Eleventh annual NHSI to be held April 10-13 in Cary, North Carolina
CARY, N.C. – Last week, USA Baseball, the national governing body for baseball in the United States, revealed the 16-team field for the 2024 National High School Invitational (NHSI) presented by the Greater Raleigh Sports Alliance and the Town of Cary. The eleventh annual tournament will be held from April 10-13 at the USA Baseball National Training Complex in Cary, North Carolina, and Corona High School will represent Southwest Riverside County. The tournament field also features the defending champion and seven-time NHSI participant Huntington Beach High School, as well as three-time champion Orange Lutheran High School.
“There is no better way to begin our 2024 schedule than with the eleventh annual National High School Invitational,” said USA Baseball Executive Director/CEO Paul Seiler. “This tournament offers an unrivaled history of phenomenal players and talented champions, and we look forward to adding to that in just a few months. We are extremely excited to welcome all sixteen teams, as well as their families and fans, to the USA Baseball National Training Complex in April.”
Huntington Beach is a two-time NHSI title winner and is one of three schools to own multiple tournament championships. The Oilers won their first NHSI trophy in 2016 before running the table in 2023 to claim their second title, outscoring opponents 25-9 and posting a 1.80 team ERA. Following its NHSI title, Huntington Beach finished 2023 with a 21-9 overall record and reached the second round of the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) Southern Section Baseball Championships.
“The GRSA is proud to be a host partner of the 2024 NHSI for the eleventh year,” said Greater Raleigh Sports Alliance Director Tori Collins. “We have always valued our relationship with USA Baseball and are proud of the many outstanding events that it brings to the National Training Complex in Cary each year. Not only does the NHSI have a tremendous economic impact on our community, but it also further strengthens Cary’s brand as one of America’s top destinations for amateur sports and an outstanding host of our nation’s top athletes.”
Looking to notch its fourth NHSI title is Orange Lutheran, a six-time NHSI participant with an overall tournament record of 18-5. After competing in the first-ever NHSI in 2012, the Lancers rattled off an unprecedented three consecutive NHSI titles from 2017-2019. Orange Lutheran concluded the 2023 season with a 20-12-1 record and earned a berth to the CIF SoCal Division I Baseball Championships.
Three-time NHSI participant Harvard-Westlake School (Studio City) returns to the field for the first time since 2019. The Wolverines have reached the tournament final in each of their three appearances, notching a 9-3 overall record and finishing runners-up in 2012, 2013, and 2019. Additionally, reigning 5A Nevada state champion Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas) will be playing in the NHSI for the third time and second year in a row.
A flood of new entrants highlights the eleventh annual tournament, as seven schools will participate in the NHSI for the first time, including Corona High School. The Panthers are an early favorite to win the Southern Section Division 1 championship and having the Ebel brothers, Brady, and Trey, gives them even more of a chance. The two sons of Dino, the current third-base coach for the Dodgers, left Etiwanda and transferred to Corona this past year. Brady will be a junior and Trey a sophomore. Both are infielders and top hitters. Their father, a former San Bernardino Valley College and Florida Southern star, played Class AAA ball in the Los Angeles Dodgers’ organization. Corona is also loaded with top pitchers, including UCLA-bound Ethan Schiefelbein, as well as Billy Carlson and Sam Burgess.
In addition to the District of Columbia being represented for the first time in NHSI history, seven different states will be participating, with California and Florida each touting four schools in the field.
Since 2012, the NHSI has hosted some of the nation’s most talented players, many of whom have gone on to illustrious careers in professional baseball. Among some of the most notable major leaguers who have taken the field at the tournament are 2016 NL MVP Cody Bellinger and 2021 World Series champion Max Fried, as well as All-Star Matt Olson and Gold Glove winner Anthony Volpe. Additionally, nine picks in the 2023 MLB Draft participated in the event, including Garrett Baumann, Eric Bitonti, Noble Meyer, Adrian Santana, and Ralphy Velazquez, who were all drafted within the first four rounds.
The NHSI is a single-elimination championship tournament, with each participating team guaranteed to play four games. The bracket and full schedule will be announced at a later date. The complete list of 2024 NHSI participants includes Apex Friendship High School (Apex, N.C.), Bishop Gorman High School (Las Vegas, Nev.), Casteel High School (Queen Creek, Ariz.), Chaparral High School (Scottsdale, Ariz.), Corona High School, Farragut High School (Knoxville, Tenn.), Hagerty High School (Oviedo, Fla.), Harvard-Westlake School (Studio City), Huntington Beach High School, Key West High School (Key West, Fla.), Orange Lutheran High School (Orange, Calif.), Puyallup High School (Puyallup, Wash.), St. John’s College High School (Washington, D.C.), St. Johns Country Day School (Orange Park, Fla.), Trinity Christian Academy (Jacksonville, Fla.), Wesleyan Christian Academy (High Point, N.C.).
For more information on the NHSI, visit USABaseball.com or follow @USABEvents on Twitter and @USABaseball on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. Article contributions made by USA Baseball.
JP Raineri can be reached by email at sports@reedermedia.com.
