The Lutz Bananas, a 12U team based out of the Lutz Cal Ripken League, off Lutz Lake Fern Road, took first place in the Southeast Regional Tournament in Virginia, held July 18 to July 23.
The Bananas, which are named after the Savannah Bananas, the fun, social media phenomenon exhibition baseball team, now moves on to the Cal Ripken 70/Majors World Series in Branson, Missouri, scheduled from Aug. 3 to Aug. 12.
The Bananas represented Florida in the tournament where they faced teams from North Carolina, Virginia, Tennessee and Georgia. They went 5-1, outscoring opponents 44-24.
The Bananas won back-to-back one-run games to reach the final where they topped Williamsburg 8-5 for the title.
The Lutz Bananas are representing the Southeast Region and will play against Arkansas, Hawaii, Midwest Plains, New Jersey and Idaho in their first 5 games in the World Series.
Team members include Caedon Allegra, Calvin DeMasi, Aaron Hanstedt, Bryce Hanstedt, Kamden McCoy, Patrick Sandomenico, Braden Savage, Evan Stevens, Elijah Sutton, Cody VanOpdorp and Dominic Verpault and coached by Ryan Hanstedt, Brad Savage and Pete DeMasi.
