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Tournaments  | Championship  | 3/22/2022

IBAHS Claims First '22 Jupiter Bid

Colton Olinger     
Photo: IBAHS White (Perfect Game)
SAN JUAN, P.R. -- With a bid to the 2022 WWBA World Championship on the line, the field of 36 teams assembled in San Juan was narrowed down to two, with both the International Baseball Academy High School’s (IBAHS) White team and Potros San Juan making their way to Hiram Bithorn Stadium with 5-0 records on Sunday.
 
IBAHS clinched their spot in the championship game with a 8-0 run-rule victory behind a strong performance on the mound by Christian Colon, as he posted five shutout innings allowing just two hits. Offensively, Adrian Rodriguez and Brian Cruz each drove in two runs as they continue to be the heartbeat of the line in the middle of the order.

For Potros San Juan it was a walk-off from Adrian Areizaga that sent them through to the finals. On the mound they got key innings from Jose David Berrios and Ramon Rodriguez in relief after starter Felix Arroyo went four innings with seven strikeouts.
  

In the championship game it was IBAHS that struck first in the bottom of the first inning after an Eldred J George single and some small ball from Rodriquez set up another RBI opportunity for Cruz, who cashed in with a productive at-bat. It wouldn’t take long though for Potros to answer back though, after they created some traffic of their own in the top of the second and a knotted the game up at 1 with a Jatnier Torres Torres single to right field.



After each starter posted a zero in the third frame, it was Potros that was able to manufacture two runs with great hustle from Jose Luis Ortiz Rivera, who was able to score from second base on a wild pitch.
 

IBAHS was not ready to pack it in quiet yet though, as they found a way to rally in the bottom of the fifth inning with some early baserunners, and once again, star shortstop Rodriguez came through with the big hit to give his team a 4-3 lead. With a lead and Jahir Perez on the mound in relief pumping his fastball in there in the mid- to upper-80s, Luis Castro had his IBAHS club in the exact position they had been working for all week.
 

With only a one-run lead heading into the bottom of the sixth, back-to-back walks for Eric Hernandez and Brian Pinero put IBAHS in position to extend their lead, and that they did. Giullianno Allende came up with a base hit back up the middle to plate two more runs, as IBAHS would tack on three total and take a 7-3 lead into the final frame.

Already in a groove from his previous two scoreless innings, Perez went back out for the seventh with a chance to punch IBAHS’s first Jupiter bid in 15 years. The Alabama State commit sat them down in order with another quick inning and the celebration was on in Fajardo, P.R. as they punched their ticket to Jupiter, Fla. for next season's 2022 WWBA World Championships.

Perez earned tournament Pitching MVP with his 12 strikeouts in 6 1/3 innings, allowing just one hit and one walk over the two appearances he made. Rodriguez took home the tournament MVP award after finishing atop the hitting leaderboard with seven knocks, nine RBI and five runs scored in six games played.
 
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