Some of the best teams in the Southeast were no match for Georgia’s best.
Lambert, ranked No. 1 in Class AAAAAA, won the USA Baseball Classic on Saturday with a 7-2 victory over Fayetteville (Ark.), completing a perfect 4-0 weekend through the tournament in Memphis.
“It was great to see the guys play well four days in a row against outstanding competition,” Lambert coach Jaime Corr said. “We knew it was going to be a great benchmark to see where we stand against the top competition in the Southeast.”
Thomas Kubiak got the win for the Longhorns (18-0) in the championship game, tossing five shutout innings while scattering three hits and striking out six.
“He was able to command three pitches for strikes and kept a good offense guessing,” Corr said.
Jake Chickowski led Lambert at the plate going 3-for-4 with a double and three RBIs. Seth Beer went 2-for-3 with two doubles and a RBI while Nick Guimbarda had two hits, including a triple.
Fayetteville entered the tournament as the No. 1 team in Arkansas and a defending state champion, but the Longhorns were undeterred. They had already defeated the No. 1 overall team in Tennessee (Christian Brothers), Mississippi’s defending Class AAAAA champions (Lewisburg) and another strong program from Tennessee (Brighton).
JD Dutka was named the tournament MVP. He went 4-for-13 with a double, triple, two RBIs and four runs scored. Dutka pitched a complete game in Lambert’s 7-3 win over Christian Brothers in the tournament semifinals and got the save in a 6-3 win over Brighton.
Beer, Dylan Biumi, Chickowski and Kyle McCann were also named to the all-tournament team.