Beach PAL. The game proved to be yet another close match-up, but in the end the PAL were able to defeat the Explorers 4-2 to win their first ever Under Armour Southeast Tournament.

Despite the inclement weather, the Under Armour Southeast Tournament was a success. Over the course of the five day event 30 college coaches and six Major League Organizations were in attendance. Even though the rain cut the game play short, our staff worked hard to ensure teams were still able to get quality games in. Thanks to all the players, parents and coaches; the tournament could not have continued without your patience. Special thanks also goes out to the Roger Dean Staff for keeping the fields in such great condition throughout the tournament and for accommodating the daily changes to the schedule. Next year let’s hope for better conditions!


Monday, June 8 - Day 4

Despite the fourth straight morning of clear skies and the anticipation of a full day of baseball, the forecast for Jupiter, Florida remained grim. Local forecasts were again calling for a chance of severe thunderstorms, though by now we had just come to expect rain anytime after noon. On a positive note, considering the amount of rainfall that occurred over the three days thus far, the fields at Roger Dean were in immaculate condition. This allowed for games to begin at 8:30 a.m. and like the previous day, games that were in progress Sunday afternoon when the storm hit were scheduled to resume at this time slot. Utilizing all eight of the available fields on both sides of the complex, the previously interrupted games were completed. In an effort to get in as many games as possible a new time limit was set at an hour and a half, as opposed to the originally set two-hour time limit per game. The second round of games was completed in time to start the third round at approximately 11:30 a.m. Then the rain came. By now the first sign of rain was enough to send the fans running for cover, and for good reason. However, unlike previous days, this storm cleared up and the sun reappeared. Pending field conditions, games were set to resume at 5:00 p.m.

By 5:00 two fields looked more suitable for a swim than a baseball game, their condition would remain unplayable for the rest of the evening. The grounds crew worked to make the other six field’s game ready as more dark clouds loomed in the distance. Those with Doppler radar could see the large cells in the area and once again we prepared for Mother Nature. Despite the threatening skies games got underway around 7:00 p.m. To our luck, finally, the storms did not pass over Roger Dean and we were able to complete 15 games before the night was out. Due to the complexity of the schedule and the amount of games completed as a result of the weather, the championship round was reformatted. All teams were seeded within their pool, with the top seed advancing to a single elimination championship round Tuesday. The nine teams to secure championship round seeds were:

Palm Beach PAL
Columbus Explorers
Florida Hardballers
All American Prospects
Orlando Baseball Academy
Treasure Coast Young Guns
Palm Beach Elite
Diamond Vision Elite
Palm Beach Clippers 18

For teams who did not advance to the championship round, consolation games were set for Tuesday morning on the available fields.


Sunday, June 7 – Day 3
As a result of the heavy rain on both Friday and Saturday, today’s schedule was booked full from 8:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. to get as many games played as possible. Any games that were in progress Saturday afternoon and interrupted by the storms were rescheduled for the 8:30 a.m. round on Sunday. Team Mizuno, the Atlanta Blue Jays, Palm Beach Clippers 16, Triple Threat Baseball, South Florida Snappers Green, Treasure Coast Young Guns, Palm Beach Select and Florida Raiders all returned to the field to secure a win. All other games began immediately following the make-ups, and the skies stayed blue into the early afternoon. Around 3:00 p.m., with games in progress, violent storms hit the Roger Dean Complex for the third straight day. Rain poured relentlessly until the remainder of the games had to be called off.

To stay up-to-date with the new game schedule for Monday, June 8, check Team One Baseball’s website at www.teamonebaseball.com.


Saturday, June 6 – Day 2:
Day Two began with as equal promise as the first day of the tournament. Blue skies and sunshine greeted the families and friends who flowed through the gates to support their teams. More coaches and scouts showed up to find prospects for their programs. In order to fit as many of Friday’s games in as possible, Saturday’s first round of games kicked off at 8:30 a.m. A packed schedule of games was set to follow, with the last scheduled to begin at 9:00 p.m. In a late morning game that drew much attention from coaches and scouts on hand, the Columbus Explorers took on the Orlando Scorpions. The Explorers scored three runs in the top of the fifth inning to make the score 7-3 in their favor. Columbus would go on to defeat the Scorpions 8 – 3.

In another morning game across the complex, a walk followed by a single kicked off a big inning for the Baseball Factory Navy. Capitalizing on a few of the Florida Raiders’ errors, the Baseball Factory Navy was led by outfielder, New Jersey native, Joseph D’Annunzio and a third baseman/catcher out of Tuscaloosa, Alabama, Tanner Ashcraft. Their efforts were enough to lead the Baseball Factory Navy team to a 5 – 3 victory. Other teams who emerged victorious from the Saturday morning games included the St. Thomas Raiders, the Columbus Explorers, the Florida Hardballers and the Atlanta Blue Jays. But as the Atlanta Blue Jays took the field for their second game of the day, dark clouds loomed in left field. Though the Jays were able to build a 4-0 lead through two and a half innings, the rain began to fall hard on the Roger Dean Complex for the second straight day. Unfortunately for the players, the storm was even more powerful than Friday’s and the fields were under water. Inches of rain accumulated, resulting in all remaining games being postponed.

Look for tournament play to resume Sunday at 8:30 a.m. Let’s just hope for sunshine and blue skies!


Friday, June 5 – Day 1:
Day One of the Under Armour Southeast Tournament, powered by Team One Baseball in Jupiter, Florida began with sunny skies and high hopes. The first tournament games kicked off just before noon at the Roger Dean Sports Complex. This year’s tournament promised to be a thrilling one, with 45 teams scheduled to participate over the five day event. The air was filled with excitement as the games got under way Friday at the Spring Training home of the Florida Marlins and St. Louis Cardinals, with 23 college coaches and 6 pro affiliates in attendance. A few of the teams to enjoy early victories were the Columbus Explorers, the Bomber Bruins, the Palm Beach PAL and the Palm Beach Clippers 18U. Unfortunately, the first day was abruptly halted, as dark clouds opened over the complex and emptied enough rain to halt the schedule until 7:00 p.m. Games were set to resume, and the Gardens Gators and Treasure Coast Young Guns began play, until Mother Nature responded with another round of storms. As Day 1 concluded in a wash-out, games were pushed back to a packed Saturday schedule.


Becky Oldham is the Marketing Associate at Baseball Factory. Becky started with Baseball Factory at the end of 2008.

LIVE: From the Under Armour Southeast Regional Tournament: Day 5

Dave Lax: We're There

A second serving of Juice, please.

That’s right the Chet Lemon’s Juice captured their second straight Under Armour Southeast Regional Tournament. After a long day of baseball and many threats from mother nature the conclusion to this year’s tournament had a familiar feeling. But first lets take a look at how the final day of competition played out.

Starting the day we had eight teams looking to earn a spot in the semi-finals. The Palm Beach Clippers kept their Cinderella story alive by taking out the #8 seeded Miami Fat Cats. In the early upset of the day the Palm Beach PAL beat previously undefeated Line Drive Baseball in a battle that went into extra innings. On the other side of the bracket the most anticipated game of the day was between Chet Lemon’s Juice and the All-American Prospects - Navy. In another extra inning game the Juice came through in the bottom of the eighth inning to win 4-3 and move on. The lowest seed still in the tournament was the Florida Pokers. The Pokers took out two of the tournaments top teams and were looking to take down the boys from Texas, Team DeMarini, but a few early runs were all Team DeMarini needed. They held on to win 4-1.

As the field was cut down to four, the teams geared up for their next game with hopes of gaining a berth in the championship game, which was played at Roger Dean Stadium.

In the first semi-final Team DeMarini’s starting pitcher threw an incredible game. He pitched four hitless innings and his team led 1-0 entering the fifth inning; however, the Juice and their experience were not thwarted by a stellar pitching performance. The Juice finally broke through with some hits knocking the starting pitcher out of the game, which opened the flood gates. The final score of 9-1 was not indicative of how close the game really was, as both teams gave everyone watching some excitement. In the second semi-final the Clippers magical run came to an end as the Palm Beach PAL took them down with strong defense and timely hitting. The championship was now set and the teams hurried over to the stadium field as rain clouds covered the sky.

In the championship game the Juice struck early and often. With Under Armour Undeniable Player of the Game, James Ramsey walking in two consecutive at bats he quickly turned those walks into runs with his blistering speed and teammates clutch hitting. The Palm Beach PAL put up only one run as the Juice captured their second title in as many years with a 7-1 win. We look forward to seeing what next year has in store for the Under Armour Southeast Regional Tournament and we congratulate Chet Lemon’s Juice on another incredible tournament.

If you are interested in reviewing some of the scouting reports from the event, please check out Team One Baseball.

LIVE: From the Under Armour Southeast Regional Wood Bat Tournament - Day 4

Dave Lax: We're There

Elimination Day is here and some teams as expected moved onto the final day of play while other teams had some surprises for the entire tournament. Upset was the name of the game in the first set of games. Although the teams that were playing were only a few seeds apart it seemed that the team with the lower seed kept on winning. The Florida Pokers took out the always dangerous Atlanta Blue Jays 3-2 in a great game. The Florida Pokers went on to beat the #2 overall seed All American Prospects Red team 4-2.

Most of the big names in the tournament held true to form as they moved easily into Day 2 of elimination. Chet Lemon’s Juice beat a stingy Treasure Coast Young Guns squad 3-0 to advance. The All American Prospects Navy avenged an early pool play loss to the Broward Mavericks to move into the final eight. Line Drive Baseball had the most convincing win blanking the Pirates Prospects. The Palm Beach PAL dispatched of the Baseball Factory Red team 10-2 after the Baseball Factory Red edged out their counterpart Baseball Factory Navy in the first round of games.

The big surprise of the day was the upset of #1 overall seed DiamondVision Elite. The Palm Beach Clippers who were a #17 seed took out the top seed in the tournament with a 3-2 win. So as it turned out both teams that were undefeated lost their opening game and were eliminated from the tournament along with 14 other teams.

We look forward to our final day of the 2008 Under Armour Southeast Regional Tournament. Who will be playing at the stadium at the Roger Dean Sports Complex? Who will take home the crown? Will it be a top seed or one of the many underdogs?

Check back tomorrow for a recap of the entire event.

LIVE: From the Under Armour Southeast Tournament

Dave Lax: We're There

With temperatures hitting the mid 90s and high humidity in the air it can only mean one thing: Jupiter, FL. It is that time of year again when the top travel teams come from all over the southeastern part of the United States to compete for the title of Under Armour Southeast Regional Wood Bat Champion. 24 teams take the stage at the Roger Dean Sports Complex in Jupiter, the spring training home of the St. Louis Cardinals. In only its second year, the event has already made a name and reputation for itself. There was a 15 team waiting list to even enter this year’s tournament.

Scouts and college coaches were out in force to hopefully find the next Tim Beckham, 2008 #1 overall draft pick by the Tampa Bay Rays in this years Major League Baseball Amateur Draft. Tim dazzled at this very same tournament one year ago and his team the Atlanta Blue Jays are back. The Blue Jays bring a strong team again this year with standout players like Braxton Lane who will be competing in this year’s Under Armour All-America Game, powered by Baseball Factory, held on August 17 at Wrigley Field. With each team playing four games in the first three days of this tournament, which is also the round robin portion of the event, teams were looking to get off to a quick start.

The Freshwater Storm made the first noise of the day with an 11-2 victory over the Broward Mavericks. They later went on to win their second game of the day improving to 2-0 with a win against the Columbus Explorers. However, the Storm was not the only hot team on this day. The Baseball Factory Red team proved to be a force in this tournament. Baseball Factory Red won their first game with a 4-1 margin over the Palm Beach PAL. In their second contest of the day a close game was broken wide open in the top half of the last inning when the Baseball Factory Red put up eight runs against the Pompano Beach Post 142 to cruise in with their second victory.

In one of the highly anticipated match-ups of the tournament the Atlanta Blue Jays took on the All-American Prospects Navy. With three Under Armour All-Americans between the two competing teams and a former Cape Cod High School Classic participant there was no shortage of talent on the field. The game did not live up to the hype as a pitching and defensive battle took center stage until the Prospects pushed a few runs across in back to back innings taking the win 7-0. However, the game must have taken its toll because the very next game the Prospects played they lost to the Broward Mavericks.

As we look forward to Day 2 we can only hope that there is more great baseball to come from Jupiter. Check back in tomorrow as we continue to recap the highlights from the tournament.