By PAUL GOTHAM
ROCHESTER, N.Y. – Penfield rising sophomore Gage Ziehl earned a spot on the 15U National Team as announced by USA Baseball on Friday. Ziehl will be a part of the 20-player roster which will compete in the 2018 World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) U-15 Baseball World Cup in David, Panama starting on August 10th.
Ziehl was among the 72 participants in the 15U National Team Trials held in Durham N.C. beginning on July 28th. The roster was cut to 34 on August 1st leading up to Friday’s announcement.
Ziehl, a 2018 First-Team All-County as a freshman, helped Penfield to a 15-7 record and a share of the Division I title. He hit .373 on the season with an on-base percentage of .456 and slugging of .567. He drove in 22 runs and scored 18.
On the mound, the right-hander finished 3-2 on the season. In 31.1 innings of work, he struck out 42 batters and walked eight while allowing 26 hits. Ziehl limited opposing batters to .211 at the plate and registered an ERA of 1.12.
Ziehl started Penfield’s season opener and set down five on strikes over 4.2 innings in the Patriots 10-3 win over West Seneca East (VI) at the Ming Bay Classic in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. At the plate, he finished 2-for-3 with double and three runs scored.
Penfield closed the trip with a an extra-inning win over Powdersville (S.C.). Ziehl supplied the game-saving play at third when he went to his backhand to take away a sure hit down the line with the winning run at second. He led the top of the eighth with a double and scored in the 4-1 victory.
Ziehl earned 2017 Upstate Baseball League DII Player of the Year when he hit .429 with four RBI and four runs scored in nine games played. He struck out 19 and walked seven in 11 innings of work.
The 15U National Team will remain in Cary, N.C. through August 7th where they will play three exhibition games against USA Baseball 16U. Those games will be streamed on USABaseball.com, Facebook Live and YouTube.
Ziehl started and scattered three hits over three shutout innings in Day 2 of the 15U Trials. He retired three batters on strikes without issuing a walk.
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