Twenty teams – eight B-grade and 12 C-grade – took part in the British Softball Federation's 2014 Co-ed National Championships over the weekend of 9-10 August at Farnham Park. The honours were split among London, Windsor, Leeds and the East Midlands.
The tournament managed to play around and through the rain from Hurricane Bertha that cancelled virtually all BBF baseball games over the weekend, thanks in part to an adroit decision by BSF Tournaments Officer Fiona Thorley to bring some Sunday round-robin games forward to Saturday in view of the forecast for Sunday morning.
On Sunday, the weather went from sunny to terrible: thunder, lightning and a torrential downpour around 2.00 pm caused the dirt pitches to flood and the schedule to be delayed. Teams, umpires, and the TC all helped John Lehmann get the dirt pitches back into a playable state so the playoff rounds could continue.
Round-robins
There were a number of close round-robin games on Saturday, particular in C-grade play. The Lions and Cheeky Monkeys went undefeated on Day 1 and were favourites to progress into the Silver playoffs.
In the B-grade round-robin, there were upsets on Day One – for example SPAM edging Mescalitos by a score of 14-12 – which made the hunt for places in the Platinum semi-finals a tight race.
While the split into Silver and Bronze was determined after Day 1 for C-grade teams, the B-grade round-robin remained to be completed on Sunday morning.
Playoffs
BRONZE: In the Bronze competition, the final was played between two East Midlands teams, the Brewers and the Tigers. The Brewers had beaten the Tigers in the round-robin but the final reversed that result, with the Tigers prevailing by 18-7.
SILVER: The top two teams in the Silver competition were decided in the last round-robin game, when the Cheeky Monkeys from Leeds beat the Red Sox from Cardiff to set up a final for the Monkeys against Manchester ream Outlaws II.
In the final itself, the Cheeky Monkeys breezed to a relatively straightforward 13-3 win to claim the title.
GOLD: One of the Gold semi-finals ended up being played on grass as rehabilitation work was still in progress on Pitch 1. Chalfont Phoenix from Windsor had just beaten the Oxford Angels in their last round-robin game, and duplicated this result in the semi-final by a score of 22-2.
The second Gold semi-final was closer, with Blitz from London narrowly beating the Sheriffs from the East Midlands. But the Gold final was never in doubt as Chalfont Phoenix romped to a 17-7 win.
PLATINUM: In the Platinum competition, the BA Jets from Windsor were very pleased to have reached the semi-final on their first appearance at the Co-ed Nationals, and they played well against the high-experienced Lions from Manchester. But the Lions' batting was too strong and they won out 12-7 to reach the final.
The second semi-final was a re-match of the only game the defending champion Mescalitos had lost in the round-robin when they took on SPAM. This time, however, the Mescalitos' offense was too powerful and SPAM's offense never took off, as Mescalitos won 11-3.
The Platinum final was closely fought until the bottom of the third inning, when a three-run home run and a barrage of base hits did for the Lions. The game was called at the end of five innings with Mescalitos ahead 20-5.
The umpires did a great job during the tournament, and the use of two-umpire crews on all the finals was well received. All the teams appreciated the chance to play on the dirt diamonds, and the fencing on both grass pitches was a welcome addition to the Co-ed Nationals.
Summary
In the end, the 2014 Co-ed Nationals produced two winners from the South and two from the North.
However, the total of only 20 teams – and only eight teams at B-grade – was the lowest entry for some years, despite the ability of tournament teams as well as league teams to enter. There were two tournament teams entered at B-grade and one at C-grade.
The BSF will consider how the Co-ed Nationals can attract more entries in future, particularly from division winners in leagues around the country.
Round-Robin Results
The results of the round-robin games played on Saturday and finished by early afternoon Sunday produced the following separation from B-grade and C-grade pools into Platinum, Gold, Silver and Bronze for playoffs on Sunday afternoon:
PLATINUM
1 – Mescalitos (London)
2 – Lions (Manchester)
3 – BA Jets (Windsor)
4 – SPAM (London)
GOLD
1 – Chalfont Phoenix (Windsor)
2 – Sheriffs (East Midlands)
3 – Blitz (London)
4 – Angels (Oxford)
SILVER
1 – Outlaws II (Manchester)
2 – Cheeky Monkeys (Leeds)
3 – Red Sox (Cardiff)
4 – Scorgs (Bristol)
5 – Rockets (Monmouth)
6 – Sluggers (Solent)
BRONZE
1 – Tigers (East Midlands)
2 – Brewers (East Midlands)
3 – LASL Rookies (London)
4 – Dodgers (Solent)
5 – Minotaurs (Birmingham)
6 – Canary Cubs (London)
Playoff Results
Here is a full round-up of the playoff results, and the winners and runners-up in each category:
PLATINUM
Winner: Mescalitos (London)
Runner-up: Lions (Manchester)
MVPs: Tori Hewlett and Devin O’Shaugnessy (Mescalitos)
Semi-Finals
Mescalitos 11, SPAM 3
Lions 12, BA Jets 7
Final
Mescalitos 20, Lions 5
GOLD
Winner: Chalfont Phoenix (Windsor)
Runner-up: Blitz (London)
MVPs: Natasha Humphries and James Cavalier (Chalfont Phoenix)
Semi-Finals
Chalfont Phoenix 22, Oxford Angels 2
Blitz 9, Sheriffs 5
Final
Chalfont Phoenix 17, Blitz 7
SILVER
Winner: Cheeky Monkeys (Leeds)
Runner-up: Outlaws II (Manchester)
MVPs: Melissa Molles and Jarl Lascomb (Cheeky Monkeys)
Final
Cheeky Monkeys 13, Outlaws II 3
BRONZE
Winner: Tigers (East Midlands)
Runner-up: Brewers (East Midlands)
MVPs: Rachel Green and Harvey Pryor (Tigers)
Final
Tigers 18, Brewers 7
