The USVI Explorers 12U baseball team went undefeated at the World Comes to the Palm Beaches international tournament Oct. 22-26, winning five games to claim the championship in West Palm Beach, Florida.
The 13-player roster, drawn from the territory’s Elrod Hendricks league for 9-12 year olds, defeated teams from Venezuela, Australia and three U.S. squads to finish 5-0.
“In the past, the team would travel, compete, and come up short,” head coach Michael Bute said. “This tournament was big for them because they finally got over the hump. Now they have more confidence in themselves for upcoming tournaments.”
The tournament featured teams representing 32 countries and territories across five age divisions.
Eight of the 13 USVI players batted .500 or higher during the tournament. Kamahli Lewis and Ari Frazer led the team with .700 averages.
The Explorers opened tournament play with a 10-6 victory over USA Elevates from northern Florida, then defeated Australia 13-0 and USA Coral Springs 11-3 before advancing to the playoff rounds. They edged Team Florida 7-6 in the semifinals before beating Venezuela 9-2 in the championship game.
“Venezuela was my favorite opponent,” said Tomas Alejandro. “They were pitching a lot faster than the other teams, and I liked hitting the fast pitches.”
For Jayce Hodge, the championship held personal significance.”I wanted to play baseball because my father played baseball,” Hodge said.
Ajhourni Dore credited the team’s preparation for their championship victory. “Explorers is so special because of how hard we work,” Dore said. “Every weekend we’re out here practicing.”
JaDen Hanley added, “We worked hard to win this championship, so it felt really good when we did.”
The roster included JaDen Hanley, Jamari Hanley Jr., J’Kaii Henry, Alexus Gumbs, Kamahli Lewis, Ari Frazer, Ajhourni Dore, Tomas Alejandro, Jayce Hodge, Shamarr Fahie, Jamoi Christopher Jr., Jayco Ramirez, Roniel Garcia and Grabriel Santana.
“This tournament was special for me because we have lots of great players and great coaches,” Jamari Hanley Jr. said.
“I’d like to thank the public most of all because when you see these guys selling water in Mandela Circle you always support them, and that’s how we raise the money to take these trips,” Bute added.
The team regularly sells water in Mandela Circle to fund tournament travel. They are raising money for their next competition, the President’s Day Challenge, Feb. 14-16 at the Jackie Robinson Training Complex in Vero Beach, Florida. The team needs $1,300 for tournament entry plus additional funds for travel and lodging. They look forward to winning big in the 13U bracket against dozens of teams from across the US and Central America.
