Youth Baseball: The boys of summer

At this time of the year, kids of all ages are participating in baseball tournaments all over the place.

Last week, the 16-year-old Babe Ruth World Series took place in Gulfport, Mississippi, with teams from coast to coast travelling to the Gulf Coast to battle it out for the championship title.

Located in the heart of the longest manmade beach in the world (26 miles long), Gulfport is the Hospitality State's second largest city.

Famous for not only its white sand beaches, but also its many casinos, Gulfport is one of America's largest ports.

I actually live about 30 miles east of the center of the Coast, and three guys from my school, Bay High, participated in the BRWS: Guy Alleman, Aaron Morris and Brandon Strong. Now, let's get to the action.

The tournament began with ten teams -- Bay City, Tex., Cranston, R.I, Snake River Valley, Ore., Loudoun County, Va., Hammond, Ind., Iron Area, N.J., the Miss. Gulf Coast, San Gabriel Valley, Calif., and South Suburban, Minn. -- split into two pools, playing in a round-robin format.

Over the last two days, the top six teams played three rounds of baseball.

In the quarterfinals, Bay City defeated Cranston 12-6 and Snake River Valley beat Iron Area 6-2 to advance to the semifinals. Loudoun and San Gabriel Valley received byes in the first round, because they both won their pools.

In the semis, San Gabriel Valley trounced Bay City 11-2, while Loudoun overcame Snake River Valley 1-0.

Both San Gabriel Valley and Loudoun County headed into the final game with no losses in the tournament.

Try as they might, Loudoun was not able to stop the San Gabriel Valley Dukes from winning the championship. Led by starter Chuckie Tiffany, the Dukes beat Loudoun 7-1 to win their third consecutive 16-year-old World Series.

Donnie Presley of Loudoun County opened the tourney with a no-hitter, the first in BRWS history. He struck out 14 and walked three in his stunning performance.

In two starts, Presley allowed just one hit and struck out 24. He also hit three home runs and drove in six runs during the series. His stellar play on the mound and in the batter's box got him the Most Outstanding Player award. He was also named to the All-Tournament Team.

Other players on the All-Tournament Team are: Blaine Cox, pitcher, Snake River Valley, Ore; Derek Leveque, catcher, San Gabriel Valley; Tony Siqueiros, first base, San Gabriel Valley; Zack Zulli, second base, Gulf Coast, Miss.; Robert Lewis, third base, Bay City, Texas; David Uribes, shortstop, San Gabriel Valley; Daniel Kubecka, outfielder, Bay City; Chuckie Tiffany, outfielder, San Gabriel Valley; Jeff Laychak, outfielder, Cranston, R.I.; and Greg Keim, utility, Snake River Valley.

The All-Defensive Team is made up of Brandon Villalobos, pitcher, San Gabriel Valley; T.J. Presley, catcher, Snake River Valley; Jason Losey, Iron Area, N.J.; Brett Pill, second base, San Gabriel Valley; Mark Deans, third base, Loudoun County; Jim Mathias, Loudoun County; Wayne Guarino, outfield, Iron Area; Marcus Whitfield, outfield, Gulf Coast; Adam Pointer, outfield, Bay City; and Chuck Kao, utility, Cranston.

Mike Gitzen of Loudoun County, and Jim Doran of Iron Area, were given the Sportsmanship Awards.

Hammond's Chris Riley was the batting champion with a .538 average.

For more information about Babe Ruth Baseball, or to get involved with one of its many leagues, which is for both boys and girls of all ages, check out their website at Babe Ruth Baseball.