The Suffolk Sluggers 8-and-under select baseball team came out on top of 11 other select squads and won the Nations Baseball Virginia State Championship last Saturday and Sunday at Princess Anne Park in Virginia Beach.

The Sluggers rolled to a 4-0 record and held true to their nickname with the offensive part of the game.

What really set the Sluggers apart in winning the state title, though, was their defensive work said head coach David Grady.

The 8-and-under division is coach-pitch so normally, every team can put up lots of runs as the pitching is meant to be hit and every lineup is good.

“What I was exceptionally proud of, and it’s what I preach all the time, was our defense. To play four games in winning a tournament like that and to allow 11 runs total is pretty fantastic,” Grady said.

The Sluggers and Grady formed an 8-and-under team from Suffolk Youth Athletic Association players and are now in their second season, although with mostly a new roster from last year’s team. This season opened up in February with games most weekends, including trips to Ashland and Rocky Mount, N.C. in the past couple months.

The state championship victory is the perfect finish to the select season. The Sluggers moved through pool play with an 11-3 win against the Virginia Fire and a 17-2 win against the Poquoson Pirates.

The 2-0 record and big run margin earned the Sluggers a bye to the semifinals of the bracket round. The Sluggers beat the Virginia Vipers 5-4 and the Lynnhaven Wahoos 5-2 in the championship.

“Everyone gears up and works all year toward this tournament,” Grady said.

Earning the Virginia title qualifies the Sluggers for the Nations Baseball national tournament in Myrtle Beach, S.C. but the Sluggers are declining the invitation since the SYAA all-star team tournament season is approaching.

The Sluggers are Noah Boone, Nicholas Cleghorn, Jack Elliott, Joseph Frole, Ben Grady, Landon Martino, Devin Oram, Rylan Riddick, Carlin Walden, Chase Williams and Clint Wright.