Bandits Storm Midland; Another “Great Day to be a Bandit”

The Bandits captured both the 11 and under and 14 and under tournament Championships at the USSSA Tournament in Midland Texas. The 11 and under Bandits went 5-0 and prevailed with a 2 run rally in the bottom of the sixth inning of their quarterfinal game. They finished “Championship Sunday” allowing only 3 runs in their three game Sunday run. During the tournament, Danny Ramirez, Jacob Aguilar and Ruben Archuleta hit fence clearing home runs. Noel Pinon was an offensive and mound leader. R J Franco, Sergio Vargas, Oscar Gonzalez, Derek Ramos, Jonathan Martinez and Ruben Rodriguez bunted and raced around the bases and played steady defense throughout the tournament. Bandit pitchers held their opponents to 6 runs in their 5 games.
The 14 and under Bandits won game 1 and then were shut out for the first time in 2006 in game 2 of pool play. The Bandits responded with a 13-2 victory in a rematch the following morning in the tournament semi-finals. In the finals the Bandits were tied 0-0 going into the bottom of the fourth inning when their offense found a spark for the game’s final 3 innings ending with a 9-0 championship game effort. Bandit pitcher’s allowed only 8 runs in the entire tournament of which only 2 were earned.
Josh Avalos, Lance Gruber, Vince Centeno, Brian Hebblethwaite and Kyle Bumpas did the honors on the “bump”. Offensively every one of the 12 players had multiple hits and runs scored.
A Special Thanks to Rocky, Diana, Melva and Javi Valdes for their hospitality and support. They helped coordinate many of the arrangements for batting practice, finding the fields, places to eat and with their support and encouragement. To Javi, our “Midland Bat Boy” who himself went 1X1 with a stand-up triple, a run scored and a couple of runs batted in his game early Saturday morning; “Thanks Slugger and Keep Having Fun”. A special thanks to the supporters of the Midland Outlaws for the sandwiches they provided our Bandits. Thanks also to the families, friends and supporters who traveled from El Paso, Monahans and Alpine and those in the Midland area who came out to root and support both Bandit teams. To our Families whose sacrifice, support and encouragement continue to make this part of the “journey” Special, Thank YOU! “It’s a Great Day to Be a Bandit”!