The 2024 Australian Youth Championships are underway at Blacktown International Sportspark, with Victoria's U16 and U18 teams both going 2-0 on opening day.
Victorian players across both age groups got on base 75 times today, outscoring opponents 17-3 (U16) and 24-6 (U18).
Check out recaps below and stay tuned to socials for the latest updates as the U16 and U18 tournaments continue.
AYC U16 Day 1
Victoria 6 def West Australia 3
VIC starter Riley Peoples threw 4.0 scoreless innings, striking out four while only allowing four hits and two walks. Cooper Busch went 2-for-3 at the plate with an RBI.
VICscored first in the bottom of the second thanks to an RBI double by Samuel Walk and back-to-back sacrifice flies by Ned Johnson and Roman Coote. Coote finished the game with two RBIs. They added three more runs by the end of the fifth inning, making it a 6-0 game.
Victoria 11 def New South Wales Country 0
Starter Windsor Breckenridge pitched 3.0 innings, allowing just a hit and two walks while striking out three.
VIC scored their first runs in the top of the first inning off a Mitchell Langworthy single. They tacked on six more runs off just a single hit in the third.
Read the full report on baseball.com.au.
AYC U18 Day 1
Victoria 12 def West Australia 5
WA scored first in this game, but VIC responded right away in the bottom of the first when Jack Ratcliffe hit a sac fly, scoring one run, and Matthew Johnston doubled, bringing the score to 3-2.
A double by Ratcliffe and a single by Ty Daniels helped VIC extend their lead in the bottom of the second to 6-2.
In the bottom of the third, Tanner Stack and Ben Howard singled, Ratcliffe hit an RBI sac fly and Daniels singled, bringing the score to 10-4.
VIC scored their final runs in the bottom of the fourth when Jayden Kim hit an RBI groundout, bringing in the first run to score and the second run to score on a fielding error at second, making it 12-4.
Victoria 12 def New South Wales Country 1
VIC jumped on the board early due to an error and a wild pitch, extending a 3-0 lead to 6-0 in the fourth. The five-run sixth started with a bases-loaded walk by William Kent. Ethan Johnston hit a 2-RBI single and Will Cavanagh grounded out to score two more.
Starter Ryder Wilson gave up two hits in four scoreless innings with six strikeouts and zero walks. Zachariah Dunkley pitched in relief.
VIC had 10 hits in the game, including two apiece for Jayden Kim, Ben Howard, Addison Bishop-Worn, and Cavanagh. Howard and Johnston each drove in two runs while Howard and William took two walks each.
Read the full report on baseball.com.au.
Photos: @trent.schwarz/@baseball.com.au