Manatee Mustangs finish undefeated Pop Warner regular seasons

The Manatee Mustangs’ junior varsity team was unparalleled in Manatee County this year among Pop Warner Little Scholars football teams. The Mustangs completed a perfect regular season Saturday in Gibsonton, blowing out the South Shore Junior Longhorns, 28-0, at East Bay High School to finish the regular season 7-0.

The junior varsity Mustangs were one of three county teams to finish the regular season unbeaten. The Mustangs’ mighty mites team blew out the Junior Longhorns, 32-0, on Saturday to finish the season 6-0-1, and the Manatee Wildcats pounded the FishHawk Wolfpack, 36-0, at FishHawk Sports Complex. Mighty mites don’t have a postseason.

The Mustangs’ junior varsity team is the only Division II team to reach the conference championships, which will be played Saturday at Buffalo Creek Park. The Mustangs face the Palm Harbor Panthers, who finished the regular season 5-2, at 5 p.m. in Palmetto.

Behind its junior varsity and mighty mites teams, the Mustangs finished the season with a sweep. The junior pee wee Mustangs breezed to a 32-0 win against the Longhorns and the pee wee team shut out South Shore, 24-0.

The Wildcats’ mighty mites club was their only team to win in Lithia. The junior pee wee team fell to the Wolfpack, 28-6, and both the pee wee and junior varsity teams forfeited.

The North Manatee Storm is also sending its junior varsity team to the postseason after it finished second in Division III South. The Storm will meet the Carrollwood Hurricanes at the Police Athletic League in Tampa after losing to the Hurricanes, 44-27, on Saturday at Buffalo Creek Park. North Manatee’s only other team to play Saturday, the junior pee wee team, ended the season with a 32-0 loss to the Wesley Chapel Cowboys at Wesley Chapel District Park.

The East Manatee Bulldogs have the area’s only other postseason team as their pee wee team finished as the runner-up in Division III South. The Bulldogs will meet the Cowboys in Wesley Chapel on Wednesday after finishing the regular season with a 43-6 blowout of the South Tampa Titans at Lakewood Ranch Park. East Manatee’s mighty mites and junior pee wee teams also finished the regular season with wins, while the junior varsity team fell to the Titans.

The Palmetto Trojans finished their season with two losses. The mighty mites team fell to the South Pasco Predators, 38-0, at Land O’ Lakes Recreation Complex while the Trojans’ junior varsity team forfeited.

Local teams win fall state tournament

Three teams from Manatee County staked their claim as the best youth baseball team on the Suncoast this weekend with victories at the Suncoast Travel Ball (STB) Suncoast Fall State Tournament in Sarasota and Bradenton.

Silver Hawks 16U won the oldest age group, the sophomore open, by topping Orlando Scorpions West, 6-5, in the championship game Sunday.

The younger age groups were split into multiple divisions and the Palmetto Yankees won the 14AA division, beating FBH Angels Grey, 4-3, in the title game. Florida Surge rounded out the area champions with a 12AA title, routing the Florida Piranhas of Land O’ Lakes, 15-7, in Sarasota.

Three STB tournaments are available during Halloween weekend. The STB Halloween Home Run Fest Super NIT is open to 8U through 12U teams in Newberry from Friday until Sunday. Halloween Havoc will be held in Ormond Beach on Saturday and Sunday, and the Halloween Havoc Wood Bat Showcase is Saturday and Sunday in Kissimmee.

This story was originally published October 24, 2016 at 8:14 PM with the headline "Manatee Mustangs finish undefeated Pop Warner regular seasons."