Australia's U12 World Cup team has ended their tournament on the best possible note, claiming a dominant 9-1 win over South Africa.
NSW and Cronulla junior Brendan Regan was outstanding on the mound for the Australians, throwing four shutout innings, allowing only two hits, and striking out an impressive seven hitters in the process.
Regan's teammates rallied around their starting pitcher, and swung the bats well through the early innings.
The first inning broke the game open for the Aussies, with Josh Davies, Oscar Hyde and Jett Watson all nailing doubles to drive in runs. After Cameron Bieker singled and Hayden Purchase scored on the error, Australia had plated six runs, a lead which they would never surrender.
Purchase then turned provider in the third, scoring Angus Catt on a sac-fly, with the team hitting exceptionally well, finishing a tournament that will be a lifelong memory for these young men.
A massive thankyou must go to the coaching team of Brian Murphy, Shayne Watson and Matt O'Neill for their efforts, as well as Executive Officer Louise Riddell, who provided so much content for the friends/family of the team back home.
The next underage World Cup will see our U18 team head to Canada from September 1-10. Keep an eye out on the Team Australia Facebook page for the release of the roster.
A tight ballgame for most of the encounter saw Australia and Brazil match up well, however six late runs saw Brazil claim a 8-1 win at the U12 Baseball World Cup.
Brazil were forced into a pitching change early in the ballgame following a strong offensive start for the Australians, however from there Brazil kept the scoreboard ticking over, and held Australia's offence at bay.
Hits were shared for the Australian offence with Jack Hutton and Liam Padovan both claiming doubles, while Jack Bushell, Oscar Hyde and Brendan Regan all chiming in with singles.
Australia's lone run came in the final frame after William Baker scampered home on a wild pitch.
All four of Australia's pitchers gave their best, with Oscar Hyde impressive in his three inning start.
Australia's final game of the #U12WorldCup will see them match up with South Africa on Saturday 6 August. Make sure to download the Baseball Live app to keep up to date with the live scoring, first pitch is scheduled for 4pm AEST.
The Adelaide Armada brought the margin within one late in the ballgame, but Latin America scored five runs in the final frame to claim a 10-4 victory at the Senior League World Series.
Both team's pitchers were solid in the opening innings, however four runs from Latin America in the third inning saw them take a five run lead.
To the Armada's credit, they kept swinging the bats well, picking up the next four runs to only trail by one heading into the final frame.
Ethan Marchioro was one of the Armada's best with the bat, claiming three hits and an RBI, while Cam Blackwell entered the game as a pinch-hitter and made the most of his opportunity, nailing a two-RBI single in the sixth to bring the Armada back in contention for the victory.
Harry Knuckey also hit well, going 2-for-4 with an RBI, however some late runs from Latin America proved a bridge too far for the Armada, as their campaign at the 2017 Senior League World Series came to an end.
The next team to represent the Australia Region on the world stage will be Hills' Junior League team, as their quest for Junior League World Series glory begins on the 13th of August in Taylor, Michigan. Stay tuned to baseball.com.au for Junior League World Series updates.
Despite matching the Czech Republic for hits, Australia couldn't make the most of their opportunities, falling 11-5 in at the U12 Baseball World Cup.
SA's Jack Bushell was strong at the plate all day for Australia, going 2-for-2, with a walk, a run and an RBI. William Baker lead off strongly as he has all tournament picking up another two hits, while Kyan Roach also collected two hits and an RBI on the night.
The Australian team pushed three runs across in the first two innings, keeping in touch with the Czech offence, however the Czechs plated a run in each inning, including four in the fourth inning which broke the game open.
Australia pegged two runs back care of RBIs from Roach and Liam Padovan, however the Czechs plated a run of their own in the fifth to wrestle the momentum back in their favour.
The Australian team will look to build on their last two performances as they reach the conclusion of the tournament.
Their next game will see them take on Brazil at 4pm AEST on Friday August 4. You can keep up with the live scoring from that game by downloading the Baseball Live app from the App/Google Play store.
The Adelaide Armada scored the only run of the ballgame in the third inning, as they defeated Europe-Africa by the slimmest of margins at the Senior League World Series.
Reed Stewart drove in the Armada's only run of the day, with an RBI single to centrefield scoring Curtis Mead in the third inning. Mead lead off with a single before advancing to third on a throwing error. Stewart then took his chance and gave the Armada a lead.
As it has been all tournament, the Armada's pitching staff was phenomenal, with Ky Hampton (4IP, 2H, 0ER), Will Kortekaas (2IP, 2H, 0ER) and Curtis Mead (1IP, 0H, 0ER) combining to shut-out the Europe-Africa Senior League Champions.
Ethan Marchioro chimed in with a pair of hits for the Armada, with Mead and Mason Clavell both managed base hits in a game where pitching and defence reigned supreme.
The Armada's next opponent will be Latin America on Friday 4 August, with the winner advancing to the International Championship Game.
Cole Buck made history as the first Australian player at this year's U12 Baseball World Cup to hit a home run, but Panama's consistent hitting proved the difference, as they claimed a 15-2 victory.
Buck pinch-hit for Hayden Purchase in the bottom of the fifth, and ended Australia's opening round on a high, belting a solo-shot to left-field and driving in his team's second run of the ballgame.
The opening run came in the third inning care of an RBI groundout from the bat of Queensland's William Baker, while Kyan Roach, Hayden Purchase and Liam Padovan all picked up a hit apiece.
Ryan Langworthy relieved starting pitcher Rorke Miles in the second inning, and kept the powerful Panamanian hitting lineup at bay during the second and third inning.
The Australian team claimed one win from their four games in the opening round of the U12 World Cup, and will now face the Czech Republic, Brazil and South Africa in their final three games of the tournament.
Make sure you download 'Baseball Live', Baseball Australia's official app to keep up to date with the live scoring from the U12 World Cup.
Australia slugger selfie: Cole Buck @TeamAusBaseball pic.twitter.com/GnBu40f1AE
Despite a strong offensive performance, the Australian #U12WorldCup team was defeated by Nicaragua 10-4 in Taiwan.
In a rain affected encounter, the young Aussies put in their most effective hitting performance of the tournament so far, with William Baker, Oscar Hyde, Josh Davies and Brendan Regan all picking up two hits each.
Jett Watson was outstanding on the mound early for Australia, before an unfortunate fourth inning saw Nicaragua put up six runs to extend their lead.
The Australian bats came alive in the third inning as Hyde, Davies and Jack Bushell all drove in a run apiece to give their team a narrow lead at the halfway point of the ballgame.
The young men are improving every game, and today was no exception, matching the powerful Nicaraguan offence in hits, but unfortunately falling just short in a game where the scoreline wasn't an indication of the ballgame.
Australia's final game in the opening round of the #U12WorldCup sees them take on Panama. Stay tuned for broadcast information.
The Adelaide Armada claimed a 3-0 win against Asia-Pacific to stay in contention for the Senior League World Series crown in Easley, South Carolina.
The Armada's pitching staff were efficient and dominant, with Austin McClure (2.1IP, 2H, 1K, 1BB), Will Kortekaas (3.2IP, 1H, 3K) and Curtis Mead (1IP, 0H, 1K) combining to shut-out Asia-Pacific in an outstanding defensive performance.
Mason Clavell again was strong at the plate going 2-for-4 with a triple, while Reed Stewart and Ky Hampton drove in a run apiece for the Armada.
Asia-Pacific threatened in the bottom of the third with runners at first and third with one out, however Will Kortekaas came in to induce two pop ups and extinguish the rally and keep the Armada's shut-out alive.
The Armada pushed an insurance run across in the fifth, and Curtis Mead threw a perfect final inning to maintain his team's push for the Senior League World Series Championship.
The Armada will now face the winner of Europe-Africa/Canada at 9.30am AEST on Thursday 3 August.
The conclusion of the U12 State Winter Championships in Bendigo over the weekend marked the end of another season of Winter Baseball carnivals.
This past weekend was all about our U12s with Diamond Valley and Bendigo taking out the Division 1 & 2 titles respectively.
All four division 1 teams had a chance to take home the Championship on the final day of games with Diamond Valley just edging Dandenong to be crowned this year's Division 1 champions.
In Division 2, it all came down to the final game between Bendigo and Latrobe Valley with the home town Bendigo team prevailing in a scoreline of 9 - 7. All 3 country associations should be congratulated for the effort that was put in with the threat of a three-way tie a real possibility entering the weekend's final games.
Congratulations also to our team MVP winners:
William Dunn (Diamond Valley), Jarvis Harvey (Dandenong), Tim Theil (Geelong), Kody Taylor (Ringwood), Malachi Dillon (Latrobe Valley), Oliver Hayes (Sunraysia), Deakan Jung (Bendigo).
Thank you to all of our hosts, umpires, players, coaches, scorers, EOs and volunteers that helped make this year's championships possible.
All of our 2017 Winter Champions winners:
| Championship | Division 1 Champion | Division 2 Champion |
| SENIOR | Geelong | North-East |
| U18 | Diamond Valley | N/A |
| U16 | Dandenong | N/A |
| U14 | Dandenong | N/A |
| U12 | Diamond Valley | Bendigo |