Stittsville defeats Blitz 4-3

from Marcel Mondoux

Last night's game between the Ottawa Taylor's Blitz and the Stittsville 56er's resulted in another bottom of the 7th loss for the visiting Blitz team as the 56er's finished the comeback of a 3-0 deficit to prevail 4-3 for their first win of the season as well as extended their unbeaten streak to 3 to start the season.

Starting pitchers for both sides were Jamie Blakely and Trevor Scott - both going the distance for their respective clubs.

The Blitz started the game off strong sending 8 batters to the plate in the top of the first. After an out, Blakely started the Blitz off with a single, followed by a single by Derick Bulley scoring Blakely who was on second after a passed ball. Jon Ferguson was walked and a single up the gut by Tony Searle was foiled at the plate as Bulley was gunned down for the second out of the inning. Shannon Borho continued with another single up the middle scoring Bulley (2 out catcher) for a quick 2-0 lead.

The bottom of the inning started well for the 56er's as John Craig led off with a walk and was moved to third on Scott Herriot's single. Herriot then moved up to second on a passed ball. With both runners in scoring position, Blakely buckled down by striking out the side.

The second, third and fourth innings were handled with ease for both pitchers as Blakely saw 11 batters and Scott facing 10.

In the top of the fifth with two out, Bulley provided an extra run for the Blitz by belting a solo shot to CF putting the visiting team up by 3.

The 56er's were poised to attack in the bottom of the fifth. Dorouin led off with a single but was quickly erased on a fielder's choice by the next batter. Craig came through with his first of two hits of the night to put two guys on for Herriot who made no mistake on a 2-1 count blasting a 3 run homerun to LF tying the game.

Top of the seventh, the Blitz sticks came around. With one out, Marcel Mondoux entered via substitution to hit a single and moved to second on an infield bunt by Blakely. Bulley walked on four pitches to load the bases. Scott was able to induce two infield ground outs to end the threat and put his team back on the sticks.

With one out, Adam Smith walked to put the winning run on base. Craig drove a low liner to left field. The left fielder tried picking up the ball on the hop and unfortunately went down with a serious injury. The ball the skipped back to the fence allowing Smith to score from first and ending the game. An uncomfortable sight to see and hoping a speedy recovery for our teammate.

The Caveman's Choice for player of the game is Scott Herriot with his two for two performance with a walk and a three run homer which tied a game.
OTB lines:

Jamie Blakely - 2/4 R
Derick Bulley - 2/3 R HR 2RBI BB
Tony Searle - 1/4
Shannon Borho - 1/3 RBI
Andrew Bruce - 1/2 BB
Russ Mitchel - 1/3 SB
Marcel Mondoux - 1/1

Jamie Blakely - 6.1IP L 7H 4BB 4R 3ER 10K


S56 lines:

John Craig - 2/3 R RBI BB
Scott Herriot - 2/2 R HR 3RBI BB
Tyler Nystedt - 1/3
Dorouin - 1/3
Adam Smith - 1/2 2R BB

Trevor Scott - 7IP W 9H 3BB 3R 3ER 5K

Jim Bradford Tournament in Cobourg cancelled

Unfortunately the Jim Bradford Memorial Tournament in Cobourg on June 8-10 has been cancelled. Apparently some teams may opt to go to Oswego, NY instead.

The "Molly" in Elkland

Twelve teams competed last weekend in Elkland at the Molly Sherman Memorial, with CPI from Oswego, NY winning and the host team finishing second.

Bruce Hackett has some photos online of the event.

Kars win 12-0 over Barrhaven on Wednesday

The Kars Aces were 12-0 winners in GOFL play on Wednesday night in Manotick over the Barrhaven Broadway Blues.

Brad Porter had the win while Paul Ceppi took the loss with relief from Jason Smith.

The Caveman's Choice as player of the game is Cory "Fatty" Alkerton who went 3 for 3 with a walk, two homeruns and six runs batted in.

West Carleton Electric comes back to win 6-5 over Taylor's Blitz

In Tuesday night GOFL play, West Carleton Electric came back from a four run deficit to defeat Ottawa Taylor's Blitz 6-5 in Fitzroy Harbour.

Both Steve Cavanagh (WC Electric) and Derick Bulley (Blitz) threw the entire game for their teams.

Both teams scored a run in the first. Derek Bergeron reached on an error for the Blitz, took second on a ground out and scored on Tony Searle's RBI single to right field.  WC Electric answered back as Jeff Barber walked, took second on a wild pitch and scored when the throw on Neil Murphy's short grounder went off his back.

The Blitz put up four in the top of the third. Bulley singled and Tony Searle doubled to put two on. Shannon Borho's ground rule double cashed two runs, and Russ Mitchell's homer made it 5-1 for the visitors.

Fitzroy answered back with a run in the third after Jeff Barber singled and scored on Murphy's two out double that just caught the top left corner of the 'grey monster' in right field.

The Electric narrowed the gap to 5-3 in the sixth. Derek Barber led off with a walk, moved to second on a ground out and scored on Dave Bahm's RBI double.

After Cavanagh allowed eight hits in the first three innings, he settled down and was throwing well to shut down the Blitz bats so the Electric had their chance to win in the bottom of the seventh. Mitch Taylor's liner to left field was misplayed putting him on second. Jon Daley's double to left scored Taylor. Daley took third on a wild pitch. Jeff Barber's infield single had Daley holding, but put two runners in scoring position after Barber stole second uncontestedly. Murphy's sacrifice fly scored Daley and advanced Jeff Barber on the play at the plate, then Derek Barber's shallow fly to left was caught on a dive, but allowed his brother to tag up and score the game winning run.

Tonight's Caveman's Choice award for player of the game goes to Neil Murphy who had a strong night at the plate and drove in the game tying run.

Fitzroy
Steve Cavanagh WP 7IP 5R 4ER 9H 10K 1BB

Jon Daley 1-4, 2B, R
Jeff Barber 2-3, 3R, BB
Neil Murphy 2-3, 2B, 2RBI, Sac Fly
Derek Barber BB, Sac Fly, RBI, R
Dave Bahm 2-3, 2B, RBI

Blitz
Derick Bulley LP 6.2IP 5R 3ER 7H 8K 2BB

Marcel Mondoux 1-2
Derick Bulley 1-3, BB, R
Tony Searle 2-4, RBI, 2B, R
Shannon Borho 1-3, 2B, 2RBI, R
Russ Mitchell 1-3, HR, 2RBI
Jeremy Regan 1-2
Adam Grier 1-3
Taiki Nishmiura 1-3

Ottawa Sun story on West Carleton vs Quyon

I think this story really doesn't warrant further comment...but feel free to leave one if you like.

Party poopers! Drunken duo make amends to homeowner
BY DOUG HEMPSTEAD ,OTTAWA SUN

UPDATED: MONDAY, MAY 28, 2012 12:02 PM EDT

A couple of Valley boys found themselves in hot water, one of them literally, for breaking into a Quyon home, drinking beer, pooping in the pool and then passing out.

One of the men was found fast asleep on the couch -- the other napping in the Jacuzzi.

For this triumph of stupidity, MRC des Collines Police spokesman Const. Marc Fournel labelled the pair his "winners of the day."

They were discovered Sunday morning when the St-John Rd. home owner woke up around 5:40 a.m.

The two strangers turned out to be from the Ontario side of the river -- one from Dunrobin, the other from Kinburn.

"Needless to say, both men were in an advanced state of intoxication," said Fournel.

When the home owner called cops he told them the men were "totally passed-out, they're hammered or unconscious."

It turns out the duo had been enjoying a night out at Gavan's Hotel in Quyon and must have staggered off afterwards to find a place to crash. Cops arrived and arrested the men for breaking and entering, but the homeowner decided not to press charges because the pair cleaned up and offered him $500 for his trouble.

"He was satisfied with that," said Fournel. "He should probably bleach the pool, though."

He said the men were driven by police back to the ferry to Fitzroy Harbour.

"They came on foot," said Fournel.

They weren't the only ones who found the law at the bottom of a bottle early Sunday morning. Fournel said another man was charged near Gavan's because he was on probation and not allowed to drink, while a fourth was caught driving with twice the legal limit of alcohol in his system.

GOFL Week 3

Now into Week 3 of the Greater Ottawa Fastball League season and shockingly no rain outs yet - all eight games have been played.  There are four more on the books for this week:

Tuesday at 8:30pm in Fitzroy Harbour sees the Ottawa Taylor's Blitz (1-0-1) facing West Carleton Electric (1-1-1).

Wednesdays at 8:00pm in Manotick has the Kars Aces (2-0) in to face the Barrhaven Broadway Blues (0-1-1). Stittsville 56ers (0-0-2) will host the Blitz at 8:30pm that night in Carp Fairgrounds, in their last of three home games at the Fairgrounds while waiting for construction to be completed at the Grove.

On Thursday the 56ers will face I4C Victory (0-2) in Carp at 8:30pm

The Quyon Combat Flyers (1-1-1) have the week off.

Donaconna Blue Sox / Team Quebec wins Williamsburg Tournament (award winners added)

The 9th Annual Williamsburg Tournament was won by the Donnacona, QC Blue Sox (aka Team Quebec) for the third year in a row, defeating the host Williamsburg Cigars team in the final. The eight participating teams enjoyed good weather and the first ever Willyburg Chicken BBQ. Congrats to Lyle Schell and his group on another successful event.

Barrhaven, ON Broadway Blues 2-1
Donnacona, QC Blue Sox 2-1
Napanee, ON Midget Express 2-1 (lost out on tiebreaker)
Team Quebec Midgets 0-3

Team Quebec Juniors 3-0
Williamsburg, ON Cigars 2-1
Eastman, QC Cree Nation 1-2
Cornwall, ON Pickmeups 0-3

Friday night

Williamsburg 7 Cornwall 6

Napanee Midgets 5 Barrhaven 3

Saturday

Quebec Juniors 7 Cree Nation 1

Donnacona  16 Quebec Midgets 0

Williamsburg 7 Cree Nation 0

Barrhaven 9 Donnacona 3
The first eight men to the plate in the fifth inning for Barrhaven scored on two grand slams by Joe Allan and Lindsay Medynski.

Quebec Juniors 9 Cornwall 4

Napanee Midgets 5 Quebec Midgets 0

Cree Nation 1 Cornwall 0

Donnacona 5 Napanee Midgets 3

Sunday round robin 

Quebec Junior 10 Williamsburg 3

Barrhaven 8 Quebec Midgets 0

Semi-Finals

Donnacona 8 Quebec Junior 2
WP: Mathieu Roy LP: Kody Blois
Matt Greer with two home runs for Donnacona

Williamsburg 3 Barrhaven 0
WP: Neil Cooke (no-hitter, 2BB) LP: Trevor Lahey
Bobby Jack Hart RBI, Dan Loney 2RBI

Finals

Donnacona 7 Williamsburg 1
WP: Mathieu Roy LP: Neil Cooke

Award Winners

Most Valuable Player: Mathieu Roy, Donnacona
Best Hitter: Steve Savard, Donnacona
Top Pitcher: Neil Cooke, Williamsburg

Williamsburg Friday night scores

Friday night action at the Williamsburg Tournament

Williamsburg Cigars 7 Cornwall 6

This one ended in dramatic fashion. Down 6-3 in the bottom of the seventh, the home town Cigars loaded the bases with two out and a walk off grand slam by Jamie Smith won them the game.  Neil Cooke had the win in relief of Cory Alkerton.

Napanee Midgets Express 5 Barrhaven Broadway Blues 3

A couple of costly errors resulted in runs for Napanee as they scored three in the fifth to come back from a 3-2 deficit. Cole Bolton had the win for the Midgets. Trevor Lahey took the loss in relief of Paul Ceppi. Aaron Amo had a two run homer for the Blues.

Stittsville Select teams hosting games

from Sylvia McGinnis

Stittsville Minor Softball Association (SMSA) will be hosting two tri-meets this year, Sunday June 10 and Saturday July 21, 2012. The cost remains the same as last year at $75 per team. Each team will play two games.


June 10th tri-meet

At this point in time we have teams for the following three divisions:

Boys Select Peewee, Bantam and Midget

We are looking for teams to play. Please contact me if you are interested in participating in the tri-meets or if you are just interested in arranging an exhibition game.

Sylvia McGinnis
sylvia@stittsvillesoftball.org

SMSA Boys Select Director
Great to see some Select teams in Stittsville. Note that West Carleton Minor Softball will be running at least a Mite Boys and Bantam Boys select teams which are also looking for games. If you want to play us please let me know at fastball@fitzroyharbour.com and we'll figure something out.

Fastball in PEI

The home of Spud has a top notch fastball team - here is an article about them and includes information on the top league in the Maritimes.

Quyon beats Carp 6-4 now with details

info from Joe McCleary, Shawn Laframbroise and Eric Rosenquist

The Quyon Combat Flyers defeated I4C Victory in Carp on Thursday night GOFL action.

Joran Graham had the win while Neil Cooke took the loss.

Quyon went up 2-0 in the top of the 1st. Earl Kearns walked, Shawn Laframboise moved him to second with a sac bunt.  Then Matt Greer reached on a high chopper. Joran Graham's 2 RBI double to the gap in right scored Kearns and Greer.


Carp countered with 3 in the bottom half of the first. Dan Loney walked, and Kevin McGuire dragged a bunt between first and pitcher to reach safely. After advancing on a wild pitch, both scored on a bloop single over second from Bobby Jack Hart. Simzer cashed in Hart with a chinker to get I4C the 3-2 lead.

The TSN turning point came in the bottom of the 4th. After a one-out single Adam Fleming, Loney hit one to the gap in left that went over LF Tim Craig and past the diving CF Laframbroise. Laframboise scrambled to get it at the fence, and got the ball in to Greer at short, who threw a laser beam into Joe McCleary at home plate. As both runners had been waved at third, McCleary tagged Fleming and leapt over him to tag the closely following Loney.  Here it is on YouTube (OK not really but close enough).

In the top of the 6th with Carp up 4-3, Nick Armitage reached with a leadoff single. A Luke Young bunt was misplayed by the pitcher to put two on and no out. After Tim Craig reached on a bunt single, Carp appealed that Craig had not been properly substituted into the game, so he was called out since the Flyers rookie coaching staff did not make the change when he entered for Jordan Kearns defensively in the 4th. The runners returned to 1st and 2nd and with one out Earl hit a grounder to second. The second baseman missed the tag on Young before proceeding to get Kearns at first. Then with two outs Laframboise hit the game winning 3 run homer which put the Flyers up 6-4.


For his part in the 8-6-2-2 double play and hitting the game winning homer, Shawn "Moe" Laframboise is the winner of the Caveman's Choice for player of the game for the second time in two games.

Blitz best Blues 7-2

from Marcel Mondoux

Last night’s GOFL game in Manotick showcased the home team Barrhaven Broadway Blues vs the Ottawa Taylor’s Blitz. Both teams began their respective season with draws and were hungry out of the gate in this one to put a notch in the win column.

Starting pitchers for both teams were Paul Ceppi and Jamie Blakely.

Top 1
Marcel Mondoux led off the game with a ROE followed by a passed ball to put him in scoring position for Derick Bulley who pulled through with his first of two RBI’s on the night giving the visiting team an early 1-0 lead.

Bottom 1
Aaron Amo led off for Barrhaven with a single and a stolen base. Blakely retired the next two batters himself before an infield error kept the inning alive for Derek Martin to follow up with an RBI single to tie things up at 1 before Blakely struck out the side.

Top 2
Ceppi handily retired the next three batters to get the Blues back on the stick quickly.

Bottom 2
Jordan Adams led off the inning with a double and was cashed in a few batters later by Amo giving the Blues a 2-1 lead.

Top 3
Jeremy Regan led off this inning with a triple in the gap and was scored by Mondoux on the next at bat. After advancing to second on a passed ball, Derek Bergeron laid down a bunt to advance Mondoux to third. Bulley came in clutch again with an RBI triple to even the score at 2. The Blitz added another run when Jon Ferguson scored Bulley.

A pitching change was made in the top of the 4th for the Blues bringing in Trevor Lahey. From there both pitchers settled in un til the top of the 6th.

Top 6
Ferguson led off with a walk and was moved to third on Blakely’s single. After a passed ball, Blakely advanced to second and followed Ferguson home on Regan’s 2 run single. Mondoux followed up with a lengthy at bat with Lahey to score Regan on a triple giving the Blitz a 7-2 lead resulting in the final score after 7.

Caveman's Choice for player of the game is Jamie Blakely for his complete game win pitching performance.

Player lines for OTB:
Mondoux – 3/4 - 2B, 3B, 2R, 2RBI, ROE
Bulley – 3/4 - 3B, R, 2RBI
Ferguson – 1/3 – BB, RBI
Blakely – 1/3 – R
Mitts – 1/3
Regan – 2/3 – 3B, 2R, 2RBI

Blakely – W – 7IP, 8H, 2R, ER, 10K, HBP

Player lines for BBB:
Amo – 2/4 – 2B, R, RBI
Power – 2/4
Martin – 2/3 – RBI
Adams – 1/3 – 2B, R
Smith – 1/1 – HBP

Ceppi – L – 3IP, 5H, 4R, 3ER, K
Lahey – 4IP, 6H, 3R, 3ER, 5K, BB

Stittsville and WC Electric tie 8-8 (now with stats)

The GOFL game in Carp on Wednesday saw the Stittsville 56ers come back from an 8-3 deficit to tie West Carleton Electric 8-8.

Steve Cavanagh went the distance for Fitzroy. Darren Featherstone started for the 56ers but after getting hurt in a collision while batting in the first, gave way to Trevor Scott for the remaining six innings.

WC scored two in the first. Jon Daley walked, took second on Jeff Barber's sac bunt and scored on Neil Murphy's RBI triple. Derek Barber's double then brought in Murphy.

Stittsville answered right back with two runs in the first on Scott Herriot's two run shot which cashed John Craig who had singled.

Fitzroy put up five in the second. Troy Wilson walked and Charlie Ross and Jeff Eastman singled to load the bases. Murphy walked to score one, then Derek Barber's very deep fly ball to left was misplayed and all players came around to score and make it 7-2.

The 56ers got one back in the bottom of two but it could have been more. Scott Parsons singled, but was put out at second on a Tyler Nystedt fielder's choice back to the pitcher. Darren Ladouceur then singled and Nystedt subsequently scored in a Scott RBI single. A blooper looked sure to fall in and score Ladouceur, but a spinaround stretching catch by second baseman Troy Wilson made the out. When the next batter grounded to second, the inning was over and the score was 7-3 for Fitzroy.

WC Electric added their eighth run in the third when Wilson, who reached on an error, showed his wheels and scored from second on a Daley RBI single.

Sttittsville got three in the fourth to tighten things up. Nystedt led off with a single, followed by a Darren Ladouceur single. Scott's hard hit ball struck Ladouceur on the basepath for the first out but scored Nystedt from third. Craig then reached on an error. Herriot's drove in both runners but got caught in a run down and Cavanagh got out of the inning with a grounder.

The 56ers tied it up in the sixth. Scott singled for the third time in the game, followed by a Herriott single putting men on first and second. With two out and the runners on the move, Dan Jessiman hit a hard liner to left, scoring Scott. When the ball was misplayed, it allowed Herriot to score and tie the game at 8.

After singles by Eastman and Jeff Barber, and a walk to Daley, the bases were loaded with two out in the seventh for the Electric, but Scott induced a ground out to end the threat.

Likewise, the 56ers were shut down by Cavanagh in the bottom of the seventh. Scott Parsons reached base on a single but two nice defensive plays by the Electric (barehanded ground ball played by Cavanagh, hard hit grounder to second for Wilson) ended the game.

The Caveman's Choice for player of the game is split between two players. Trevor Scott came off the bench to throw six innings for Stittsville and went 3 for 3 at the plate with two RBIs and two runs scored.  Troy Wilson scored two runs for Fitzroy and made several outstanding plays defensively at second to earn the honours.

Fitzroy stats
Steve Cavanagh 7IP 8R 6ER 17H 4K 0BB

Jon Daley 1-3, 2BB, R, RBI
Jeff Barber 2-3, BB, sac bunt
Neil Murphy 1-4, BB, 2RBI, 2R
Derek Barber 1-4, 3B, R
Dave Bahm 1-4
Steve Cavanagh 1-4
Troy Wilson 1-3, 2R
Charlie Ross 1-3, R, HBP
Jeff Eastman 2-4, R

Stittsville stats
Darren Featherstone 1IP 2R 2ER 2H 2K 1BB
Trevor Scott 6IP 6R 0ER 9H 4K 3BB 1HBP

Darren Featherstone 1-1
John Craig 1-4, 2R
Scott Herriott 3-4, HR, 2RBI, 2R
Dan Jessiman 1-4, RBI
Ryan Bond 1-4, 2B
Scott Parsons 3-4
Tyler Nystedt 1-4, 2R
Darren Ladouceur 2-4
Trevor Scott 3-3, 2RBI, 2R

Williamsburg Tournament schedule updated

Looking forward this weekend to the 9th Annual Williamsburg Tournament on May 25 -27. The schedule has been slightly updated as the Quebec Midgets and Quebec Juniors have switched divisions.  See below for a schedule and follow @fitzroyfastball on Twitter for updates throughout the weekend as I will be onsite.

Sib Division (Williamsburg, Cornwall, Cree Nation, Quebec Jrs)

Casey Division (Barrhaven, Napanee Midget, Donnacona, Quebec Midgets)

Friday
7pm Williamsburg vs Cornwall
9pm Barrhaven vs Napanee

Saturday
830am Cree Nation vs Quebec Jrs
1030am Donnacona vs Quebec Midgets
1230pm Williamsburg vs Cree Nation
230pm Barrhaven vs Donnacona
230pm Cornwall vs Quebec Jrs (north diamond)
430pm Napanee vs Quebec Midgets
430pm Cornwall vs Cree Nation (north diamond)
630pm Napanee vs Donnacona

Sunday
930am Williamsburg vs Quebec Jrs
930am Barrhaven vs Quebec Midgets (north diamond)
1130am semi (Sib 2 vs Casey 1)
130pm semi (Sib 1 vs Casey 2)
330pm FINAL

Tie breaker for round robin as follows (1- head to head, 2- Runs for/ Runs against, 3- coin toss)

Kars downs WC Electric 10-1

The Kars Aces used the long ball to down West Carleton Electric 10-1 in GOFL play Tuesday night in Fitzroy Harbour.

Cory Alkerton had the win for Kars while Jeff Barber took the loss with relief from Steve Cavanagh.

The game started out as a close matchup, still tied 1-1 after three.

Brad Pender led the game off for Kars with a solo homer.

Fitzroy also scored their first runner of the game. Jon Daley walked, moved to second on Jeff Barber's sac bunt, took third on a wild pitch and scored on Neil Murphy's ground out.

WC Electric loaded the bases in both the second and third, but Alkerton got out of the jams in both cases.

The Aces broke the game open in the fourth. Dave Tubman led off with a solo shot. Then two walks put Alkerton and Scott Marion on base, with Alkerton scoring on Kevin Chevrier's RBI single. Pender's three run shot made it 6-1.

Four more runs in the fifth for Kars capped the scoring as Pender and Alkerton both hit two run homers. When WC could not respond the game was halted after 5 innings.

Brad Pender with three home runs and 6 RBIs is the Caveman's Choice for player of the game.

Kars pitching
Cory Alkerton W 5IP 1R 1ER 3H 4BB 5K

Fitzroy pitching
Jeff Barber L 4IP 8R 8ER 7H 5BB 10K
Steve Cavanagh 1IP 2R 2ER 2H 0BB 2K

Kars hitting
Brad Pender 3-4, 3 x HR, 6RBI
Chad Milne 1-3
Dave Tubman 1-2, HR, 2R, BB, RBI
Cory Alkerton 1-1, HR, 2BB, 2R, 2RBI
Scott Marion 1-2, BB, R
Kevin Chevrier 1-3, 2R, RBI

Fitzroy hitting
Jon Daley 1-2, BB, R
Neil Murphy RBI, BB
Steve Cavanagh 1-3
Dave Bahm 1-2, BB

Fitzroy Junior becomes a pitcher

Last night in WC Minor Softball Mites division action, the Fitzroy mites lost their first game of the year 9-5. But that's not the important part of the story.

Historically, the Caveman is the competitor in the family. He's the one that always has his game face on no matter what the sport and has that 'edge' in any sport he plays, whether it's ball, hockey, or wrasslin' with his brother. 

His older brother Fitzroy Junior is more laid back and easy-going. It makes him a great kid, but less of an athlete despite a reasonable set of skills.

Fitzroy Junior took the Softball Ontario pitching course this spring. "Coach Jamey" did a good job teaching the fundamentals of pitching and the kids learned a lot. And despite his lack of confidence (which is not justified - he's pretty good for a nine year old) Junior has been practicing and has had a chance to use his newfound skill in league games.

Last night we played Kinburn and they have one of the top athletes in Fitzroy Junior's school - we'll call him Jay. He's the kid that won the 100 metre dash at the recent track meet for Grade Four. Junior finished third - in his heat. Jay is the kid that plays AA hockey. Fitzroy Jr plays house league. Jay is the kid that gets picked first at everything, Fitzroy Junior not so much. They are friends somewhat, but I think Fitzroy Junior would like to be better at him in something. Anything.

In the first inning last night, Fitzroy Junior pounded out a beautiful drive to go well over the heads of the outfielders and almost to the fence, resulting in a two run homer. In the top of the second, Jay hit one in almost the exact same spot in his first at bat for a two-run homer of his own.

Later in the game, Jay came in to pitch for Kinburn. When Fitzroy Junior was at bat he stroked out a nice single up the middle, which I am sure felt good.

But even better was the inning when Fitzroy Junior was pitching. For the first kid that hit in the inning, one of their weaker players, Junior was going through his routine and throwing strikes, and got a "K" for the first out of the inning. Then up came Jay. For the first time, I could see Junior getting really into pitching. The first two pitches were swinging strikes - and I have never seen Fitzroy Junior throw that hard and that accurate. The best athlete in his grade literally could not catch up to him for the first time. After wasting a pitch (did he do that on purpose with an 0-2 count?) the next was another hard fastball up the middle of the plate. Jay just caught a piece of it offhand and popped it up to second to a player who fortunately is our best infielder who made the out. 

Fist pump. Runs over to the second baseman for a high five. Look of elation.

I think last night was when Fitzroy Junior a) decided that pitching was for him and b) gained some confidence that with a little hard work and practice he can be as good as or better than the natural athletes.

It felt good. For both of us.

GOFL Week 2

With the first week in the books with no weather cancellations for a change, week 2 is set with four matchups.

Tuesday (tonight) sees the West Carleton Electric (1-0) home opener in Fitzroy Harbour versus the Kars Aces (1-0) at 8:30pm.

On Wednesday in Manotick, Ottawa Taylor's Blitz (0-0-1) faces the Broadway Blues  (0-0-1) at 8:00pm, with Barrhaven being the home team for this one. That same night in Carp at 8:30pm sees West Carleton Electric play Stittsville (0-0-1) as the 56ers continue their home games at the Fairgrounds pending the completion of work at the Grove.

The last game of the week on Thursday sees the Quyon Combat Flyers (0-1-1) face I4C Victory (0-1) in Carp at 8:30pm.

West Carleton Electric doubles Carp I4C Victory 4-2

West Carleton Electric came back from a 2-0 deficit to beat I4C Victory in Carp by a score of 4-2 in GOFL action on Thursday night.

Steve Cavanagh had the complete game win for Fitzroy while Ryan Chatten took the loss in relief of Carp starter Neil Cooke.

Carp staked out a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the second. Shawn Simzer stroke an off hand liner to right that eluded the diving outfielder and resulted in an inside the park homer. After a strikeout, big Tony MacDonald legged out an infield single, moved to second on Neil Cooke's single and scored on a misplayed ground ball.

Fitzroy cut the lead in half in the top of the third as Jon Daley singled, moved to second on a wild pitch and scored on a blooper by Neil Murphy that dropped into shallow right field.

The game was evened in the fifth after Daley hit his second single of the game, reached second on a passed ball and scored on Dave Bahm's RBI double.

The 'Trics took the lead in the top of six as Chatten came in to relieve Cooke. Jeff Eastman doubled with two out for his first GOFL West Carleton hit. [Update - an astute reader reminded me that Jeff played for the Orleans Gators in the GOFL in 2008.] Daley walked as did Bahm to load the bases. When a Jeff Barber ground ball was misplayed, Eastman and Daley scored to make it 4-2.

Caveman's Choice as player of the game in this match is Jon Daley, who while recently recovered from hernia surgery, was 2-2 with a walk and three runs scored for West Carleton Electric.

Pitching - Fitzroy
Steve Cavanagh W 7IP 2R 1ER 7H 8K 3BB

Pitching - Carp
Neil Cooke 5IP 2R 1ER 3H 10K 2BB
Ryan Chatten L 2IP 2R 0ER 2H 3K 2BB

Hitting - Fitzroy
Derek Barber 1-4
Jeff Eastman 1-3, 2B, R
Jon Daley 2-2, BB, 3R
Dave Bahm 1-2, BB, 2B, RBI

Hitting - Carp
Kevin McGuire 1-4
Al Read 1-4
Shawn Simzer 1-4, R, HR
Matt Medaglia 1-3
Tony MacDonald 1-3
Neil Cooke 1-3
Adam Fleming 1-1, BB

Kars beats Quyon 9-7 - with details

info from Cory Morrison

The Kars Aces spoiled the Quyon Combat Flyers home opener with a 9-7 win on the Quebec side.

Kars staked out a 4-0 margin on Quyon starter Joran Graham after two and half innings, courtesy of homeruns by Cory Alkerton an Chad Milne.

Shawn Laframboise hit a 2 run shot in bottom of 3 for Quyon to make it 4-2. Matt Greer came in to pitch for Quyon in the fourth and stopped Kars from scoring. Quyon scored three more in the bottom of 4 to go up 5-4. The Flyers added two more in the sixth thanks to a Graham RBI single to make it 7-4 for the home team.

However, the Aces scored five in the top of the seventh to go up 9-7, including two 2-run homers by Cory Morrison and Dan Powers.

Brad Pender made a diving catch with two out and one on in the bottom of 7 to end the game 9-7 in favour of Kars.

Corey Alkerton had the complete game win for Kars, while Greer took the loss in relief of Graham for Quyon. 

Shawn Laframboise is the "Caveman's Choice" as player of the game, with three hits for Quyon including a two run homer.

Kitchener Fastball League on Rogers TV

Check this out - the Kitchener Fastball League will have a game of the week on Rogers TV in the Kitchener-Waterloo area.

Barrhaven rallies to tie Stittsville 2-2

In the second game in the GOFL on Wednesday night, the Barrhaven Broadway Blues rallied back from a two run deficit to tie Stittsville 56ers 2-2 at the Carp Fairgrounds. The 56ers are playing home games in Carp during the month of May while the Grove is being fixed up.

Darren Featherstone (Stittsville) and Trevor Lahey (Barrhaven) went the distance on the slab.

Lahey with 10 strikeouts and Aaron Amo of Barrhaven with 2-4 night at the plate as well as three great defensive plays are the "Cavenman's Choice" players in this match up.

Blitz and Quyon tie at 5-5 to kick off GOFL season

info from Joe McCleary, Marcel Mondoux and Nick Armitage

Ottawa Taylor's Blitz and Quyon Combat Flyers kicked things off in the GOFL on Wednesday night in Manotick with a 5-5 tie. The Blitz rallied in the bottom of the seventh to tie the game.

Matt Greer went the distance for the Flyers, while Taylor's had pitching by committee with Derick Bulley and Shannon Borho each throwing three innings and Jamie Blakely seeing one inning of action.

Twitter reports a career game for the Flyers' Kenny Fleck, who went two for three with a HBP. Congratulations Big Papi you are the inaugral "Caveman's Choice" for player of the game. (A new 2012 blog feature that I just made up on the spot.)

"Balle rapide" in Bellechasse, QC

Even if you don't speak French check out this online article for a story about the seven team league in Bellechasse, QC for the photo which has a couple of familiar faces to eastern Ontario fans and players.

Good to see they have the Team Quebec midget team back going this year.

Glen showcase

According to their Facebook site, the Glen Cairn Men's League is hosting a showcase on May 26 in Carp:


10:00 AM Mattamy vs. Broadways

12:00 PM ASAP vs. OHS

2:00 PM Laurysen vs. Don Cherrys

4:00 PM ESM vs. Taggarts

Sunday May 27th is the rainout day.

AuSable Forks Fastpitch League info

Chad Garcia from AuSable Forks provides some information about the reformed league down there. Chad said  "We know a lot of guys from the GOFL enjoy coming to AuSable Forks.  Just wanted to give you an update on the AuSable Forks Fastpitch League."

The AuSable Forks Fastpitch League, newly formed 3 years ago after it folded in the 90’s has come back stronger than ever. This year's edition boasts 7 teams, up two teams from its 5 team league a year ago.


JJ Diggers return as the defending champions. They are led by pitcher Mike Furnia and a strong cast returning from last years team. Joe Nixon, Chip LaMountain, TJ Burl and Joe Deslauriers return to lead the Diggers.

Egglefield Ford/Graymont, last years runner up are led by hurler Andrew Bombard and return 9 starters from last year, including catcher Matt Stanley outfielder John Mussen and third baseman Chad Garcia.

20 Main, first year champions are led by pitcher Kellen Nolan and hitters Kyle Nolan, Bernie Laduke, Adam Coolidge and Chad Lopez.

Gordon Oil, led by pitcher Drew Plumadore features many of the old stars who played in the 80’s and 90’s, among them Jon Gordon, Kevin Devins, Tom Perkett, David Gordon and Kevin Mccallister.

Northline Utilities returns with Jeremy Lowther doing the pitching. They boast a supporting cast of Tyler Nelson, Shawn Murphy and Chris Thwaits.

Jim Lincoln Pools and R L Sharpening are new editions to the league and doing the pitching for them will be Phil Nolan Jr. and Ryan Evens respectively. It was unsure of the rosters of the two new teams but we expect to see some younger players anxious to learn the game.

The field is in tremendous shape after some improvements.

6 of the 7 teams were in action Saturday for our opening day. 20 Main was the lone team that did not play.

Weekend results......Game 1, RL Sharpening defeated J. Lincoln Pools 17-12. Ryan Evens got the win for RL. The middle game featured a rematch of last years championship with JJ Diggers taking on Egglefield/Graymont. JJ Diggers came out on top again 4-1. Mike Furnia was winning pitcher and hit a go ahead 3 run home run to break a 1-1 tie in the 5th inning. Northline Utilities behind the pitching of Jeremy Lowther beat Gordon Oil 5-4 to end the day.

We look forward to seeing everyone in July for our 50th Annual Tournament.

GOFL starts this week - Week 1

It's finally time for the Greater Ottawa Fastball League to start the 2012 season. There are seven teams this year, with each team starting play this week.

Things get started on Wednesday in Manotick as the Quyon Combat Flyers face the Ottawa Taylor's Blitz at 7pm.

Also that night the Barrhaven Broadway Blues will face the Stittsville 56ers at 8:30pm. This game will be played in Carp as the 56ers will have to move the Fairgrounds for the month of May while work is being done at the Grove.

Thursday night will see the Kars Aces travel to Quyon for a 7:30pm start.

And the final game of the week will have Fitzroy Harbour West Carleton Electric in Carp to face I4C Victory at 8:30pm.

Watch the blog for all the scores and details.

George Findley going to an ISF World Championship

from Ted Metcalfe

Some good news from the Eastern Ontario Umpires Association - George Findley has been selected by Softball Canada and the International Softball Federation to umpire at this year's ISF Jr. Men's World Championships this coming November in Argentina.

Congrats to George, he is an excellent official and a great contributer to the game in our area. Read here for an interview from last year with George.

What every mother wants to hear

Today being Mother's Day, it was a nice sunny day with the family, ending with the Caveman's first 5-pitch game of the season (Mrs Fastball head coach) and Fitzroy Junior's Mites practice (yours truly calling the shots).

Of course the boys made some crafts for Mrs Fastball at school which were presented first thing in the morning.

Fitzroy Junior's creation was a couple of paper flowers, which were scented with coconut smelling hand sanitizer. Mmmm good.

The Caveman created a nice card in his French class. Photo of him giving the thumbs up in the middle of a flower on the cover (ahhh cute) and then inside, the letters of MAMAN spelling out special things about his "beautiful momma" as he calls her.

Here's a recap for blog readers, and photographic evidence.

"M" - merci  (nice to thank her for being his mom)

"A" - amour (who doesn't love their mom)

"M" - magique (ah yes, magical momma with her direct line to Santa Claus when he acts bad)

"A" - aime les câlins (she does like to cuddle)

"N" - ne pue pas - (translates as "she doesn't stink" - what every mother wants to hear on their special day!)

When asked about this choice for "N", Caveman's answer: "Well, she doesn't stink Daddy." Tough to argue with that.

Williamsburg Tourney has 8 teams

The word is that the Williamsburg Tournament on May 25-27 has a line up of 8 teams competing for the title: Donnacona, Quebec Juniors, Napanee Midgets, Napanee Juniors, Cornwall, Cree Nation, Williamsburg and Barrhaven.

I'll post the schedule once received.

Harbour ball sponsors

The Fitzroy Harbour Men's Fastball League did something a little different this year, bringing in sponsors for the eight teams. I thought I would give them some love on the blog to thank them for supporting the league. The teams are as follows:

The Harbour Store
Pinto Valley Ranch
Al's Corner Store
Chris Murphy's Plumbing
Clouthier Custom Carpentry
Shouldice Mechanical
Ottawa Valley Trailer Sales
Dunrobin Meat & Grocery

5th Annual Gil Read Memorial Tournament

The "Gil" is a great tournament for an excellent cause. I look forward to it every year. You can also follow them on Twitter @GilReadMemorial.

5th Annual Gil Read Memorial Tournament - Ottawa


The 5th Annual Gil Read Memorial Men’s Fastpitch tournament will be held once again at the Carp Fair Grounds in Carp Ontario the weekend of July 27th, 28th and 29th 2012.

The first 12 teams will be accepted with entry fee set at $450.00. This is an Open class tournament without restriction.

Prize money will be handed out as follows (Based on a 12 team format):

1st Place $1,800.00
2nd Place $700.00
3rd place tie - $250 each

Last year’s winners were: Team Quebec -$1,800 - Napanee North Key Express-$700, - Kars Aces & Fitzroy Harbour West Carleton Electric - $250 each

Fantastic beer garden with the best burgers around, all in support of the Gil Read Memorial Foundation. 

Contact Info
Al Read
aread@solowaywright.com
ph 613-435-3199

New coaching guide available

I have the U12 coaching manual from this series for Fitzroy Junior's team - it's very useful.

Softball Canada U16 Coaches Guide Is Released!

Toronto, Ontario - Softball Canada and Softball Ontario are pleased to announce the release of the U16 Coaches Guide: Tools for Coaching Success! The U16 Coaches Guide builds on the success of the U12 and U14 versions. The Coaches Guide series was created by Softball Canada to increase the knowledge of coaches and improve the holistic development of players. The information in each guide is based on Softball Canada’s Long-Term Player Development (LTPD) model ensuring it is both age and stage appropriate. Including the Learn To Play Program manuals for ages 5 to 10, Softball Canada now provides coaches with resources to assist in player development for athletes from age 5 to 16.

Each guide contains a season’s worth of practice plans divided into 4 training phases with each phase having specific objectives and outcomes. These resources will assist softball coaches with the critical skill of developing and conducting sequential, well organized practices.The U12 Coaches Guide contains 18 practice plans. The U14 guide has 24 practice plans. The new U16 guide has 34 practice plans broken down into Phase 1 with 10 indoor practices and, Phase 2 with 8 pre-season outdoor practices and Phases 3 and 4 with 8 outdoor practices each or the competitive season. The practice plans are laid out in a manner that is very easy for any level of coach to follow. Each drill is described in detail, including a list of equipment that is required, a time limit to ensure that the practice is kept on track and a clearly illustrated diagram to allow for easy understanding of the drills. Each guide is contained in a binder which allows the coach to remove the appropriate practice plan from the binder and take it with them to the field.

In addition, to the valuable practice plans, the guides contain sections on practice planning, dynamic warm-up routines, cool-down routines, and key teaching points for each skill. New for the U16 Coaches Guides are sections on physical conditioning, testing protocols for softball skills and fitness, pitching and nutrition. Coaches can use the information in the “Key Teaching Points” section of the guide to ensure that their players are not simply doing the drills, but are actually learning the skills to play the game with success. These fantastic new resources mean that age and LTPD stage appropriate practices and information are now at the fingertips of every softball coach in Canada.

If you are a beginner coach, you can simply follow the practice plans as they are laid out and rest assured your players and team will improve the skills prioritized for their age category and LTPD stage over the course of the season. If you are an experienced coach, you can use these practice plans as a guideline and modify them to meet the individual needs of your players and team.

U12 Coaches Guide (Learn To Train Stage) – Suggested retail price - $29.99 plus HST
U14 Coaches Guide (Train To Train Stage) – Suggested retail price - $29.99 plus HST
U16 Coaches Guide (Train To Train Stage) – Suggested retail price - $29.99 plus HST

To order your Coaches Guide, contact:

Softball Ontario
C/O Nancy Huang
3 Concorde Gate Toronto, Ontario M3C 3N7
Tel: (416) 426 - 7150 Fax: (416) 426 - 7368
Email: nhuang@softballontario.ca Web site: www.softballontario.ca

Tournaments in Elkland already

They get things started early down in Elkland.

This past weekend (April 28) GOFL'er Brad Porter helped the Elkland Thunderbellys win the 4-team round robin tournament.

The boys are back at it again this weekend (May 5-6) with an 8-team ISC Mid Atlantic League Travel League tournament. An ISC Worlds berth is at stake. My sources tell me the chicken pit will be open...anyone want to take a drive this weekend?

Elkland tourney info posted here.

Glen Cairn league launches new website

The Glen Cairn Men's Fastball League has a new website and Facebook page - check 'em out. 

Thanks to Matt Medaglia for the heads up.

Blackburn Tournament June 8-10

From Derek Martin - the Blackburn league is in the east end of Ottawa

BMFL Open Tournament


The Blackburn Men's Fastball League will be hosting their annual tournament again this summer after taking a few years off. All teams and players of all calibers are welcome.

When: June 8th-10th
Where: Blackburn Park
Entry Fee: $300

Every team will have a minimum of 3 games. There will be a beer tent, 50/50 and home run derby.

We are looking to get at least 8 teams. For questions please contact Derek Martin at derek.t.martin@hotmail.com

ISC Rosters being announced

Slowly but surely the rosters for ISC men's fastball teams are being posted.  While no local teams have indicated they are entering ISC play in 2012, there are a few familiar faces from the GOFL that are showing up.

Brad Pender and Cory Morrison of the Kars Aces are on the Waterdown Hammer roster.

Veteran lefty Steve Price of Kars appears on the Niagara Snappers roster.

Micksburg's Joran Graham who throws for the Quyon Combat Flyers is with the Scarborough Force.

Joel Langford, who played last year for Quyon, will play for the Toronto Gators.

Did I miss anyone? Let me know.

Senior Men's Athlete Pool announced

Softball Canada has also announced the Senior Men's pool list from which they will pick the roster to represent the country at the Pan Ams in Colombia in Sept 2012 and the ISF Worlds in New Zealand in March 2013.

No local names appear, but there are several names that will be familiar to fans of the game in eastern Ontario including some players at last year's Gil Read tourney in Carp: Gregg Garritty and Mathieu Roy of Team Quebec and Sean Cleary who threw for I4C Victory.

Caveman movie review

I may have mentioned before that the Caveman occasionally mishears things.

After practicing his pitching on Sunday morning, Caveman, Mrs Fastball and Fitzroy Junior headed off to watch a movie in the big city.

Upon his return, he said he really enjoyed "The Pirates - Random Biscuits".