

SARASOTA - The Prospect Wire Florida State Finals boys’ 16U championship was played at Ed Smith Stadium. It featured the Florida Burn Navy and the Jacksonville Royals Blue.
The Florida Burn jumped out to a quick 4-0 lead in the second inning, capitalizing on errors by the Royals.
“We executed a lot, we had that one big inning where we were able to get some things done and put some pressure on those guys,” said Florida Burn head coach Johnny Goodrich.
16U tournament MVP Max Miller (2-3 2RBI) commented on the dominance of their starting pitcher Justin Franklin.
“Justin shut it down. It was easy to produce runs after that guy, he keeps momentum in the dug out and that’s a big key,” said Miller.
With another run to follow in the top of the sixth they took a 5-1 lead.
It was in the bottom of the seventh inning that the Florida Burn would be tested, and withstand the trial they would. With bases loaded in the bottom of the seventh the Burn escaped with a 5-3 victory over the scrappy Jacksonville Royals.
“I felt like we had a little bit of comfort in there,” said Goodrich. “We had the right guy on the mound. Alex Collins, he does a good job of controlling the tempo and making pitches. And I felt like he would come back and rebound and get the next couple of guys, I felt like we were in control.”
When asked about the late 7th inning rally the Royals put together Miller was honest.
“Little nervous,” said Miller. “But AC is good, he got a really good hammer and he knows what he is doing out there.”
Congratulations to the 16U champs: Florida Burn Navy.