USSSA World Series settles in for Manatee County run

The United States Specialty Sports Association AA World Series is underway at Lakewood Ranch Little League complex, and Florida Burn 13U is off to a solid start in Pool A of the 14U division.

After suffering an opening-game loss to the St. Lucie Mets Select, the Florida Burn bounced back to beat Tennessee’s Havoc Baseball Club, 11-8, in its final game Monday. Tuesday’s game against Ohio’s Boro Blackhawks at Braden River Little League was postponed and pushed back to Wednesday.

Bradenton’s Burn are one of two teams from the Tampa Bay area in the 14U field. Kangaroo Court Gold, which draws players from across the Tampa Bay region, picked up a pair of blowout wins in Pool B against San Antonio’s Team Crush and Georgia’s South Ga. Sox on Monday at Lakewood Ranch. Tuesday’s game against St. Lucie Mets Select 13U at Braden River was postponed until Wednesday.

The 12U World Series champions are also being determined in Bradenton this week. The Cortez Stone Crabs and Mustangs Elite are both competing in Pool A. The Stone Crabs started with two wins against Georgia’s Sea Dawgs and South Carolina’s Berkeley Gladiators, 9-1, on Monday at Lakewood Ranch. Tuesday’s game against the Kentucky Thunderbats at Braden River was pushed back to Wednesday. The Mustangs opened with a blowout win against the Gladiators on Monday at Lakewood Ranch, but fell to the Powerhouse from St. Johns, 7-5, on Tuesday at Braden River.

Pool play will wrap up for all local teams at Braden River on Wednesday. The Burn play their first game at 1 p.m. against Melbourne’s Team Italy while Kangaroo Court faces the North Port Monarchs, also at 1 p.m. Cortez begins the day at 9 a.m. with its makeup game against the Thunderbats. The Mustangs play the first of two games against the Sea Dawgs at 11:15 a.m. Bracket play for both divisions begins Thursday at Lakewood Ranch. The 14U championship will be held Friday, while the 12U tournament will be confined to a single day.

Sarasota County sets showcase

Sarasota County and the Sarasota County Sports Commission announced its plan to conduct an inaugural sports event showcase in Sarasota. Visit Sarasota cited the growth in sports tourism as a primary reason for hosting the showcase, which will be held Aug. 15 at the Westin Sarasota. The event will showcase some of the area’s local sports events and provide an avenue for local businesses to form partnerships with the sports organizations, events or venues.

The showcase is scheduled to run from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Events looking to take part in the showcase should contact Dianne Fisher, 941-955-0991 x111.

This story was originally published July 18, 2017 at 6:08 PM with the headline "USSSA World Series settles in for Manatee County run."