Photos: Jody Demay-Davies/BaseballSoftballUK
The Euro Guzzlers and the No Balls were crowned BSF Single Sex Softball Champions at the National Baseball and Softball complex at Farnham Park, finishing off a great weekend of play on 15-16 June.
Despite the heavy showers and the thundery spells on Saturday, plenty of competitive softball was played by over 400 players throughout the two days.
Men’s Comp
In the Men’s COMP portion of the competition, the Guzzlers devoured the rest of the competition across both days, winning six out of their seven group stage games, with their loss in what would be a preview of the final against the Titans.
The final four in the Men’s COMP Standings: Titans, Guzzlers, Blue Crew and the Wampas.
The first seed would eventually rout the Wampas by a score of 25-3, securing their spot in the platinum final.
In the second semi-final, the Guzzlers defeated the Blue Crew by a score of 16-8, securing their place in the final.
The matchup was set, and the lineup cards were in; earlier in the day, the Titans proved they were a strong force, defeating the Guzzlers by a score of 20-2, setting them as hot favourites to take home the platinum trophy.
Watch the Men’s Final on BSUK-TV here.
The final got off to a slow start, with good pitching and defense displayed from both sides, until a crucial eight run fifth inning for the Guzzlers put them ahead 14-4.
The Titans responded straight away, driving in six runs in the bottom half of the inning, leaving the score 14-10 heading into the final inning.
The Titans shut out the Guzzlers in the top half of the sixth inning, meaning they needed just five runs to win the trophy.
The Titans only managed three runs before an excellent defensive play by the Guzzlers third baseman prevented the tying run from scoring, securing the trophy for the Euro Guzzlers.
Men's Comp Winners Euro Guzzlers
Women’s Comp
In the Women’s portion of the competition, the No Balls, who were second in the standings heading into Sunday picked up two crucial victories in their last group stage games to finish as the #1 seed.
The No Balls defeated the Bluebirds by a score of 17-13, and then demolished Cardiff Comp 17-1 securing their positions as favourites for the Women’s platinum trophy.
The Women’s final four included: No Balls, Top Cats, Bluebirds and Chaos.
The first semi-final was a rout, with the No Balls demonstrating their offensive power putting up 21 runs against Chaos, securing their spot in the final.
In the second semi-final, an upset occurred when the Top Cats defeated Saturday’s favourites the Bluebirds securing their spot in the final.
Watch the Women’s Final on BSUK-TV here.
In the first meeting of the pair on Saturday, the No Balls defeated the Top Cats by a score of 16-6, meaning they were likely favourites heading into the final.
The actual final, was an absolute rout, the No Balls defeated the Top Cats by a score of 15-0, proving their power and securing their dominance of the competition.
Men’s Rec
In the Men’s REC portion of the competition, it was a two-horse race at the top of the group between the Scorchers and the Blue Sox on Saturday – who both went 4-2 in the games played.
However, a Sunday surge saw BAM make the final over the Scorchers, after beating them and the Dragonballz in the final two games on Sunday.
In the final, it was the favourites Blue Sox going up against BAM, with the Blue Sox ultimately taking home the silver trophy, winning 15-12.
Women’s Rec
In the Women’s REC portion of the competition, Saturday was dominated by the Solent Ladies, who went 6-1 in their seven games.
The Women’s REC final four teams included: Solent Ladies, Cowabungas, United Nations and Chicas.
In the first semi-final, the Solent Ladies defeated the BAM Chicas 15-4, securing their place in the REC final, competing for the silver trophy.
In the second semi-final, the United Nations defeated Cowabunga by a score of 17-14, securing their place in the final.
The scene was set and the final between the Solent Ladies and the United Nations took place, with the #1 seed Solent Ladies winning by a score of 12-11.
The weekend would not have been possible without the BASU umpires, the Farnham Park grounds crew, and NJ Dyson, who ran tournament control. In 2025, Singe Sex will return to Manchester – look out for more information in the coming months.
