2016 NHSI Field Includes Elite Talent

The field and matchups for the 2016 National High School Invitational have been set. The tournament will take place at the USA Baseball Complex in Cary, N.C. from March 23-26, with Baseball America serving as the official media partner for the event. The field is loaded with quality high school teams as well as elite prospects, including outfielder Blake Rutherford and lefthander Braxton Garrett, both of whom are Team USA alumni. In total, seven of the preseason top 100 high school prospects will play at NHSI, including Rutherford (3), Garrett (12), infielder Carter Kieboom (17), righthander Zach Hess (24), infielder Daniel Bakst (26), outfielder Josh Stephen (81) and righthanded pitcher/infielder Greg Veliz (90).

Pod 1, Game 1
Huntington Beach (Calif.) High	Poly Prep Country Day School, New York
Nickname: Oilers	Nickname: Blue Devils
Coach: Benji Medure	Coach: Mattew Roventini
2015 Record: 25-8	2015 Record: 19-4
Top Prospects: RHP Hagen Danner (2017, UCLA), LHP/OF Nicholas Pratto (2017, Southern Cal), RHP Logan Pouelsen (UCLA)	Top Prospects: SS/3B Daniel Bakst (Stanford), RHP Nicholas Storz (2017, LSU)
Notable Baseball Alumni: Rays C Hank Conger, Reds RP Collin Balester.k	Notable Baseball Alumni: Red Sox minor league OF Kevin Heller, former Braves minor league 2B JJ Franco
Other Alumni: Chiefs/Falcons TE Tony Gonzalez.	Other Alumni: NBA center Joakim Noah, actor Calvert DeForest
Matchup: The Oilers, ranked No. 1 nationally in the preseason, will rely on the power arm of junior righthander Danner as they aim to neutralize Poly Prep’s promising bats.
Pod 1, Game 2
Topsail High, Hampstead, N.C.	Trinity Christian Academy, Jacksonville, Fla.
Nickname: Pirates	Nickname: Conquerors
Coach: Chris Blake	Coach: Gil Morales
2015 Record: 25-3	2015 Record: 24-8
Top Prospects: OF Sam Hall (2017, Clemson), RHP Bryce Cota (Campbell)	Top Prospects: RHP JC Flowers (Kentucky), OF Todd Lott (Louisiana Lafayette)
Notable Baseball Alumni: UNC Wilmington OF Clark Cota.	Notable Baseball Alumni: Former Major League RHP Paul Rigdon
Other Alumni: N/A	Other Alumni: Titans running back Jamie Harper
Matchup: The Conquerors’ talented lineup is filled with Division I prospects, and Topsail has a well-rounded squad built around junior outfielder Hall.
Pod 2, Game 1
Rocky Mountain High, Fort Collins, Colo.	North Broward Prep, Pompano Beach, Fla.
Nickname: Lobos	Nickname: Eagles
COACH: Scott Bullock	Coach: Brian Campbell
2015 Record: 14-6	2015 Record: 15-12
Top Prospect: SS John Sorenson (2017, uncommitted)	Top Prospects: RHP Greg Veliz (Miami), RHP Evan McKendry (Miami)
Notable Baseball Alumni: Cardinals LHP Marco Gonzales, Blue Jays minor leaguer Andy Burns	Notable Baseball Alumni: Reds minor league RHP Sarkis Ohanian
Other Alumni: Singer-songwriter Katie Herzig	Other Alumni: Singer-songwriter Ariana Grande
Matchup: North Broward has one of the best pitching staffs in the nation, but it was off to a tough start and will be challenged by the well-coached Lobos.
Pod 2, Game 2
Houston High, Germantown, Tenn.	Allatoona High, Acworth, Ga.
Nickname: Mustangs	Nickname: Buccaneers
Coach: Lane McCarter	Coach: Keith Hansen
2015 Record: 33-10	2015 Record: 30-5
Top Prospect: SS Jack Kenley (Arkansas)	Top Prospect: OF Kyle Jacobsen (2017, South Carolina)
Notable Baseball Alumni: Giants RHP Matt Cain	Notable Baseball Alumni: Clemson RHP Clate Schmidt, South Carolina RHP Clarke Schmidt
Other Alumni: NFL players David Nugent and Jeremy Jarmon	Other Alumni: N/A
Matchup: Kenley brings solid all-around skills to the table, but Allatoona is equally set with Jacobsen, one of the top players in the 2017 class.
Pod 3, Game 1
Mater Dei High, Santa Ana, Calif.	The First Academy, Orlando
Nickname: Monarchs	Nickname: Royals
Coach: Burt Call	Coach: Scott Grove
2015 Record: 18-13	2015 Record: 20-7
Top Prospects: OF Josh Stephen (USC), OF Grant Burton (2018, Stanford)	Top Prospects: RHP/3B Garrett Milchin, OF Kendrick Calilao (2018, Florida), Joseph Charles (2019, Uncommitted)
Notable Baseball Alumni: Bobby Meacham, Danny Espinosa, Sergio Santos, Ryan McMahon, Cory Hahn, Ty Moore, Mike Hessman	Notable Baseball Alumni: Florida State OF Ben DeLuzio, Virgina OF Adam Haseley, Royals minor leaguer Foster Griffin
Other Alumni: Southern Cal QB Matt Barkley, Cardinals QB Matt Leinart	Other Alumni: WNBA center Krystal Thomas
Matchup: Stephen and the Monarchs will face an immediate challenge in The First Academy, the 2014 NHSI champions.
Pod 3, Game 2
Florence (Ala.) High	Liberty Christian Academy, Lynchburg, Va.
Nickname: Falcons	Nickname: Bulldogs
Coach: Steve Garrett	Coach: Randy Tomlin
2015 Record: 14-22	2015 Record: 22-1-1
Top Prospect: LHP Braxton Garrett (Vanderbilt)	Top Prospect: RHP Zack Hess (Louisiana State)
Notable Baseball Alumni: N/A	Notable Baseball Alumni: N/A
Other Alumni: Chargers DE Fred Moore	Other Alumni: NFL players Rashad Jennings and Bobby Massie
Matchup: This matchup pits two of the top pitchers in the nation against each other, with Garrett facing Hess.
Pod 4, Game 1
Flanagan High, Pembroke Pines, Fla.	Chaminade College Prep, Canoga Park, Calif.
Nickname: Falcons	Nickname: Eagles
Coach: Ray Evans	Coach: Frank Mutz
2015 Record: 21-6	2015 Record: 15-15
Top Prospects: SS Mark Vientos (2017, Miami), RHP Nick MacDonald (Arkansas State), LHP Dylan O’Connell (Florida Atlantic), OF Eric Rivera (Florida Atlantic)	Top Prospects: OF Blake Rutherford (UCLA), C Nick Kahle (Washington)
Notable Baseball Alumni: Tigers OF J.D. Martinez, Indians 1B/DH Mike Napoli	Notable Baseball Alumni: Blue Jays OF Kevin Pillar
Other Alumni: NFL CB Cary Williams	Other Alumni: The Killers guitarist Dave Keuning, cinematographer John Longenecker
Matchup: Chaminade has one of the nation’s top hitters in Rutherford, while Flanagan counters with a deep team and a storied baseball tradition.
Pod 4, Game 2
Walton High, Marietta, Ga.	Bingham High, South Jordan, Utah
Nickname: Raiders	Nickname: Miners
Coach: Shane Amos	Coach: Joel Sato
2015 Record: 30-7	2015 Record: 30-4
Top Prospects: SS Carter Kieboom (Clemson), RHP Zac Kristofak (Georgia)	Top Prospect: LHP Sean Keating (Arizona State)
Notable Baseball Alumni: Athletics OF Billy Burns, Tigers RHP Luke Putkonen, Twins RHP Blaine Boyer	Notable Baseball Alumni: Cubs SS/3B Daryl Robertson
Other Alumni: NBA guard Glen Rice Jr., The Black Crowes founders Chris and Rich Robinson	Other Alumni: Rams WR Kevin Curtis, model and actress Jaime Bergman
Matchup: Walton is the top-ranked team in the nation, but the Miners will compete with Keating on the mound.