The fall season ended with an exclamation point for Key West’s Island Dogs. The travel team for baseball players 10 and younger won the United States Specialty Sports Association (USSSA ) Premier NIT Championship with a 5-0 record on Dec. 12-13 in Fort Myers. The Dogs outscored their opponents in the five games by a combined 55-7.
“This is quite an accomplishment for the boys. It is truly a testament to our players’, parents’ and coaches’ dedication to the team’s Kaizen philosophy,” said Island Dogs general manager David Thibault.
(Kaizen is a Japanese business philosophy that translates to “change for the better” or “continuous improvement.”)
“We moved up to 10U prematurely, as 9-year-olds, and took our beatings like champs a season ago. I caught myself second-guessing our decision a few times, but we had sacrificed and invested so much time, money and energy not to achieve success. I saw upset parents in the stands as the losses piled up, but I had to trust the process. Today proves we made the right decision,” Thibault said.
Assistant coach Joe Conte said he has been “super proud to watch this incredible group of young men rise to the top.”
“Pitching was solid and bats were on fire,” he said. “The boys got the job done every game, never letting off the gas.”
Led by head coach Tyrone Cervantes, Island Dogs won the USSSA Premier NIT just one month after bringing home the USSSA Florida SunCoast Fall State Championship. This is their third tournament championship of the season with the USSSA Mizuno Cleats challenge NIT starting the trend.
The Island Dogs were virtually unstoppable this fall season, outscoring their opponents 206-35. The season ended with a 14-1 record, a No. 1 ranking in the state of Florida and No. 2 in the country.
Cervantes credits the team’s success to the commitment, hard work and dedication of his players and parents. He said he plans to keep this team together until they reach high school.
“We are going to keep this thing going as long as we can,” he said. “Let’s prepare them to be a competitive high school team and then hand them over. It has been amazing to watch them grow. The chemistry they have with each other is something special.”
Island Dogs are holding tryouts for the 2021 spring season and are open to anyone in the Florida Keys. A tryout can be scheduled by direct messaging on Instagram or Facebook @islanddogbaseball Games can also be followed live on the Game Changer Team Manager App.
