By Alan Matthews
July 8, 2004

MARIETTA, Ga.--Perfect Game's summer showcase and tournament schedule continues with the World Wood Bat Association 17-and-under summer championship in Marietta, Ga., this week. Some of the nation's top players from the classes of 2005, 2006 and 2007, assembled into 67 teams, had gathered for the six-day event.

The depth of talent has made surprises on the field as prevalent as sunflower seeds in dugouts, and Wednesday featured an unlikely upset. One of the event's youngest teams, the Southeast Texas Sun Devils, handed one of the event's favorites a one-sided second-round loss. The Sun Devils defeated Perfect Game's lone entry in the tournament 7-1.

Righthander Clayton Ehlert, a rising junior from Little Cypress High in Mauriceville, Texas, was dominant. He allowed one run off five hits with seven strikeouts, flashing a 90 mph fastball and a remarkably refined changeup, especially for a player without much experience at the major national tourney level.

"It felt real good, just hitting my spots," Ehlert said.

The Sun Devils are fresh off an impressive title run at the USA Baseball Junior Olympics East in West Palm Beach, Fla., two weeks ago. There, Southeast Texas tackled a 72-team field in its first national tournament competition as a team.

"We're so young right now that this is the idea," coach Matt Thompson, a volunteer assistant at Lamar University said. "Get 'em out here and let 'em face the best teams in the nation at a younger age."

A one-out, seventh-inning home run from outfielder Kent Matthes (Edgewater High, Orlando) was the only run PG could muster against Ehlert. Matthes, one of a handful of 2004 AFLAC All-Americans on the PG roster, drove a letter-high fastball high over the left-center field fence to break the shutout, but took little solace in his individual success.

"We got beat by a bunch of 16-year-olds, so that doesn't really help," he said. "I just think we sort of looked past them cause we had a nice win (Tuesday) 10-0."

Matthes has a fluid stroke at the plate and a plus throwing arm from the outfield. He participated in the PG National Showcase in St. Petersburg last month as well.

PEACH FUZZ

• The top overall prospect in the draft class of 2005, Virginia shortstop Justin Upton, led his club to a pair of wins Wednesday. He homered in the second game to straight-away center field. He struggled defensively, however, committing a pair of errors at shortstop.

• Two of Upton's teammates made impressive showings atop the mound. Righthander Matt Olsen of Western Branch High in Virginia and Scott Taylor, a rising senior at Hermitage High in Richmond, both pitch in the upper-80s. Taylor touched 92 mph and spun a tight, boring slider.

• Pitching is paramount at any event that calls for six consecutive days of games. With mid-90s temperatures coupled with thunderstorms that led to a number of doubleheaders Wednesday, having able arms is more important at this year's event.

One of two teams from Northern California, NorCal 17U, received a boost Wednesday from righthander John Irby. Despite a fastball that sat in the mid-80s, Irby, a rising senior from Valley Christian High, stymied the Charlotte Megastars Black in a 3-0 win. Irby mixed his pitches well, leaning on a 76 mph changeup to retire the last 15 batters he faced, surrendering only one hit in seven innings.

"He battled out there today," coach Chris Becerra said. "He worked his fastball to both sides of the plate and really had his hammer working for him.

"Anytime you get seven innings out of your starter you have to be pleased, but to go seven in this weather and with this quality of play was very impressive."

• Righthander Shane Funk threw five solid innings before his Florida Hitmen team squandered a late lead in a 5-3 loss to the East Cobb Braves. Funk, a 6-foot-5 rising senior from Arnold High in Panama City Beach, Fla., handcuffed the event's defending champs with a low-90s, heavy fastball and a power, 11-to-5 curveball. The Hitmen used a pair of errors and three singles to break the game open in the sixth.