2016 Nationwide Conference USSSA
6th Annual “Sin City” Classic
Las Vegas, NV
April 1-3
Smash It Sports Travis Clark pitches to Resmondos Andy Purcell in the championship game in Las Vegas
Link to the Softballcenter.com picture album of the Las Vegas Major
2016 Las Vegas men’s bracket link
2016 Las Vegas women’s bracket link
The 6th Annual “Sin City” Classic in Las Vegas, Nevada opened the 11th year of the Nationwide Conference USSSA league. There were 38 teams in attendance and 17 Conference teams including 11 of the top 20 teams in the country. The tournament was played in perfect softball weather, sunshine, and for the first time in Las Vegas no real wind to speak of. In the early rounds on Friday night and Saturday morning all of the Conference teams won except for Nightmare/Miken an ‘A’ team from Missouri who was upset 32-28 by former Conference ‘C’ team BigTen out of Colorado. Also Team Adiktiv from the Conference lost that 6:15 PM game with the sun directly in the batters face to Bay Area Legends 21-6. 11 of the 16 1st round games were won by the run rule. Former Conference ‘C’ team Midwest Swing played Conference ‘AA’ team Xtreme to an 8 run loss was about as close as any of the games were.
The Major teams played a second game Friday night in the 2nd round of the winner’s bracket. All 4 Major teams won – Smash It Sports beat Thunder/BlowoutPicks.com/Empire a new Conference ‘B’ team from New York 34-14 but Thunder put up a fight for a while. Backman knocked off a new Conference ‘B’ team Stars/Garretson/Global Logistic from Colorado 33-13. Team Combat used their 12 homer’s they got to hit against ‘AA’ team Eurotech-Elite Media Design-Easton better and held off Eurotech 34-28 in a game which easily could have gone the other way had Eurotech hit less solo homers. And Resmondo cruised through the Bay Area Legends by the 20 run rule.
On Saturday morning the round of 16 continued in the winner’s bracket at 9:20 AM Pacific time with the non-Major teams playing. It quickly became evident that Newbreeds ‘AA’ team was playing very well as they knocked off upset minded Big Ten 30-9. 3rd Street ‘A’ upset Team Racks ‘AA’ 33-30 after 3rd Street put up 20 early on and Racks slowly came back to take the lead late in the game before losing by 3. The Racks infield defense in this one kept them in the game. Xtreme/Miken ‘AA’ knocked off Classic Glass ‘A’ 30-28. Xtreme led most of the way but Classic never gave up. And Line Drive Sportz ‘AA’ crushed OC Swats ‘AA’ 33-8 when they put on a hitting clinic early in the game and OC Swats only answer was 8 runs on 7 homers. Swats just could not adjust to the small fields and get base hits.
In the final 8 of the winner’s bracket it was all 4 of the Major teams winning. Smash It Sports barely squeaked by Newbreed 37-35 on a Kevin Bazat walk off homer. Newbreed had scored a bunch to tie the game in the top of the 7th but Smash It had wisely used their 12 homers and had one left for the bottom of the last inning. But this one was basically a win for Newbreed “mentally” to show they could play with anyone. Ryan Goodman the 2nd baseman for Newbreed known for his glove made the best play of the tournament on a grounder up the middle which he barehanded and threw out the runner in one motion. It was spectacular and helped keep the game within reach. Elsewhere Backman overpowered 3rd Street 34-17. Team Combat started to show that their new pickups were the real deal in a 36-16 trouncing of Xtreme. Team Combat had a 25 run inning in this game. And Resmondo run ruled Line Drive 34-16 back on the Dodger field. Line Drive leaving a bunch of homers on the table in this game.
In the final 4 of the winner’s bracket the cream came to the top as Smash It Sports outslugged Backman 53-40 in a game that was 20-15 after the first inning! The game had huge offensive innings and some great defensive plays but in the end Smash It out base hit Backman to go to the finals. In the other semi-final Resmondo got revenge on Team Combat for their loss to them in 2015 in Las Vegas and beat Combat 38-16 in a game that featured a mini middle war. In the winner’s bracket finals Saturday night Resmondo pulled away late and held on to a 38-30 win over Smash It to go into Sunday undefeated.
Meanwhile in the loser’s bracket Tac a non-conference team knocked off Thunder 16-15 in an upset. MyAutoJack a non-conference team won 4 straight in a soft part of the loser’s bracket but a very nice run nevertheless. Nightmare beat Stars in a nice battle of A/B teams. Classic Glass knocked off Eurotech in the “sun in batter’s eye” game 29-19. Non-Conference Tunie Sports won 3 straight including sending home Bay Area Legends 23-18 and Midwest Hearing won a couple of games. Note, the first 4 rounds of the loser’s bracket used a gold dot ball as they underestimated the number of balls needed and were lost due to the new home run rules in the Conference. Major vs Major is 16. A and AA teams play with 12 HR no matter who they are playing. And B and below vs B and below is 8.
In the later rounds of the loser’s bracket the heavy hitting AA teams started their games later on Saturday. Newbreed sent home OC Swats 29-14. 3rd Street knocked off fellow ‘A’ team Classic Glass 30-23 in a good match up. Team Racks won 4 straight in the loser’s bracket with nice wins over Nightmare, Xtreme, Line Drive 32-31, and then shocked Backman 29-23 to finish 4th! And Newbreed continued their winning ways with a nice 37-17 win over Team Combat and made it to Sunday with a 41-11 win over Racks after midnight. A game where they scored over 20 runs in one inning.
On Sunday the games were very good as Newbreed battled with Smash It step for step even led early on after grand slam homers from lefties Nick Mangannaro and Victor Cordova in the first two innings and a big 3 run homer from Adam Rockoff in the 3rd gave Newbreed an 18-15. The lead could have been more except for Smash It center fielder Ryan Parfitts in the sun catch and left center diver in that same inning. But it was all Smash It after that and they base hit their way to an impressive 34-19 win, scoring 19 of the last 20 runs.
In the championship it was a familiar sight with Smash It Sports taking on Resmondo, although former Smash It infielder Luis Reyna was over on the Resmondo side. 
Smash It Sports got off to a huge 21-4 lead with a great mix of base hitting line to line and pretty good use of their 16 home runs. Resmondo meanwhile was hitting too many solo homers and a Dale Brungardt diving stop and throw out at first for Smash It Sports helped keep their mental edge on both sides of the ball. To Resmondos credit though they never gave up and made a very slow comeback to make the final score respectable 43-35. That of course forced the dreaded “if” game. In the final game Smash It was visitors again. Great sliding catches by Smash It outfielders Brian Wegman in left field and Ryan Parfitt in center field helped hold down the Resmondo offense. Resmondo trailed Smash It Sports 26-10 going into the bottom of the 3rd where they scored 12 runs to climb back into it. Both teams at this point had hit 9 homers a piece. In the 4th Resmondo pitcher Andy Purcell hit a big 3 run homer but again their offense was shut down when Smash It middle infielder and 2015 Conference Defensive MVP made a full dive on a hard grounder up the middle, popped to his feet and got the ball to 2nd base where they turned a double play. Both teams continued to score and Smash It got another great diving stop of a liner by 1st baseman Kyle Pearson in the bottom of the 6th. With the score at 43-35 both teams were out of home runs. In the bottom of the 7th Resmondo started in the middle of their order and base hit their way to within 3 runs. Andy Purcell hit a clutch two out gapper into right center field where Ryan Parfitt made a spectacular sliding stop of the ball and held Andy to an rbi single. Then with runners on 1st and 3rd and two out Bubba Mack hit a sizzling line drive to right center field which even pitcher Travis Clark ducked on but the ball still went out of the park for an out to end the game.
Smash It Sports wins the first tournament with 3 great games on Sunday but let’s be honest it was Las Vegas where the fields are not big so it’s hard to gauge any teams progress. It is a start though and a good tune up for the big Hall of Fame Classic in two weeks which will feature as many as 34 of the top teams in the nation. Smash It Sports defense was the difference in this one as they made great plays on hard shots. Resmondos defense was good but didn’t get the opportunities as often to make the great plays. The weather was spectacular in Las Vegas this year, the facility second to none with its 6 artificial turf fields, and with all the offense and home runs hit I felt the great defensive plays were the highlight of the weekend.
Team Breakdown:
38 Teams Overall
17 Nationwide Conference USSSA Teams
4 Major Teams
6 ‘AA’ Teams
4 ‘A’ Teams
5 ‘B’ Teams
14 ‘C’ Teams
5 ‘D’ Teams
Las Vegas BLD Field Dimensions
Yankee (main field) 285-308-290-286-286
Fenway 274-303-308-297-256
Angels 285-289-305-272-270
Wrigley 287-295-300-291-286
Dodger 275-305-321-304-274
Crosley 274-283-301-280-275
Smash It center fielder Ryan Parfitt knocks down Purcells 2 out hit in the “if” game
Resmondos Bubba Mack hit a line drive that could have won the game or at least tied it. But it went over the fence for an out.
As both teams had already hit all 16 of their home runs
Backman vs Smash It in the semi finals was 20-15 after 1 complete inning
Newbreed gave Smash It all they could handle in the loser’s bracket finals before Smashit put up a huge 6th inning
Newbreeds Victor Cordova samurai swords one into center field.
3rd Streets Tommy Melton beats a throw in their upset win over Racks
The Yankee field walls are just the blue part which is like 6 feet high
Crowds were fairly good Friday and Saturday night
Las Vegas Major Awards and Final Standings
| Player Tournament Awards | Players Name | Plays For |
| Tournament MVP | Kyle Pearson | Smash it Sports/ASP/H.Auto/Mr.Wiggl |
| Offensive Tournament MVP | Nicolas Santana | Resmondo Specialty Tank Worth |
| Defensive Tournament MVP | Kevin Bazat | Smash it Sports/ASP/H.Auto/Mr.Wiggl |
| All Tournament Team | Brad Reckart | Smash it Sports/ASP/H.Auto/Mr.Wiggl |
| All Tournament Team | Victor Cordova | Newbreed/GTS/Beus Excavation/DirtyS |
| All Tournament Team | Andy Purcell | Resmondo Specialty Tank Worth |
| All Tournament Team | Greg Connell | Resmondo Specialty Tank Worth |
| All Tournament Team | Travis Clark | Smash it Sports/ASP/H.Auto/Mr.Wiggl |
| All Tournament Team | Buddy Wolf | Smash it Sports/ASP/H.Auto/Mr.Wiggl |
| All Tournament Team | Tyson Steele | Team Racks/Miken/Sonny’s |
| All Tournament Team | Dale Brungardt | Smash it Sports/ASP/H.Auto/Mr.Wiggl |
| All Tournament Team | Jeff Flood | Newbreed/GTS/Beus Excavation/DirtyS |
| All Tournament Team | Stuart Snell | Team Racks/Miken/Sonny’s |
| All Tournament Team | Ryan Parfitt | Smash it Sports/ASP/H.Auto/Mr.Wiggl |
| All Tournament Team | Daniel Kirkwood | Team Racks/Miken/Sonny’s |
| All Tournament Team | Luis Reyna | Resmondo Specialty Tank Worth |
| All Tournament Team | Jon Gastineau | Newbreed/GTS/Beus Excavation/DirtyS |
| All Tournament Team | Nick Utley | Newbreed/GTS/Beus Excavation/DirtyS |
| All Tournament Team | Ronald Mack III | Resmondo Specialty Tank Worth |
| All Tournament Team | Jeremy Isenhower | Resmondo Specialty Tank Worth |
| Place | State | Team | Team Class |
Wins | Losses | Ties | Runs Scored |
Runs Allow |
Avg Runs |
Avg Allow |
Avg Diff |
Max Runs |
USSSA Points |
| 1 | NY – Cicero | smash it sports/asp/h.auto/mr.wiggl | USSSA-SPMensMajor | 7 | 1 | 0 | 311 | 242 | 38.8 | 30.2 | 8.62 | 53 | 300 |
| 2 | FLS – Winter Haven | resmondo specialty tank worth | USSSA-SPMensMajor | 5 | 2 | 0 | 258 | 173 | 36.8 | 24.7 | 12.1 | 44 | 225 |
| 3 | WA – Bothell | newbreed/gts/beus excavation/dirtys | USSSA-Mens-AA | 6 | 2 | 0 | 275 | 174 | 34.3 | 21.7 | 12.6 | 47 | 200 |
| 4 | WY – Casper | Team Racks/Miken/Sonny’s | USSSA-Mens-AA | 6 | 2 | 0 | 234 | 211 | 29.2 | 26.3 | 2.87 | 43 | 175 |
| 5 | WA – Kent | TEAM COMBAT/BAUGHFORD.COM | USSSA-SPMensMajor | 3 | 2 | 0 | 139 | 132 | 27.8 | 26.4 | 1.4 | 36 | 155 |
| 5 | IN – Aurora | backman shoppe louisville slugger | USSSA-SPMensMajor | 3 | 2 | 0 | 162 | 114 | 32.4 | 22.8 | 9.6 | 40 | 155 |
| 7 | OH – West Chester | 3rd street/louisville slugger | USSSA-Mens-A | 3 | 2 | 0 | 147 | 140 | 29.4 | 28 | 1.4 | 36 | 130 |
| 7 | MI – Warren | Line Drive Sportz/Easton | USSSA-Mens-AA | 3 | 2 | 0 | 157 | 123 | 31.4 | 24.6 | 6.8 | 40 | 130 |
| 9 | AZ – Glendale | myautojack.com/miken | USSSA-Mens-C | 4 | 2 | 0 | 139 | 109 | 23.1 | 18.1 | 5 | 39 | 135 |
| 9 | CAS – Yorba Linda | oc swats doerflinger / miken | USSSA-Mens-AA | 3 | 2 | 0 | 114 | 87 | 22.8 | 17.4 | 5.4 | 37 | 110 |
| 9 | CAC – San Jose | Classic Glass/Easton | USSSA-Mens-A | 3 | 2 | 0 | 126 | 107 | 25.2 | 21.4 | 3.8 | 29 | 110 |
| 9 | MN – Medina | Xtreme/Miken | USSSA-Mens-AA | 2 | 2 | 0 | 109 | 121 | 27.2 | 30.2 | -3 | 36 | 110 |
| 13 | AZ – Gilbert | Tunie Sports | USSSA-Mens-C | 3 | 2 | 0 | 94 | 92 | 18.8 | 18.4 | 0.40 | 26 | 70 |
| 13 | CAN – Madera | TAC/ Water Connection | USSSA-Mens-C | 3 | 2 | 0 | 107 | 115 | 21.4 | 23 | -1.6 | 28 | 95 |
| 13 | MO – Branson | Nightmare/Miken | USSSA-Mens-A | 2 | 2 | 0 | 116 | 119 | 29 | 29.7 | -0.7 | 34 | 70 |
| 13 | MN – Minneapolis | eurotech-elite media design-easton | USSSA-Mens-AA | 2 | 2 | 0 | 105 | 77 | 26.2 | 19.2 | 7 | 34 | 70 |
| 17 | KS – Wichita | Midwest Hearing/SYNDICATE | USSSA-Mens-C | 2 | 2 | 0 | 95 | 109 | 23.7 | 27.2 | -3.5 | 37 | 65 |
| 17 | CAS – Ontario | Elite Sports | USSSA-Mens-C | 2 | 2 | 0 | 77 | 91 | 19.2 | 22.7 | -3.5 | 34 | 40 |
| 17 | CAN – San Jose | L & S Glass | USSSA-Mens-C | 2 | 2 | 0 | 76 | 74 | 19 | 18.5 | 0.5 | 27 | 40 |
| 17 | CAN – Hayward | Bay Area Legends | USSSA-Mens-C | 1 | 2 | 0 | 52 | 61 | 17.3 | 20.3 | -3 | 21 | 40 |
| 17 | CO – Denver | stars/garretsons/dh global logistic | USSSA-Mens-B | 1 | 2 | 0 | 62 | 78 | 20.6 | 26 | -5.3 | 27 | 40 |
| 17 | NY – Wading River | thunder/blowoutpicks.com/empire | USSSA-Mens-B | 1 | 2 | 0 | 60 | 60 | 20 | 20 | 0 | 31 | 40 |
| 17 | CO – Denver | big ten / infamous / miken | USSSA-Mens-C | 1 | 2 | 0 | 53 | 72 | 17.6 | 24 | -6.3 | 32 | 65 |
| 17 | CAS – SoCal | toe 2 toe /a3/demarini/hang rite | USSSA-Mens-C | 1 | 2 | 0 | 58 | 77 | 19.3 | 25.6 | -6.3 | 29 | 40 |
| 25 | NV – Las Vegas | ERX / TRIBAL WHIPS | USSSA-Mens-D | 1 | 2 | 0 | 60 | 81 | 20 | 27 | -7 | 31 | 40 |
| 25 | AZ – Phoenix | SLM/ALPHA SOURCE | USSSA-Mens-C | 1 | 2 | 0 | 42 | 76 | 14 | 25.3 | -11. | 23 | 40 |
| 25 | CAS – Palm Springs | No Limit | USSSA-Mens-C | 1 | 2 | 0 | 53 | 69 | 17.6 | 23 | -5.3 | 22 | 40 |
| 25 | CAS – South El Monte | Magz Premier | USSSA-Mens-C | 1 | 2 | 0 | 56 | 50 | 18.6 | 16.6 | 2 | 26 | 40 |
| 25 | CAN – Fresno | DTA | USSSA-Mens-C | 1 | 2 | 0 | 55 | 87 | 18.3 | 29 | -10. | 31 | 65 |
| 25 | UT – Salt Lake City | CSC/NFI/Salt Riot | USSSA-Mens-C | 1 | 2 | 0 | 36 | 77 | 12 | 25.6 | -13. | 22 | 65 |
| 25 | CAS – SO CAL | JK INC/MIKEN | SPMn40OMaj+ | 0 | 2 | 0 | 44 | 81 | 22 | 40.5 | -18. | 23 | 40 |
| 25 | CAN – Morgan Hill | wc groove/miken/smash it sports | USSSA-Mens-C | 0 | 2 | 0 | 39 | 69 | 19.5 | 34.5 | -15 | 25 | 40 |
| 33 | CAC – Bakersfield | Chosen few | USSSA-Mens-D | 0 | 2 | 0 | 22 | 50 | 11 | 25 | -14 | 15 | 40 |
| 33 | CAS – Corona | The Show/Classick | USSSA-Mens-D | 0 | 2 | 0 | 46 | 63 | 23 | 31.5 | -8.5 | 35 | 65 |
| 33 | FLP – Pace | team adiktiv/energy system/worth | USSSA-Mens-B | 0 | 2 | 0 | 22 | 42 | 11 | 21 | -10 | 16 | 40 |
| 33 | NV – Las Vegas | Hit Deez | USSSA-Mens-D | 0 | 2 | 0 | 32 | 70 | 16 | 35 | -19 | 25 | 40 |
| 33 | WA – Kent | SquatchNation/Combat | USSSA-Mens-B | 0 | 2 | 0 | 26 | 65 | 13 | 32.5 | -19. | 16 | 40 |
| 33 | NV – Las Vegas | Chemistry | USSSA-Mens-D | 0 | 2 | 0 | 25 | 46 | 12.5 | 23 | -10. | 16 | 65 |
