After a tough 2023 campaign at the 14U National Team Championships in North Carolina in which the team won one game, Team Elite had two options: sulk after an underwhelming campaign or put their heads down and get prepared for a return in 2024.
Team Elite chose the latter of the options which is evident as it jumped out to a 3-0-1 start, punching its ticket to the semifinals match.
Head coach Devin Gearhart knows that teams may underestimate his squad, but believes they have opened up some eyes with their dominant 10-0 over Wow Factor in the quarterfinals game.
“It's always nice when things start to come together a little bit. And I think spectators have seen flashes of us all week being really good at the dish,” Gearhart said. “Obviously, that carried true today as well. But it's nice when you can have a dominating effort and throw up a zero on the scoreboard for the opposing team. Anytime you do that, you're in a good spot too.”
Gearhart and Team Elite currently own the most runs scored among the teams still in contention for the title, but also notes that his pitching staff has been a major force throughout the tournament. Pitcher Peyton Osheaski helped guide the team to a victory in the quarterfinals, pitching 5.2 scoreless innings in the win.
“He was awesome. Fantastic. He worked through some walks over the count and made some big pitches early in the game. And as we stretched out, he kind of settled in. As a coach, you couldn't ask for more out of the starting pitcher. He was fantastic.”
The win symbolizes more than just an opportunity to win a medal. For Gearhart, the win demonstrates the perseverance and mentality his squad carried after 2023’s campaign.
“We worked so hard at this. We use every time we lose, every time we go through a tough patch like that, as a learning tool. To be able to come back up here and really see the fruits of our labor has been amazing. Even though we went through that rough patch, we will be playing for our shot to win the gold medal tomorrow and it’s a big deal. So we're really happy with it, I’m happy with the guys and the way they're competing and performing. So it's really a good spot.”
As for the rest of the tournament, Gearhart believes his team has the ability to continue advancing to the gold medal game, and wants his team to embrace the opportunity to play the sport they love.
“We’ll have to keep doing what we're doing. Playing loose, playing fun, while realizing that this is a fantastic opportunity more than anything. The ability to come up here to Cary, North Carolina, in these unbelievable facilities and then play the great game of baseball is awesome. So to keep our momentum it’s more about keeping them going, rather than anything else.”
