2022 Pocket City Dual Major
Evansville, Indiana
August 11-14
Deaconess Park had lots of shade for the spectators.
Hot Links (More Videos to come)
Pocket City Results and Bracket link
Pocket City Picture Album link
Pocket City Thursday Video Clips link
Semifinal Dual #1 Condensed Game link
Dual #1 Semifinal Condensed Game link
Dual #1 Winner’s Final Condensed Game link
Dual #1 Championship Condensed Game link
Dual #1 Friday Video Clips link
Pocket City Archived Games link
Pocket City Dual #1 Stats link
Pocket City Dual #2 Stats link
Pocket City Team List
Pocket City Dual #1
Westpoint takes on Chick-fil-a
The Pocket City dual #1 started late at 11 AM Thursday morning after the number of cancelled flights across the country on Wednesday moved the start time to allow players to get to the tournament. 37 of the top teams in the country from 19 different states descended on Deaconess Sports Park in Evansville, Indiana for 4 days of smash mouth softball. The fences on the 8 fields were 300-315-300 and the Dudley Pro-M ball mainly ‘DV’ stamp did not fly well during the day and scores were low at the beginning. Rock Run beat the Michigan runner up TG Brand out homering them 8-3 and then beat Bay Area Legends 30-27 as Myron Hochstetler went 4-4 with 3 HR to make it to the “Final 8”. Heath Barnes, Tyler Khalke, and Tommy Melton each went 4-4 as Precision beat ‘AA’ rival S&E scoring 12 in the bottom of the 4th to win by the run rule and then upset Monsta 18-4 as Heath Barnes hit 3 HR to make it to the quarterfinals. In the 2nd part of the winner’s bracket Chick-fil-a scored 69 runs total in wins over Epic and Westpoint. Resmondo beat Cash House and Primetime by 7 runs each to make it to the “Final 8”. In the 3rd part of the bracket Competitive Edge advanced to the quarterfinals with wins over TLC and Baugh Ford as Joe Boland and Tyler Ervine combined to hit 10 HR. MPT Rentals run ruled LSR and Seminoles to make the “Final 8”. In the bottom part of the bracket #1 seed Smash It run ruled Dirty Vegas and Anarchy and Nitro Circus beat Sports Reach 5-2, and Classic Glass 7-6 with the wind blowing in to advance.
Precision takes down Rock Run then Monsta!
In the “Final 8” as the night fell the scores went up and Precision scored in every inning against Rock Run and held Rock Run scoreless in the 6th and 7th innings to win 26-12. SS Heath Barnes and pitcher Mike Jacobsen combined to go 10-10 with 5 HR as they out homered Rock Run 14-2. Resmondo 20 run mercy ruled Chick-fil-a scoring 14 runs in the bottom of the 3rd. Kyle Pearson and Bradley Jones were both 4-4 and they out homered Chick 12-7. MPT Rentals beat Competitive Edge 24-3 scoring 12 runs in the top of the 3rd. Filip Washington, Joe Dorton, John Radich, Orlando Castillo, and Conner Murray each had 3 hits. And Smash It beat Nitro Circus 24-21 after Nitro grabbed a 21-19 lead on a Chris Greinert grand slam. The game featured a number of long home runs and a home run robbing catch by both teams.
Smash It’s Tyler Storey hits a big home run against Nitro Circus
Pocket City Dual #1 “Final 4″
Smash It’s Josh Riley hits against MPT in the semifinals of Dual #1
On Friday in the semifinals at 11 AM central time MPT Rentals took down Smash It Sports 37-17 knocking out starting pitcher Andy Purcell in the 1st inning and Resmondo scored 11 runs in the 2nd inning and 14 runs in the 5th to leave Precision on the field 32-17. It was 18-17 going into the bottom of the 5th. Kyle Pearson, Phil Matte, Bradley Jones, and Tyler Marshburn were a combined 17-20 with 8 HR and 18 RBI in the win.
Resmondo takes on Precision in the semifinals.
In the winner’s bracket finals Friday afternoon Resmondo scored 11 runs in the top of the 1st but MPT came back to trail just 21-20 going into the 6th. Resmondo though out scored MPT 8-4 the rest of the way and won 29-24. Travis Clark at leadoff was 4-4 with 4 RBI and Argen Dodds 5-5 with 5 RBI in the win. They led MPT 13-12 in home runs hit.
MPT vs Resmondo in the winner’s final of Dual #1
Pocket City Dual #1 Loser’s Bracket
David McDowell hits a walk off homer the opposite way to beat Stars in the loser’s bracket.
The loser’s bracket played out all day on Friday with 4with, S&E, Westpoint, and Monsta making runs. Then Monsta ran out of gas in the 4th place game losing to Smash It Sports 30-22. Then MPT Rentals dropped down in the loser’s final and beat Smash It Sports on a walk off homer by Bill Pinkham with 2 outs in the bottom of the 7th!
MPT’s Bill Pinkham hits a walk off homer in the bottom of the 7th to beat Smash It Sports in the loser’s final of dual #1.
Pocket City Dual #1 Championship
MPT starts a middle war. Resmondo’s Travis Clark caught this one in the championship.
In the championship Resmondo lost focus after leading 19-4 and 23-17 when they went for retaliation of an MPT middle shot and put up a zero in the top of the 5th. After that retaliation they only scored 3 runs in the last 3 innings and lost on a walk off homer by Joe Dorton 28-26 as MPT scored 5 in the bottom of the 7th to force the “if” game.
MPT’s Joe Dorton hits a walk off homer to force the “if” game against Resmondo.
Check out Ryan Harvey in proper position to tell the runner where to slide.
In the “if” game the temperatures cooled off and the ball absolutely flew! Resmondo scored 10 in the top of the 1st and MPT responded with 13 in the 2nd and 16 in the 5th as both teams scored crooked numbers in every inning. The MPT offense was just a little too much and they won Dual #1 43-35. As you can see by the box score below 6 players across both teams had 5 hits and MPT’s Josh Kirsten had 6 hits and 31 home runs were hit between the two teams including some absolute tanks!
Pocket City Dual #2
Hubs Pub took down #1 seeded Smash It Sports in the “Round of 32” of Dual #2.
Dual #2 is a blur as I was covering the long dragged out end to Dual #1 on Friday night as Dual #2 played the play in games, the round of 32, and the round of 16 all on Friday. Bay Area beat Sports Reach and Classic Glass. Precision beat Anarchy by a run and upset Monsta for the 2nd tournament in a row. Kut4 beat Baugh Ford and Chick Fil A. MPT Rentals after “double dipping” Resmondo beat Siteman and L&S Glass into the early hours of Saturday morning. In the lower half of the bracket Resmondo beat Meirtran and Primetime. S&E Dan Smith beat Cheap Suits and Hubs Pub after Hubs Pub pulled the upset of the year over Smash It Sports 23-21. Smash It had the bases loaded and 2 outs with Riley up who grounded out and that was after the Hubs Pub center fielder Webb made two spectacular catches! Check out the end of that game in the upcoming highlight video. Competitive Edge beat Epic and Westpoint. And Adiktiv shut out Nitro Circus then beat Cornerstone to make it to Saturday undefeated.
S&E’s Emilson Marquez may or may not have caught this ball but the result was a DP to end the game vs Adiktiv.
On Saturday in the “Final 8” Precision beat Bay Area 21-10 as Heath Barnes was at it again going 4-4 with 3 HR and a triple. MPT Rentals run ruled Kut4 Sports 18-3 shutting out Kut4 in their last 3 at bats. Competitive Edge upset Resmondo after Resmondo grabbed a 26-22 lead in the top of the 7th Competitive Edge walked them down and beat them on a sac fly 27-26. Both teams had plenty of homer’s left. Ryan Honeycutt had 3 HR and 6 RBI in the win. And S&E beat Adiktiv 15-14 with the bats in Adiktivs hands and 2 on base S&E middle infielder Emilson Marquez turned a DP on a controversial catch/drop of a low line drive.
Bay Area 1B Brandon Traylor with the catch and tag vs Precision in the quarterfinals.
Competitive Edge’s Mitch Lendenski gets a game tying hit vs Resmondo in the quarterfinals of dual #2.
Pocket City Dual #2 “Final 4″
MPT Rookie Don Walsh homer’s against Precision in the semifinals Saturday night.
In the semifinals Saturday night the MPT offense was full send scoring 17 in the top of the 4th against Precision and run ruling them 35-19 in 5 innings. Ryan Harvey was 5-5 with 2 HR and 5 RBI. Joe Dorton had 7 RBI and Josh Kirsten had 4 hits.
S&E Rookie Jacob Hoskins hits against Competitive Edge in the semifinals.
In semifinal #2 it was Competitive Edge and S&E tied at 12-12 after 2 innings. But Competitive Edge scored 11 more in the top of the 3rd and 10 more in the top of the 4th to win by the run rule 33-18. Jason Branch and pitcher Faron Miller were each 5-5 and Miller hit a grand slam. In the winner’s final late Saturday night it was a wild one. Competitive Edge scored 10 in the top of the 1st and led 19-3 early on. MPT came back in the bottom of the 5th scoring 16 runs to cut the CE lead to 33-31. Comp Edge scored 5 in the 6th and 8 in the top of the 7th to take a 41-34 lead but MPT with no home runs left used some walks, some misplays, and some clutch hitting to walk down and walk off Competitive Edge 42-41 on a Joe Dorton single down the left field line! Bennett, Williams, and Castillo had 6 hits each. Ervine for CE had 6 hits and all of them were home runs and SS Logan Rogers was 7 for 7!
MPT’s Joe Dorton hits a walk off single to cap a huge comeback with no HR left vs Competitive Edge in the winner’s final.
Pocket City Dual #2 Loser’s Bracket
Rock Run and Nitro Circus battled in the loser’s bracket. The winner basically would earn enough points to be the #1 seed at the USSSA ‘A’ Worlds. Nitro won 28-19 after Rock Run had a 14-7 lead.
I did not see much of the loser’s bracket but Baugh Ford, Smash It Sports, Chick-fil-a, and Monsta all made big runs. Smash It got beat by S&E and Monsta got beat by Resmondo who then lost to Precision, and then Precision beat S&E in the highest scoring game of the tournament 47-42 in the 4th place game late Saturday/early Sunday. Tommy Melton was 7-7 and Curtis Stewart hit 5 HR in that win.
Late in the loser’s bracket it was Monsta taking on Resmondo!
On Sunday morning in the loser’s final Competitive Edge scored 10 in the bottom of the 1st and led the whole way beating Precision 29-22 to make it back to MPT. Honeycutt was 5-5 and Brandon Jackson was 5-5 with 4 HR and 11 RBI in the win!
Precision lost to Competitive Edge in the loser’s final Sunday morning.
Pocket City Dual #2 Championship
After a number of MPT delays, Comp Edge’s Ryan Honeycutt gets a bases loaded hit in the 1st championship game.
In the championship Competitive Edge playing without Branch and Roxby who were banged up and left for flights. CE jumped all over a sluggish MPT team and led 18-4 and cruised to a 24-9 run rule win in 5 innings. Honeycutt and Jackson each had 4 hits again.
In the “if” game it was MPT that got off to a strong start with a lead of 21-4. Competitive Edge scored 9 in the bottom of the 3rd and 9 more in the bottom of the 4th to tie the game at 22 but MPT out scored them 18-4 the rest of the way and won in 7 innings 40-26. Filip Washington, Ryan Harvey, Joe Joe Bennett, and Orlando Olivera all had 4 hits and John Radich was 6-6 in the win.
It was a great 4 days of softball, almost a celebration of the game with perfect weather and a perfect park to play it at. The day games reminded me of games you would see at Viera’s softball quad or the old Fortune Road as the fields played “big” but at night the ball was flying! Teams came and went and there was a good buzz at the park on Friday night when almost every team was there starting the 2nd dual or finishing the 1st. I will have daily highlight videos and 6 condensed games coming this week on the USSSALive youtube channel. A big thank you to all the umpires that pitched in last minute and for their 4 hard days of work and to the directors that ran the event which went smooth.
MPT’s Filip Washington finishes off Competitive Edge in the “if” game!
Long Bomber of the Week!
Graycen Dye of Lady SNI is the Long Bomber of the Week as she hit this ball 372 feet! Check it out in the video highlights later this week.
On the men’s side it was a tie between Everett Williams pictured above, Chris Greinert of Nitro Circus, Ryan Harvey of MPT, and Argen Dodds of Resmondo. Chris Greinert hit a shot Thursday night vs SIS that people were talking about for 2 days and he hit a couple moon shot homer’s against Rock Run on Saturday.
Pocket City Dual #1 Results and Awards
Dual #1 MVP – MPT pitcher Bill Pinkham
Dual #1 Defensive MVP – MPT Center Fielder Josh Kirsten
Dual #1 Offensive MVP – Resmondo’s Phil Matte
Pocket City Dual #2 Results and Awards
Dual #2 MVP – MPT infielder John Williams
Dual #2 Defensive MVP – MPT Outfielder Joe Joe Bennett
Dual #2 Offensive MVP – Competitive Edge 3rd Baseman Joe Boland
Team by Team Notes
MPT Rentals/Juno Athletics NJ-M
1st – Avg Finish: 1 Record: 13-2
Dual #1 1st (7-1) Runs: 30.0 Allowed: 19.0 Diff: 11.0
Dual #2 1st (6-1) Runs: 31.3 Allowed: 19.1 Diff: 12.1
MPT wins BOTH duals. Not a single person in this weeks pickem game had them finishing higher than 2nd in either tournament. They have now won 3 tournaments in a row and move to 3rd in the points! They beat LSR, Seminoles, Competitive Edge, then lost to Resmondo, then beat Smash It Sports, and “double dipped” Resmondo in the championship. In the 2nd Dual they beat Siteman and L&S Glass late Friday night after winning that 1st dual. Then on Saturday beat Kut4, Precision, and came from behind to beat Competitive Edge in the winner’s final. On Sunday in the championship they won the “if” game. Clutch hitting, next man up, and a big time offense which glossed over fielding and base running errors is what won it for MPT. A total team effort for 4 days over 15 games. I don’t have any stats but I know John Williams raised his on base to .795 for the season and is in the running for the batting title.
Harvey with some dance moves before Sunday’s Championship.
LF Nick Day lays out for a spectacular catch!
Resmondo/Smash IT/ All American/Men FL-M
2nd – Avg Finish: 3.5 Record: 9-4
Dual #1 2nd (5-2) Runs: 28.3 Allowed: 21.3 Diff: 7.0
Dual #2 5th (4-2) Runs: 32.8 Allowed: 24.0 Diff: 8.8
Resmondo beat Cash House, Primetime, Chick-fil-a, Precision, MPT, and then got double dipped by MPT in Dual 1. In Dual 2 they beat Meirtran, Primetime, and then lost by 1 to Competitive Edge. In the loser’s bracket they beat Chick-fil-a, and had a nice win over Monsta 47-45 before losing to Precision. Resmondo is 12-10 vs Major teams and 19-3 vs ‘AA’. Matte, Jones, Mack, Clark, Pearson, Connell, and Marshburn were all over .700. Dodds .696. The team was an incredible .678 for the week. Matte, Jones, Pearson, Connell, Marshburn, and Dodds all had double digit homer’s and Mack hit 23 and Clark 20. Mack led the team in RBI with 63.
SS Reyna, MI Bazat, 2B Connell
Clark amuses himself waiting for MPT player to get in the box. 🙂
Bradley Jones robs a homer against Precision.
SmashIt/ThunderChosen/PureRF/BD/TDB NY-M
Tied 3rd – Avg Finish: 4 Record: 10-4
Dual #1 3rd (5-2) Runs: 25.7 Allowed: 21.0 Diff: 4.7
Dual #2 5th (5-2) Runs: 24.3 Allowed: 18.4 Diff: 5.9
Smashit beat Dirty Vegas, Anarchy, Nitro Circus, S&E, Monsta, Anarchy again, Primetime by a run, Nitro Circus, Kut4 Sports, and Bay Area. They lost to MPT twice, Hubs Pub, and S&E. They are now just 8-11 vs the Major division even though they are set to win the Conference Points title. No stats have been turned in to know who was on fire.
3B Dale Brungardt, SS Ryan Mcclanahan, MI Kyle Pearson, RF Andrew Collins
Precision/3rd St./Red Athlete IL-AA
Tied 3rd – Avg Finish: 4 Record: 8-4
Dual #1 5th (3-2) Runs: 21.2 Allowed: 16.8 Diff: 4.4
Dual #2 3rd (5-2) Runs: 26.6 Allowed: 25.0 Diff: 1.6
Precision not only jumped into the Major World Series picture but they jumped all the way to 7th ahead of Proton! They beat S&E, Monsta, Rock Run, Anarchy, Monsta again, Bay Area Legends, Resmondo, and S&E again losing only to 3 Major teams and Competitive Edge. What a week! Heath Barnes was .807 with 20 HR and 37 RBI and he had 9 triples! Curtis Stewart was also over .700 at .744 with 17 HR and 40 RBI. Frank Fracek 11 HR, Tommy Melton 12, Houseman 11, and Khalke 15 also had big power numbers.
Mike Jacobsen has been taking middle shots off his hands all years. Hopefully he will be healthy for the Worlds.
SS Barnes is having an MVP type season for Precision. In their two wins over Monsta he was 7-9 with 6 HR and 11 RBI.
S&E / Dan Smith NC-AA
Tied 5th – Avg Finish: 4.5 Record: 10-4
Dual #1 5th (6-2) Runs: 25.4 Allowed: 13.1 Diff: 12.3
Dual #2 4th (4-2) Runs: 25.3 Allowed: 22.3 Diff: 3.0
S&E needed a big week and they got it. After losing to Precision 24-11 in their opener they rebounded to beat (shut down) RVCG and Dirty Vegas, then beat Seminoles by 2, Cornerstone, and Classic Glass to finish 5th. In the 2nd Dual they took an easier path in the winner’s bracket beating Cheap Suits, Hubs Pub, and Adiktiv before losing to Comp Edge in the semifinals. In the loser’s bracket they sent home Smash It Sports 28-13 before losing to Precision in the 4th place game 47-42. Edmund Locklear was incredible on the mound shutting down many opponents. SS Joel Sanchez was .815, 13 HR, 37 RBI. Rookie Jacob Hoskins .781, 15 HR, 54 RBI. Cullen was .721, 9 HR, 45 RBI with a great motor in center field. Seiden .719, 15 HR, 39 RBI. Marquez, the rookie Robinson, and Justin Gregory were all in the high .600’s. A real team effort with only 11 players and 1 pitcher and they made it all the way to 10th in the point standings!
Joel Sanchez known for his glove was moved to leadoff and went 53-65 .815 with 44 runs scored!
Rookie Hoskins was 50-64 .781 with 15 HR and 54 RBI.
COMPETITIVE EDGE/OLMITO/SUNCOAST FL-AA
Tied 5th – Avg Finish: 4.5 Record: 9-4
Dual #1 7th (3-2) Runs: 21.0 Allowed: 19.0 Diff: 2.0
Dual #2 2nd (6-2) Runs: 27.6 Allowed: 24.3 Diff: 3.4
Competitive Edge played like a Major team especially in the 2nd Dual which they almost won twice giving away the winner’s final then forcing the ‘if’ game. They beat TLC, Baugh, then lost to MPT 24-3, before beating Westpoint, and losing to Monsta in the 1st Dual. In the 2nd they beat Epic, Westpoint, Resmondo on a walk off sac fly by Faron Miller, S&E, then lost to MPT in the winner’s final by a run. On Sunday they beat Precision and MPT to force the ‘if’ game where they lost. They moved to #5 in the points and are currently in line to be the #1 seed for the ‘AA’ Worlds. Boland was .817 with 19 HR and 43 RBI. Branch was .745, Rogers .694, Cobb .674, Brandon Jackson .680, Faron Miller .630, and Ervine hit 26 HR and drove in 54 RBI. LC Watson and Faron Miller shared the pitching duties but Faron in particular seemed to be very effective against the Major teams and also was on fire with the bat.
3B Joe Boland, SS Logan Rogers, MI Andrew Filoteo
Monsta/Albicocco/Racks/Nitro Circus CA-M
7th – Avg Finish: 5.5 Record: 10-4
Dual #1 4th (6-2) Runs: 25.6 Allowed: 17.3 Diff: 8.4
Dual #2 7th (4-2) Runs: 32.8 Allowed: 24.3 Diff: 8.5
I (DW) picked Monsta to win both tournaments so Precision busted both my brackets by beating them in the “Round of 16” both tournaments… 🙁 And since Monsta dropped into the loser’s bracket so early I didn’t really see them play much as I concentrate my reporting on the winner’s bracket. But they did win 10 games including beating Competitive Edge, a revenge win over Precision later in Dual #1, and they beat Classic Glass. But they lost to Smash It Sports and had a 47-45 loss to Resmondo to end their not so great week. Austyn Dawe did a lot of pitching and was .825 in the 1st dual. Matusik, Cayton, and I think Lloyd were banged up some but almost the whole team was over .700 in the 2nd Dual and Yates was almost .800 which is good to see. Somehow they maintained the 2 seed for the Major and Jason Magnum said on this weeks Hit & Sit show that all the Major teams are either going to go to Utah or KC. I’m guessing KC. Fyffe hit over 20 HR and over 50 RBI.
MI Cayton, CF Lewis
Austyn Dawe did some pitching and stabbed this grounder even he was surprised he nabbed.
Chick-fil-A / Slugger / BAF / LBT VA-AA
8th – Avg Finish: 9 Record: 5-4
Dual #1 9th (2-2) Runs: 22.3 Allowed: 29.3 Diff: -7.0
Dual #2 9th (3-2) Runs: 23.4 Allowed: 22.6 Diff: 0.8
Chick-fil-a beat Epic, Westpoint, TRU, Str8Play, and Sports Reach moving them up to 6th in the points. They are 9-4 vs ‘AA’ teams on the year but haven’t broken through and beaten a major team yet. Looked like Porter at SS and Clifton at 2B were back after not playing in Michigan. Patrick Center and Terrance Engles were over .800 on base percentage in 1st Dual.
3B Kashner, SS Center, MI Alston. I think Patrick Center has played every position this season.
Classic Glass/Easton CA-AA
9th – Avg Finish: 10 Record: 6-4
Dual #1 7th (4-2) Runs: 18.8 Allowed: 13.5 Diff: 5.3
Dual #2 13th (2-2) Runs: 17.3 Allowed: 21.5 Diff: -4.3
Classic Glass was solid beating Cornerstone, Kut4, 4With, Rock Run, TG Brand, and Siteman. They are just 4-8 vs ‘AA’ but many of those losses were to Proton by just a few runs.
Colby Hughes joined Classic Glass a few weeks ago.
Sal Formosa climbs the ladder to stab this liner.
Nitro Circus/Klutch/team 199/BRC MD-A
10th – Avg Finish: 11 Record: 4-4
Dual #1 9th (2-2) Runs: 13.0 Allowed: 13.8 Diff: -0.8
Dual #2 13th (2-2) Runs: 14.5 Allowed: 17.5 Diff: -3.0
Nitro Circus beat Sports Reach 5-2 in their opener then Classic Glass 7-6 in the “Round of 16”. They lost to Smash It just 24-21 then in the “Final 8” and to Monsta by 4 in the loser’s bracket of Dual #1. In Dual #2 they scored zero in their opener against Adiktiv but dropped into the loser’s bracket and beat Rock Run to secure 1st seed for ‘A’ Worlds, and then Westpoint before losing to Smash It. Greinert was hitting absolute bombs and the team is now 6-3 vs ‘AA’ and 11-5 vs ‘A’ and they basically only lose to Major teams (1-13) and Adiktiv… too soon?
Nitro CF Jake Ringold robs an extra base hit.
3B Dylan Shupe, SS Bishop Harris, MI Zach Messer
BAY AREA LEGENDS CA-AA
11th – Avg Finish: 12 Record: 4-4
Dual #1 17th (1-2) Runs: 22.3 Allowed: 23.7 Diff: -1.3
Dual #2 7th (3-2) Runs: 21.6 Allowed: 18.2 Diff: 3.4
Bay Area was on the bubble for the Major but did enough to get to 13th in the points. They beat Adiktiv but lost to Rock Run and L&S Glass both by 3 runs in Dual #1. In the 2nd Dual they rebounded to beat Sports Reach, Classic Glass, and Baugh Ford but lost to Precision and Smash It. Mooch did most of the pitching. They have played a lot of softball lately and will be at the Utah dual. They are now just 4-8 vs ‘AA’ teams but 10-6 vs ‘A’ and have beaten two Major teams.
Kessler and the Bay Area Legends took down Rock Run with like 8 straight base hits.
Mooch gets a hit against Rock Run.
Toby Letak hits a moon shot homer.
BAUGHFORD/GRIZZY AL-A
Tied 12th – Avg Finish: 13 Record: 4-4
Dual #1 17th (1-2) Runs: 15.0 Allowed: 22.7 Diff: -7.7
Dual #2 9th (3-2) Runs: 17.7 Allowed: 16.3 Diff: 1.3
Baugh Ford beat Stars, Epic, Cornerstone, and Hubs Pub which was enough to get them to 15th in the Conference points. They were led by Justin Lutheran .833, Jason Gilfillan .800, Johnston .727, and Ross .722. Lutheran had 9 HR and 19 RBI. Baugh is 9-6 vs Major teams this season.
Power hitter Billy Sanders
Jason Gilfillan
Kut4 Sports/OI Livingston AL-A
Tied 12th – Avg Finish: 13 Record: 3-4
Dual #1 17th (1-2) Runs: 12.8 Allowed: 18.3 Diff: -5.5
Dual #2 9th (2-2) Runs: 23.5 Allowed: 21.3 Diff: 2.3
Kut4 played their way into the top 18 with wins over TLC, rival Baugh Ford, and a big win over Chick-fil-a. Two of their losses were to major teams. They picked up Shannon Smith who struggled but the offense was led by Brandon Hooks .839, Trey Martin .773, and Kylie Ming .700. Hooks and Cardwell hit double digit home runs and 22 and 23 RBI respectively. This is a 1st year conference team and it would be impressive if they can hang on and make the Major. Kut4 is 3-6 vs ‘A’ teams but 3-5 vs ‘AA’ and had that big win over Monsta back in June.
Dan Sanchez makes a great play vs MPT.
Shannon Smith is with Kut4 now.
WestPoint Softball IN-A
Tied 12th – Avg Finish: 13 Record: 4-4
Dual #1 9th (3-2) Runs: 21.2 Allowed: 23.0 Diff: -1.8
Dual #2 17th (1-2) Runs: 17.7 Allowed: 18.0 Diff: -0.3
Westpoint beat Kut4, lost a long game to Chick-fil-a, then beat Str8Play and Primetime before losing big to Competitive Edge to finish 9th in Dual #1. In the 2nd Dual they beat Stars by the run rule before losing by 1 to Competitive Edge on a walk off homer by Ervine, and then by 15 to Nitro Circus. Kyle Johnson, Canaan Baum, and Drew Smith were all over .700 in the 1st Dual and Travis Tucker was .846 in the 2nd Dual. Kyler Kirkland and Travis Dale led the team in on base in the 2nd dual and Kirkland has moved up the order and led the team in HR at the Pocket City.
Thanks to Erika Vargas photography for the team photo.
3B Justin Smith and SS Travis Dale
L & S Glass CA-A
Tied 15th – Avg Finish: 15 Record: 4-4
Dual #1 13th (3-2) Runs: 19.8 Allowed: 24.8 Diff: -5.0
Dual #2 17th (1-2) Runs: 13.7 Allowed: 22.3 Diff: -8.7
L&S won 4 games beating Siteman on a walk off sac fly, Cash House, and Bay Area Legends in the 1st Dual. Then started the 2nd Dual with a win over 4With which was enough to put them in 17th in the points which the top 18 make the Major. So they may have to defend their spot in the Utah Dual Labor Day weekend.
I forgot to get the interview with L&S pitcher Ryan Tomasi…
Cornerstone/Midstate/SVC/Slugger/PT KY-A
Tied 15th – Avg Finish: 15 Record: 3-4
Dual #1 13th (2-2) Runs: 21.8 Allowed: 16.8 Diff: 5.0
Dual #2 17th (1-2) Runs: 16.7 Allowed: 18.0 Diff: -1.3
Cornerstone beat Sports Reach, Baugh Ford, Rock Run, and lost by 1 to Adiktiv on a walk off homer. So they have definitely taken a step forward the last 3 tournaments. Payton, Pierce, and Fields were all over .700. Goleniak led the team in HR with 13 and RBI with 28.
Primetime/Easton/FAI GA-A
Tied 15th – Avg Finish: 15 Record: 3-4
Dual #1 13th (2-2) Runs: 13.8 Allowed: 16.8 Diff: -3.0
Dual #2 17th (1-2) Runs: 24.0 Allowed: 24.7 Diff: -0.7
Primetime beat 4with, TG Brand, and Seminoles and lost to 3 Major teams and Westpoint and they gave Resmondo and Smash It a run for their money. Overall Primetime has been solid going 4-6 vs ‘AA’ and 5-4 vs ‘A’ this season but they sit 21st in the points.
MI Jedon Matthews and pitcher Roderick Armour.
Str8play/JPS/SBT/HBA CA-B
Tied 18th – Avg Finish: 17 Record: 4-4
Dual #1 17th (2-2) Runs: 17.3 Allowed: 16.0 Diff: 1.3
Dual #2 17th (2-2) Runs: 14.8 Allowed: 18.5 Diff: -3.8
Str8Play has quietly had a REALLY good season. In Evansville they beat RVCG, Cheap Suits twice, and Dirty Vegas. They are now 6-6 vs AA, 9-2 vs ‘A’ (WHAT?) and 10-7 overall against Conference and Non-Conference ‘B’. Could you imagine a Str8Play / Rock Run ‘B’ World final? But don’t say that to Hubs Pub, BTR, TG Brand, or Cash House. 🙂
TRU/StubTerminal/Timeless/LA/ES NC-B
Tied 18th – Avg Finish: 17 Record: 3-4
Dual #1 17th (2-2) Runs: 14.5 Allowed: 18.3 Diff: -3.8
Dual #2 17th (1-2) Runs: 18.3 Allowed: 18.8 Diff: -0.5
TRU won 3 games beating Stars on a walk off homer by David McDowell, Epic 17-5, and TLC 20-7. Their final game in the Gamechanger stats app isn’t “finalized” but it looks like Devan Hill and Sport Williams led the team in on base percentage around .700, David McDowell led in HR with 5, and Corbin Hunt led in RBI with 15. TRU is now 6-4 vs Conference ‘B’ teams which usually means they can make a run at ‘B’ Worlds.
ADIKTIV/THROWBACKS/CE TX-A
Tied 18th – Avg Finish: 17 Record: 2-4
Dual #1 25th (0-2) Runs: 9.5 Allowed: 12.5 Diff: -3.0
Dual #2 9th (2-2) Runs: 19.0 Allowed: 17.8 Diff: 1.3
Adiktiv had a rough start losing to Bay Area by 2 and then TG Brand by 4 in Dual #1. In Dual #2 they recovered some beating Nitro Circus 21-0 (WOW) and Cornerstone 18-17 on a walk off homer by Levi Cheatwood. Then they lost a controversial game to S&E by a run with the bats in their hands when it appeared S&E middle infielder Emilson Marquez may or may not have dropped a low line drive to turn a 10-4-5 double play. By not winning a game in Dual #1 like Rock Run they did not get the additional 60 points for finishing in the top 24 and that really hurt them in the points. Newly acquired David Bare and Jordan Harrison were each .700 OBP. Schumaker led in HR with 9 and RBI with 15.
Chris Roberts tracks one down.
Ethan Dillon used to play with Bear Hollow and All Out.
Keith McCormack is with Adiktiv now.
Rock Run/AllHustle/Silverback/Koval IN-B
Tied 18th – Avg Finish: 17 Record: 2-4
Dual #1 9th (2-2) Runs: 20.5 Allowed: 23.0 Diff: -2.5
Dual #2 25th (0-2) Runs: 15.0 Allowed: 22.0 Diff: -7.0
Rock Run beat TG Brand and Bay Area Legends again to make it to the final 8 in Dual #1 but then lost to their nemesis Precision and proceeded to drop 4 straight overall losing to Nitro Circus to end Dual #2. That one game vs Nitro Circus dropped them from 8th in the points to 12th and knocked them out of being the #1 seed for the ‘A’ World. Weather permitting I (DW) will be in Topeka, Indiana Thursday, August 25th for the cities league playoff championships livestreaming the games and doing condensed games. Rock Run will be one of the 6 teams playing that night.
Erik Lehman returned from his Michigan injury.
Sports Reach/Riot FL-AA
22nd – Avg Finish: 19 Record:
Dual #1 25th (0-2) Runs: 7.0 Allowed: 18.0 Diff: -11.0
Dual #2 13th (2-2) Runs: 13.3 Allowed: 19.0 Diff: -5.8
Sports Reach lost to Nitro Circus 5-2 in the very first game of Dual #1 and went 0-2 when they got run ruled by Cornerstone. In Dual #2 they lost to Bay Area by the run rule then beat TG Brand and L&S Glass in low scoring games before Chick-fil-a beat them 25-14. I wonder if USSSA would be open to dropping them to ‘A’ which is what they are at this point. I see they picked up the ageless Kyle Cowart.
Ogletree pitching
Anarchy/SmashItSports/Beloli/OA NY-A
Tied 23rd – Avg Finish: 21 Record:
Dual #1 17th (1-2) Runs: 11.3 Allowed: 21.7 Diff: -10.3
Dual #2 25th (1-2) Runs: 18.7 Allowed: 23.3 Diff: -4.7
Anarchy picked up Zane Migues and Ryan O’Connell and released Shannon Smith to Kut4 Sports. They beat Cheap Suits and RVCG, lost to Precision by 1, Smash It twice, and 4With. Brandon Streets will try to wrap up the batting title in Kansas City in September and the team is 6-9 vs ‘AA’ teams this year which should still bode well come ‘A’ Worlds. But they probably won’t make the Major unless they do very well in KC and possibly a few teams ahead of them don’t accept the Major bid..
SEMINOLES/TPS/NACSF.INC/PURE/RS OK-AA
Tied 23rd – Avg Finish: 21 Record: 2-4
Dual #1 17th (1-2) Runs: 13.3 Allowed: 19.0 Diff: -5.7
Dual #2 25th (1-2) Runs: 11.3 Allowed: 16.0 Diff: -4.7
Seminoles rough year continues as they beat only L&S Glass and LSR. I didn’t get to see much of them because they were buried back in the blue quad in the loser’s bracket but a bad weekend looks to have put them out of the running for the Major World Series.
TG Brand MI-B
Tied 23rd – Avg Finish: 21 Record: 1-4
Dual #1 17th (1-2) Runs: 14.3 Allowed: 17.3 Diff: -3.0
Dual #2 25th (0-2) Runs: 6.0 Allowed: 17.0 Diff: -11.0
TG Brand coming off their 2nd place at the Michigan major won just 1 game. They started by playing the team they played in the championship of the Michigan major Rock Run and lost. They then had a nice win over a top ‘A’ team Adiktiv but lost to Primetime. In Dual #2 the did not score many runs and lost to Classic Glass and Sports Reach. It looked like they were still missing Ryan Morrow. For the season they are just 2-4 vs Conference ‘B’ teams but are 4-5 vs ‘AA’?
4With.com/Premier/BAF/Easton OH-A
Tied 26th – Avg Finish: 23 Record: 3-4
Dual #1 13th (3-2) Runs: 16.2 Allowed: 15.6 Diff: 0.6
Dual #2 33rd (0-2) Runs: 12.0 Allowed: 21.0 Diff: -9.0
4with lost to Primetime 14-11, then beat Meirtran 17-16 in 10 innings on a walk off homer by pitcher Jordan Patterson, and beat LSR and Anarchy. Then they lost 3 straight to Classic Glass to end Dual #1, L&S Glass, and Cash House. They are just 5-9 vs ‘A’ teams this season but 6-7 vs ‘AA’. Ryan Uckotter who they just picked up was 6-8 on base, Rocky Staton and Cody Collins led in on base at .650. Brock Morrison, Kyle Harmon, and Nick Canfield each hit 6 home runs and Harmon led in RBI with 16. They averaged just over 5 home runs per game.
MI Rocky Staton is back with Premier.
HUBS PUB / GAS MO-B
Tied 26th – Avg Finish: 23 Record: 3-4
Dual #1 33rd (0-2) Runs: 14.5 Allowed: 19.0 Diff: -4.5
Dual #2 13th (3-2) Runs: 17.4 Allowed: 16.2 Diff: 1.2
Hubs Pub is another of those top ‘B’ teams along with Rock Run, Str8Play, TG Brand, Cash House, and BTR that compete regardless of the classification of the team across from them. They went 0-2 in Dual #1 losing to Dirty Vegas by 4 and Cheap Suits by 5 but rebounded in Dual #2 pulling off the upset over #1 Smash It Sports. It was the 4th time a ‘B’ team has beaten a major team this year. They had nice wins over fellow ‘B’ teams Str8Play and Meitran as well. Center fielder Aaron Webb made two spectacular catches and pitcher Mitch Carriger got Riley to ground out with the bases loaded to win that game against SIS!
Cash House/JBL Roofing/Titans OH-B
Tied 28th – Avg Finish: 25 Record: 2-4
Dual #1 25th (1-2) Runs: 14.3 Allowed: 14.3 Diff: 0.0
Dual #2 25th (1-2) Runs: 14.0 Allowed: 11.3 Diff: 2.7
Cash House was 1-1 vs Meitran and beat in state (OH) rival 4with.com 25-13. They did play 7 innings in every game which is good for a ‘B’ team.
DIRTY VEGAS/STEEL/SUNCOAST/AZGM TX-A
Tied 28th – Avg Finish: 25 Record: 2-4
Dual #1 25th (1-2) Runs: 9.3 Allowed: 18.7 Diff: -9.3
Dual #2 25th (1-2) Runs: 11.7 Allowed: 19.7 Diff: -8.0
Dirty Vegas was just 2-4 beating Hubs Pub and RVCG but not scoring more than 9 runs in any of the 4 losses. They are 4-4 vs ‘A’ teams this year.
Epic/Killmans/FLS/ES/Pure SC-B
Tied 28th – Avg Finish: 25 Record: 2-4
Dual #1 25th (0-2) Runs: 4.7 Allowed: 16.3 Diff: -11.7
Dual #2 25th (1-2) Runs: 15.7 Allowed: 18.3 Diff: -2.7
Epic like most ‘B’ teams in this Dual went 1-4. In Dual #1 they won by forfeit then lost to Chick Fil A and TRU. In Dual #2 they beat TLC 16-4 then lost to Competitive Edge just 24-20 and Baugh 27-11 in Dual #1. Lanham led in on base .706, HR with 7, and RBI with 19.
SS Ian Sidebottom
Meirtran / Swiing Kiingz IL-B
Tied 28th – Avg Finish: 25 Record: 2-4
Dual #1 33rd (0-2) Runs: 9.5 Allowed: 15.0 Diff: -5.5
Dual #2 17th (2-2) Runs: 10.0 Allowed: 17.3 Diff: -7.3
Meirtran coming off a dismal Michigan major went 2-4 losing in Dual #1 to Cash House 13-3 then to 4With in 10 innings 17-16. In Dual #2 they beat LSR 17-15, then lost 34-8 to Resmondo, then beat Cash House 12-9, and lost to Hubs Pub 11-3. Blair led the team in on base .684 but the team hit just 10 HR in 6 games?
Lefty shortstop.
Siteman/Pure MO-B
Tied 28th – Avg Finish: 25 Record: 2-4
Dual #1 33rd (0-2) Runs: 19.5 Allowed: 23.0 Diff: -3.5
Dual #2 17th (2-2) Runs: 13.8 Allowed: 20.3 Diff: -6.5
Siteman went 2-4 losing to LSR then 35-34 on a walk off sac fly to L&S Glass in Dual #1. In Dual #2 they beat Cash House on a walk off single by Conen, lost to MPT by 20, beat Seminoles 12-11 on a walk off triple by Boyster, and lost to Classic Glass 25-17. Harjo led the team in HR with 4 and Keene led in RBI with 14. Siteman is 8-7 in class on the season.
TLC/Houston Homes, LLC MO-B
Tied 28th – Avg Finish: 25 Record: 2-4
Dual #1 25th (1-2) Runs: 14.7 Allowed: 20.7 Diff: -6.0
Dual #2 25th (1-2) Runs: 12.7 Allowed: 13.3 Diff: -0.7
TLC went 2-4 beating Tru 11-9 in Dual #1 and Stars 27-4 in Dual #2. They are 7-6 vs ‘B’ teams overall this year.
Cheap Suits/Dirty/Republic RE CA-A
Tied 34th – Avg Finish: 29 Record: 1-4
Dual #1 25th (1-2) Runs: 11.3 Allowed: 15.7 Diff: -4.3
Dual #2 33rd (0-2) Runs: 19.5 Allowed: 24.5 Diff: -5.0
Cheap Suits had a rough week and fell out of the top 18. They hit just 13 HR in 5 games. SS Blake Lively led the team in on base .792 and Tyler Cowles led in RBI with 13.
Benigno did some pitching.
Mac Rio with a homer.
LSR IN-B
Tied 34th – Avg Finish: 29 Record: 1-4
Dual #1 25th (1-2) Runs: 6.7 Allowed: 13.7 Diff: -7.0
Dual #2 33rd (0-2) Runs: 12.0 Allowed: 14.0 Diff: -2.0
LSR’s only win was 11-5 over Siteman to start Dual #1 although they did play Meirtran and Seminoles close. Patterson and Weaver led the team in on base percentage but they hit just 11 HR in 5 games.
RVCG/ACA/RSA IN-B
Tied 36th – Avg Finish: 33 Record: 0-4
Dual #1 33rd (0-2) Runs: 2.5 Allowed: 25.0 Diff: -22.5
Dual #2 33rd (0-2) Runs: 14.5 Allowed: 23.5 Diff: -9.0
RVCG went 0-4 getting run ruled in both games of Dual #1 and losing by 9 to Dirty Vegas and Anarchy in Dual #2. They averaged just 2.5 runs per game in Dual #1 and didn’t hit a home run.
Stars/ NFM Lending/ Arab $$$ CO-A
Tied 36th – Avg Finish: 33 Record: 0-4
Dual #1 33rd (0-2) Runs: 14.0 Allowed: 16.0 Diff: -2.0
Dual #2 33rd (0-2) Runs: 7.0 Allowed: 26.0 Diff: -19.0
Stars got off to a slow start when flights were delayed and never recovered going 0-4. Two close losses to TRU and Baugh Ford in dual #1 and 2 blowouts in Dual #2. The team on base percentage was just .493. Kody Garrison led the team with 4 HR.
Stars manager William Sanchez had to play the 1st game due to delayed flights.
Faces in the Crowd / More Pictures
The Hit&Sit Show regulars – Josh Kirsten Defensive MVP of Dual #1 and won both duals with MPT. David Garland the host of the show and player/sponsor for Siteman/Pure. Bay Area Legends pitcher Justin Mucciarelli. Defensive star shortstop Joel Sanchez who was all tournament and had an .815 on base percentage in 65 plate appearances. Jason Magnum all tournament Dual #1 for Monsta. These guys all said yes to the show within seconds of me asking and took a chance and put themselves out there knowing they would get some flack from the softball community for their opinions. The success of the show is due to their knowledge of softball, their personality, their communication skills, and their passion for the game we all love… Thank you to each and every person that has been on the show including Mike Macenko, John Natolly, Jason Oberlag, Brandon Traylor, and Eric McCarthy!
The view from the USSSALive.com livestream was good on all 8 fields for 4 days.
Country music star Brantley Gilbert stopped by to watch Monsta and his friend Steve Hildebran.
This years home run king Tyler Ervine talks to the perennial home run king Ryan Harvey.
Championship Dual #2 umpires.
I didn’t see the front but I’m guessing Smoky Champions?
As we say in racing “nice paint”, “nice skin”, or if you are British a “nice livery”
Quick someone save Marshall from the Stoneman
The check swing looks like it could have been a strike. Bat head in front of home plate.
Boland hit a line drive that nearly hit Mark Dahlenbach in the head. Scary.
For the most part the ‘DV’ Death Valley balls were used. A few buckets of ‘DM’ balls got in but they weren’t any better.
Lots of failed bats.
The park was incredible but the coconut husk or whatever they used in place of rubber pellets made for the worst fielding I’ve ever seen at a tournament.
Thorbrogger looks like that cowboy from Yellowstone…Jimmy
Marc Wik got excited about a Fyffe/Monsta homer
Sunset pic of the week
T.K. had to push the cart after it ran out of juice chasing home run balls.
