Elkland Moose Lodge wins the 10th Annual Gil Read

Elkland won the 10th Annual Gil Read Memorial Tournament with a 9-1 final win over Micksburg Twins. Great weather, good crowds and excellent softball made for a fantastic weekend.

Sunday pool play results:

9 am
West Carleton Electric 8 Ottawa Valley As 4
WP Matt McKay
LP Trevor Lahey relief by Ben Broek, Todd Wilson

9 am
Kanata Pirates 7 Elkland Moose Lodge 5
WP Kyle Olson in relief of Adam Smith
LP Dan Cevette

11 am
Broker4Tickets 7 Napanee Express 4
WP Cory Alkerton
LP Ian Wallwork

11 am
Goodfellow Fastpitch 7 Party Lake 5
WP Will Lowe
LP Jordan Macdonald in relief of Kyle Ainsley, Ryan Sharpe

Pool standings after round robin play
1. Elkland Moose Lodge 3-1
2. Broker4Tickets 3-1 (head to head)
3. Kanata Pirates 2-1-1
4. Pickering Panthers 1-2-1
5. Napanee Express 0-4

1. Micksburg Twins 3-0-1
2. West Carleton Electric 3-0-1 (run differential)
T3. Party Lake 1-3
T3. Ottawa Valley As 1-3
T3. Goodfellow Fastpitch 1-3

Semi Final Games

Micksburg Twins 3
Broker4Tickets 2
WP Joran Graham
LP Patrice Leclerc

Elkland Moose Lodge 7
West Carleton Electric 0
WP Bryan Newton
LP Andy Barber

Final

Elkland Moose Lodge 9
Micksburg Twins 1
WP Bryan Newton
LP Joran Graham wih relief from Matt Greer
MVPs of final game - Brad Pender (Micks), Tyler Dudley (Elk)

Tournament MVP and winner of the Joel Langford Memorial Trophy
Justin Cevette, Elkland

Saturday at the 10th Annual Gil Read

Results from the Saturday games at the 10th Annual Gil Read Memorial Men's Fastpitch tournament in Carp. Another beautiful day at the Carp Fairgrounds with great support from local fans.

Elkland Moose Lodge 8 Napanee Express 4
WP Bryan Newton in relief of Dan Cevette
LP Ian Wallwork relief Brendan Sands

Broker4Tickets 10 Pickering Panthers 0
WP Neil Cooke
LP Bobby Lewis relief Kevin Ford

Party Lake 9 Ottawa Valley As 5
WP Ryan Sharpe relief Jordan Macdonald
LP Trevor Lahey relief Ben Broek

Micksburg Twins 7 Goodfellow Fastpitch 1
WP Matt Greer
LP Will Lowe relief Will Earle

Kanata Pirates 9 Napanee Express 2
WP Adam Smith
LP Cole Bolton

Elkland Moose Lodge 6 Broker4Tickets 1
WP Bryan Newton
LP Brad Porter relief by Cory Alkerton

West Carleton Electric 9 Party Lake 8
WP Andy Barber
LP Jordan Macdonald in relief of Kyle Ainsley

Micksburg Twins 8 Ottawa Valley As 3
WP Corey Costello
LP Todd Wilson relief by Ben Broek, Trevor Lahey

Elkland Moose Lodge 8 Pickering Panthers 1
WP Bryan Newton relief Dan Cevette
LP Bill Stevenson relief Kevin Ford

West Carleton Electric 11 Goodfellow Fastpitch 8
WP Jeff Barber relief of Steve Cavanagh
LP Will Lowe relief of Shannon Borho

Micksburg Twins 2 Party Lake 0
WP Joran Graham
LP Jordan Macdonald

Pickering Panthers 6 Napanee Express 5
WP Bobby Lewis
LP Brendan Sands

Broker4Tickets 9 Kanata Pirates 1
WP Patrice Leclerc
LP Kyle Olson

Pool Standings as of Saturday night

Elkland Moose Lodge 3-0
Broker4Tickets 2-1
Kanata Pirates 1-1-1
Pickering Panthers 1-2-1
Napanee Express 0-3

Micksburg Twins 3-0-1
West Carleton Electric 2-0-1
Party Lake 1-2
Ottawa Valley As 1-2
Goodfellow Fastpitch 0-3

Sunday Round Robin Games

9 am D1 - West Carleton Electric vs Ottawa Valley As
9 am D2 - Elkland Moose Lodge vs Kanata Pirates
11 am D1 - Party Lake vs Goodfellow Fastpitch
11 am D2 - Broker4Tickets vs Napanee Express

Sunday Playoff Round

1 pm D1 - Micksburg Twins vs 2nd Place B pool
1 pm D2 - 1st Place B pool vs West Carleton Electric
3:30 pm D1 - FINALS

Friday night at the 10th Annual Gil Read

A beautiful night with good crowds on hand at the 10th Annual Gil Read Memorial Tournament in Carp on Friday night.

7 pm: West Carleton Electric 2 Micksburg Twins 2
P: Andy Barber (WC) P: Joran Graham (Micks)
Andy Barber had a HR for WC

8 pm: Pickering Panthers 8 Kanata Pirates 8
P: Bobby Lewis (PP) P: Kyle Olson, Adam Smith (Kan)
Luc D'Entremont had 2 x HR for Kanata

9 pm: Ottawa Valley As 8 Goodfellow Fastpitch 6
WP: Adam Rueckwald, relief Todd Wilson LP: Shannon Borho, relief Will Lowe
Jason Naylor had 2 x HR for Goodfellow

Quyon edges Micksburg 8-7

The softballs were flying out of the park on Thursday in Quyon as the Flyers edged the Micksburg Twins 8-7 in Greater Ottawa Fastball League play.

Matt Greer hit two homers and Shawn Laframboise hit one for Quyon. Joran Graham and Quinton Rook hit homers for Micksburg.

Trevor Lahey had the win on the slab for Quyon in relief of Greer. Matt McIntyre took the loss for the Twins.

Thursday in the GOFL

Tonight in Quyon, there will be a single game with the Flyers hosting Micksburg at 8 pm. There originally was a doubleheader scheduled but the second game (Flyers vs WC Electric) has been postponed.

GOFL Wednesday night wrap up

Greater Ottawa Fastball League Wednesday night wrap up:

Kars Aces 7 Stittsville 56ers 3
Kars defeated Stittsville 7-3 in a game at the Grove on Wednesday night. Cory Alkerton had the win with relief from Brad Porter. Adam Smith took the loss and Kyle Olson threw shut out ball in relief. Matt Alkerton had two large home runs for the Aces while Aaron Amo had a homer for Stittsville.

Quyon Flyers 4 I4C Victory 2
In the first game of the Manotick doubleheader, the Quyon Flyers prevailed 4-2 over I4C Victory. Chris MacFarlane and Matt McNish both had solo homers for Victory while Nick Armitage had a two RBI single and Shawn Laframboise had a sole shot for Quyon. Trevor Lahey had the pitching win for Quyon an Neil Cooke took the loss.

I4C Victory 6 Ottawa Valley As 5
In the nightcap, I4C Victory got some revenge on the Ottawa Valley As after losing both games in a doubleheader this past weekend by squeaking out a 6-5 with a walk off in the bottom of the seventh. Matt McNish had the pitching win while Ben Broek took the loss.

Fitzroy Harbour hosts Mite Qualifier this weekend

The Gil Read Memorial isn't the only tournament in the area this weekend - there will also be an Ontario Amateur Softball Association mites U10 qualifier in Fitzroy Harbour with four teams participating. 

The West Carleton Review ran a nice story on the event.

The full schedule for the day is here.

UPDATE: 10th Annual Gil Read Memorial tournament to feature 10 teams

There have been some changes to the Gil Read Memorial Tournament. See below.

The 10th Annual Gil Read Memorial Men's Fastpitch Tournament will feature 10 teams at the Carp Fairgrounds from July 28-30. Each team will play four games in the round robin, with the top four teams advancing to single elimination play.

As always, the tournament will feature a beer garden and bbq and admission is only $5 / day or $10 / weekend for spectators. Kids 12 and under are free.

All fund raised from the event go to the Gil Read Memorial Foundation to help disadvantaged kids play sports.

Group A

Micksburg, ON Twins
West Carleton Electric - Fitzroy Harbour, ON
Party Lake - Sydenham, ON
Goodfellow's Fastpitch - Eastons Corners, ON
Ottawa Valley A's - Carp, ON

Group B

Kanata, ON Pirates
Pickering, ON Panthers
Elkland, PA - Moose Lodge #746
Broker4Tickets - Ottawa, ON
Napanee, ON Intermediate Express

Revised schedule is available online here.

Bytown Belles Finish Second at PWSA Open Provincials

from Erin Durant

The Bytown Belles had a remarkable tournament at the Provincial Women's Softball Association Open provincials, bringing home the silver medal and qualifying for the Women's National Championships in Brampton August 16-20.

The Belles faces a tough draw in pool play which included two very strong, young teams in the Brantford Bobcats and the Brampton Blazers. Going into the tournament, the Belles had not defeated either of these teams.

The Belles started the tournament strong stunning the Bobcats with a 7-3 win. All three Belles pitchers - Jean Cardona, Elissa Sivel and Allie Hipgrave - were used to control the powerful Bobcats lineup.

In the second game of the tournament, the Belles faced the Blazers and pulled out a 2-1 win, again thanks to great pitching from the pitching staff and timely hitting. The winning run was scored following an Alika Kingsbury triple followed by a suicide squeeze by Erin Durant.

With a 2-0 record the Belles faced the Kars Aces on Saturday night. Veteran pitcher Marsha Townsend pitched a great game for Kars and held the score to 2-2 going bottom of the seventh inning. Alika Kingsbury would then hit a long triple and be scored by Amy Oliver to win the game 3-2.

The Belles then played their last round robin game Sunday morning against Milverton, which they would win 9-3 to finish the round robin undefeated to earn the top seed in their pool.

Shortly after the end of pool play, the Belles played their quarter final game against the Milton Bats. A loss in this game would have eliminated the Belles from the tournament despite their being undefeated in the round robin. Elissa Sivel started the game and Jean Cardona came in for the third inning. Sivel and Cardona both pitched a fantastic game, with Cardona recording many strikeouts, to lead the Belles to a 9-3 win.

The Belles then faced the Toronto Fastpitch Club in the semi-finals. Allie Hipgrave pitched a dominating performance to lead the Belles to a 6-2 victory. Elderly outfielder Erin Durant was forced to make two diving catches in right field despite her better judgment and to the disappointment of the Toronto club.

In the final, the Belles would face the powerhouse Whitby Eagles, the defending champions and the 2016 Canadian Championship silver medalists. The Eagles had won all of their prior games in dominating fashion and had team Canada program pitcher Jenna Caira on the mound.

The Belles countered with Elissa Sivel, who held her own against the Eagles. The Eagles would eventually score three runs in one inning. Jean Cardona came in to finish the game for the Belles, holding the Eagles scoreless.

The Belles had several hits and base runners but were unable to score. Hayley Bennett had two hits, including a double, to finish off a great tournament. The Belles would lose 3-0 after seven innings.

The Belles will be competing in the Canadian Women's national championships as Ontario 2, along with the Eagles as Ontario 1 and Port Perry as Ontario 3. The Brampton Blazers will be competing in the tournament as the host team.

Jean Cardona earned individual success at the provincials and was named the top pitcher of the tournament.

Valley As pick up two wins over I4C

The Ottawa Valley As won both games in a make up doubleheader in Carp over I4C Victory in rare Sunday action in the Greater Ottawa Fastball League.

The first game ended 10-6 with Ben Broek earning the win and Matt McNish taking the loss. The second game finished 6-5 with the Valley As walking it off in the bottom of the seventh. Todd Wilson had the win in relief of Adam Rueckwald. Jason Woodside had the loss in relief of Neil Cooke.

more to follow

Caveman gets comfortable

This weekend, Caveman's Squirt U12 team played at the Ontario Amateur Softball Association East qualfier in Grafton. After a first game win against Oshawa, Caveman got the start versus a strong team from Tweed.

Caveman was on his game for this match, shutting out is opponents over the first two innings - however, he was complaining about some 'discomfort' with his new ball pants that Mrs Fastball acquired for the event. He felt the pants were too tight and cramping his style.

So, after the third inning in the field, the Caveman had had enough. He ran off as quickly as he could to a near-by Go Hut - and removed his underpants.

He pitched the remainder of the game, which went into 8 innings, "commando" style with no underwear on under his ball pants. While he ended up losing the game due to a couple of untimely errors, he did throw a gem, striking out 16 kids over 8 innings. There may be chance he never pitches another game with underpants on!

Quyon wins both in doubleheader vs Valley As

The Quyon Flyers won both games of a Greater Ottawa Fastball League doubleheader in Carp on Thursday night over the Ottawa Valley As.

In the first game, Quyon won 7-2. Drew Hathway had the win for the Flyers while Ben Broek took the loss. Matt Greer had a home run for Quyon.

The second match saw Quyon win 6-4. Greer had the win on the slab and hit another home run. Adam Rueckwald had the pitching loss. Ryley Burns hit a home run for the Valley As.

Sunday GOFL make up games added

The Ottawa Valley As and I4C Victory will make up their rained out doubleheader from June on this Sunday, July 23 at 1 pm and 3 pm in Carp.

Kars Aces and I4C Victory split doubleheader

In Greater Ottawa Fastball League play on Wednesday night in Manotick the Kars Aces and I4C Victory split a doubleheader.

The first game of the night saw Kars win 10-3 with Luke Severson earning the win with relief from Brad Porter. Matt McNish took the loss. Kurtis Summer was 4 for 4 at the plate for Kars.

The nightcap had I4C Victory taking the game 8-2, with Neil Cooke getting the "W" and Porter taking the loss.

Elkland Open this weekend

The Ekland Open tournament this weekend will feature 12 top teams in a round robin event, including the Kingston Axemen.

Schedule posted here on Al's Fastball.

Squirt East Qualifier this weekend

The Squirt Boys (U12) Ontario Amateur Softball Tournament for the east will be held this weekend in Grafton with eight teams participating.

West Carleton Junior Electric will be among the teams, with Caveman toeing the rubber.

The schedule bracket is posted online here.

Kars - WC game halted mid-game

The second game of the Greater Ottawa Fastball League doubleheader in Fitzroy Harbour on Tuesday featured West Carleton Electric vs the Kars Aces. Unfortunately, with the score 7-3 in the top of the seventh for the Aces, the lights went out. The game is suspended and if necessary for placements will be completed later in the year.

Andy Barber threw for West Carleton while Luke Severson had the ball for Kars.

Kars got on the board in the first with Nick Ellis hitting a home run to score Ian King who had singled.

After several scoreless innings, West Carleton responded with three in the sixth. Jeff Cavanagh doubled to bring in Jon Daley who had singled and Jeff Barber who had walked. Cavanagh advanced to third on a throw to the plate. JCav the scored on Trevor Barton's sac fly to right.

The Aces responded in the top of the seventh. Kurtis "Gary" Summers solo shot to lead off the inning tied things at three. Three consecutive walks loaded the bases. After a grounder erased a man at the plate, two subsequent bases loaded walks scored two for Kars. Chad Milne's double to left scored another two runs to make it 7-3 when the lights went out.

Stittsville and West Carleton tie at 9

The first game of the Greater Ottawa Fastball League doubleheader in Fitzroy Harbour on Tuesday between West Carleton Electric and the Stittsville 56ers was a high scoring affair with the teams ending squared at 9 runs each.

Steve Cavanagh started for WC and had relief from Jeff Barber. Kyle Olson did most of the pitching for Stittsville with Adam Smith relieving for one batter.

The 56ers got on the board in the first with a two run homer by Dan Jessiman which brought in Aaron Amo who had singled.

West Carleton immediately responded with three runs in the bottom of the first frame. Andy Barber walked to start things off, moved to second on Jon Daley's single and they both scored on Jeff Barber's three run homer.

The 3-2 Fitzroy lead lasted until the fifth. Stittsville scored five runs on a variety of defensive miscues.

The 56ers added another pair of runs in the sixth. Dan Jessiman's double brought in both Jamie O'Hare and Luc D'Entremont who had each singled.

The home team responded in the bottom sixth. With two out, Andy Barber singled and scored on Daley's double. A two run shot by Jeff Barber made it 9-6.

Down three in the last inning, West Carleton plated three to get the game tied. Neil Murphy reached on a misplayed ball. After a fly out and a strike out, Adam Brown singled and the ball subsequently got thrown away to allow Murphy to score. Then Andy Barber's two run homer tied the game.

Fitzroy
Steve Cavanagh 5IP 7R 4ER 7H 0BB 4K
Jeff Barber 2IP 2R 2ER 4H 1BB 3K

Andy Barber 2-4, HR, 2RBI, 3R, BB
Jon Daley 4-5, 2B, RBI
Jeff Barber 2-4, 2xHR, 5RBI
Chris Costello 2-4
Neil Murphy 1-4, R
Adam Brown 3-4

Stittsville
Kyle Olson 6.2IP 9R 6ER 14H 1BB 6K
Adam Smith 0.1IP 1K

Luc D'Entremont 2-4, 2R
Aaron Amo 2-4, 2R
Dan Jessiman 2-4, HR, 2B, 4RBI, 2R
Scott Jessiman sac fly, RBI
John Craig 1-4
Kyle Olson 1-4
Corey Colpitts 1-4
Jamie O'Hare 2-4, 2R

Quyon over the Valley As 10-4 on Monday

The Quyon Flyers defeated the Ottawa Valley As 10-4 in Greater Ottawa Fastball League action in a rare Monday nighter in Quebec.

Matt Greer had the pitching win while Adam Rueckwald took the loss from Todd Wilson (aka Willy White Shoes).

Greer, David Hobbs and Steve McCord all had homeruns for the Flyers while Kyle Couvieau answered for the As with a homer.

Micksburg defeats Valley As (from Thursday)

from Matt McIntyre

Micksburg edged the Ottawa Valley As Thursday night in Greater Ottawa Fastball League action. Defence and pitching were on display as both teams pressed with base runners in multiple innings with Micksburg prevailing with a 6-2 win. Joran Graham had the pitching win while Ben Broek took the loss with relief from Adam Rueckwald.

Micksburg jumped out to an early lead in the top of the first when Matt McIntyre reached base via a walk and then scored on a bloop single by Graham.

The Twins got back on the board in the second with Connor Moss reaching on a fielders' choice and later scoring on a hit by Andrew McIntyre that just squeaked through the infield.

In the third inning the Twins finally broke through. The inning lead off with  Joran Graham getting a walk and soon thereafter scoring on a deep shot over the centre field fence by Jamey Mick. Kyle Jackson followed with a walk and was replaced with Quinton Rook as a result of a fielder's choice. Rook scored on a double by Riley Hennessey.

The A's answered with a run of their own. Clayton Vance reached on a single and would later steal his way to home plate. The A's scored again in the fifth as a result of a series of base hits.

Rueckwald entered the game for the A's shutting down the Twins bats until the seventh when Jackson lead off the inning with a shot to right field.

Rain puts an early end to OASA Masters Provincials

The 2017 Ontario Amateur Softball Association Masters Provincial championship in St. Clements ended up with co-winners in each division.

A torrential downpour Sunday afternoon rendered the fields unplayable late into the tournament.
In the 50+ Legends Division, Waterloo Legends and Waterdown Hammer Legends were declared co-winners.

In the Masters 40+ A division, Kitchener Bell Cartage and Wellington Sox were co-winners. In the Masters 40+ B Division, Whitby Spinmasters and St Thomas were declared co-winners. (Note: local entry West Carleton Electric finished the event at 0-4.)

Carl Boughner was the recipient of the Jack Cook sportsmanship award.

To all teams, volunteers and fans a heartfelt thank you.

Mike Goodridge
Bob Abbot
Tournament Directors

Toronto Batmen win Kingston tournament

The Toronto Batmen won the six team men's fastpitch tournament in Inverary this weekend, north of Kingston, defeating the host Kingston Axemen 6-4 in the final.

Semi-finalists were the Quebec Juniors and the Rockland, NY Mallards. Reports were that the crowds were decent and the weather was good for this tournament which hopefully becomes an annual event.

GOFL standings update

Here are the current records for the Greater Ottawa Fastball League teams.

West Carleton 7-5 = 14 pts
Micksburg 5-2-1= 11 pts
Stittsville 4-5-2 = 10 pts
Quyon 4-4-1 = 9 pts
Kars 4-5 = 8 pts
Ottawa Valley 3-3-1 =  7 pts
I4C 1-5-1 = 3 pts

Thursday night in the GOFL

Thursday night scores from the Greater Ottawa Fastball League, with both matches ending 6-2:

Stittsville 56ers 6 Quyon Flyers 2

Stittsville won on the road on the Quebec side, defeating the Flyers 6-2. Adam Smith had the win for the 56ers while Matt Greer took the loss. John Craig hit a three run shot to seal the game in the top of the seventh for the vistors.

Micksburg Twins 6 Ottawa Valley As 2

Micksburg got a 6-2 road win in Carp over the Valley As. Joran Graham had the win. Ben Broek took the loss and Adam Rueckwald saw action in relief.

GOFL Wednesday night round up

Kars Aces 7 Stittsville 56ers 6
The Kars Aces won in a back and forth game at the Grove in Greater Ottawa Fastball League play on Wednesday by a score of 7-6. Brad Porter had the win on the slab for the Aces in relief of Cory Alkerton while Kyle Olson took the loss.

West Carleton Electric 22 I4C Victory 13
In what could perhaps be best described as a highly anomalous display of fastpitch softball, the first game of the GOFL doubleheader in Manotick on Wednesday ended with West Carleton Electric winning 22-13 over I4C Victory.

Fitzroy scored 10 runs in the top of the first, sending fifteen batters to the plate. By the bottom of the third, WC was losing 12-11. The subsequent comeback saw them end the game after six innings, up by 9. It was two hours and nineteen minutes of madness.

Matt McKay had the win for West Carleton, his first in the GOFL, in relief of Steve Cavanagh. Shane McNish took the loss for I4C.

Andy Barber had a two run homer for West Carleton while Alex Boucaud had a grand slam for the 'Trics. Matt McNish and Chris MacFarlane both had two run homers for the home team.

I4C Victory 4 West Carleton Electric 0
The night cap was a far more conventional game of fastball, with Neil Cooke throwing a four-hit shutout to lead I4C to a 4-0 win. Andy Barber took the loss for West Carleton. Shane McNish scored three times for I4C and was 2 for 2 with a walk and RBI.

Provincial Masters / Legends tournament this weekend

The Ontario Amateur Softball Association will be hosting the Masters (40+) and Legends (50+) provincial championship in St Clements (north of Waterloo) on July 14 -16. There are 8 masters teams and 3 legends teams participating in the event.

A local team sponsored by West Carleton Electric will be at the event for the second consecutive year. Schedule info is available at oasa.ca.

Masters 40+
St. Thomas
Waterdown
Waterloo
Wellington
Cobourg
Kitchener
West Carleton
Whitby

Legends 50+
Toronto
Waterdown
Waterloo

Kingston Axemen tournament this weekend

The Kingston Axemen will host a six-team men's open fastball tournament on Saturday and Sunday in Inverary, just north of Kingston. See the poster below for the schedule.

Hayley Bennett and Team Canada off to a hot start at the Maccabiah Games

Hayley Bennett of Kanata is representing Canada in softball at the Maccabiah Games in the Women’s Open division. Hayley is also a member of the Bytown Belles travel team and the local Ottawa ExPros OVFL league team.

Canada was off to a hot start having won their first three games – including the first ever win over the United States by a women’s Maccabiah Games team. The Americans came back to defeat Canada in the second game played between the two teams.  The men’s team has started the Open division tournament with a 4-0 record.

You can follow the men’s and women’s teams online here: https://maccabigames2017.wixsite.com/canadasoftball/latest-news-stories.

Info about the Maccabiah Games here.

Men's World Softball championships from Whitehorse - livestream

If you haven't already, check out the livestream from Ballpark Broadcasting / SportsCanada TV from the Men's World Softball Championship in Whitehorse, Yukon.

It's of great quality and an excellent chance to watch men's softball live and well worth the 30 bucks. More info available here: http://sportscanada.tv/worldsoftball/. Remember that Yukon is Pacific time, same as Vancouver, three hours difference.

Bytown Belles go 4-1 at 14th Annual Gord Marshall Memorial Tournament

This past weekend the Bytown Belles from the Ottawa area competed in the 14^th Annual Gord Marshall Memorial Tournament in Innerkip, Ontario. The Belles competed in the Tier 1 division and went undefeated in the round robin portion of the tournament.

The Belles won their Friday night game 4-0 over the Midget Brantford Bobcats. Pembroke native Jean Cardona pitched the complete game and earned MVP honours.

The Belles also won their first game Saturday morning with a gutsy 5-1 win over the University of Western Ontario. Allie Hipgrave got the win with Jean Cardona earning a save. 

In their second game on Saturday, another Pembroke native, Elissa Sivel, had the ball for the Belles against Byron. Sivel led the team to a 7-2 victory over Byron. Former University of Ottawa Shortstop Brye Corkum earned MVP honours in this game for her stellar defense. 

The Belles’ most impressive win of the day came against the Milton Bats. The Belles were down 4-0 until the bottom of the fifth inning before scoring 5 unanswered runs, including Corkum’s game winning hit. Jean Cardona started the game for the Belles and Allie Hipgrave came in to close off any hope of a comeback for the Bats. Sivel earned MVP honours for her defense in the outfield. Allegations that Erin Durant tried to steal Sivel’s award are unfounded.

The Belles finished first in the round robin and played Byron in the semi-finals. Despite several hard-hit balls, luck was not on their side and they lost a tough game 4-0. Cardona pitched the complete game for the Belles.

Milton ended up defeating Byron in the Tier 1 finals 6-3. Milverton took home the Tier Two championships with a 8-5 win over Bramalea. Cardona also won the tournament Most Valuable Pitcher Award with a 3-1 record and 34 strikeouts.

The Gord Marshall Tournament featured a total of five Tier 1 and sixteen Tier 2 teams. The Gord Marshall Memorial Tournament is a “Best in Class” tournament for women’s fastpitch. Year after year the event is well-organized, well-attended and well-umpired. The tournament has all of the luxury items, including announcing, a beer tent, silent auction and tournament-branded beer glasses for the MVP winners. If you play women’s fastpitch, or if you coach women’s fastpitch, you should really consider registering your team for the 2018 tournament. It would be great to see more Eastern Ontario teams represented at this top-notch event.

CPI wins the 55th Annual Au Sable Forks tournament

CPI from Oswego, NY won the 55th Annual Au Sable Forks Men's Fastpitch Tournament this past weekend defeating the Quebec Juniors in the final.

CPI beat Broker4Tickets in the semi-final, while Quebec defeated the Durham Diamondbacks.

The final game was livestreamed on Facebook and can be watched here.

Valley As win both over Kars (from Wednesday)

From Adam Rueckwald

Game 1:  Ottawa Valley As 6 Kars Aces

For a change, it was a sunny and warm evening for ball for the first game of the Greater Ottawa Fastball League double header on Wednesday. The game started off with Ben Wade scoring in the top of the first inning off an RBI single by Steve Frost for the A’s. Pitching for the A’s, Todd Wilson started his night off with 7 strikeouts over the first three innings; the third inning finished off with a home run taken away from Nick Ellis of the Aces by an amazing catch in centre field by Wade.

The A’s scored 5 more runs, with RBI’s by Gavan Boyd, Clayton Vance, and Steve Frost.

The shut out game came to an abrupt end in the bottom of the seventh inning, by a massive home run by Jordan Shipclark. That thing is still in the air.

Final score, A’s 6, Aces 1

WP: Todd Wilson – 7 innings, 10 k’s, 1 run

LP: Luke Severson – 7 innings, 7k’s, 6 runs

Game 2: Ottawa Valley As 6 Kars Aces 3

In game 2, Brad Porter came out strong for the Aces, holding the A’s to 2 hits, with 9 strikeouts in the first 4 innings.

The game was held tight by starting pitcher Adam Rueckwald and the A’s defense until the 3rd inning, where the Aces scored 2 runs off an RBI double by Ian King.

The A’s tied the game up in the top of the 6th with runs scored by Jackson Vance and Steve Frost, but this was short lived. The first pitch of the bottom of the 6th inning was smacked out of the park by Kristian Knapp, giving the Aces a 1 run lead going into the 7th.

A walk by Rueckwald, and hits by Jackson Vance, Ben Wade, Steve Frost, Riley Burns, and Clayton Vance gave the A’s 4 more runs to take a 3 run lead in the top of the 7th.

Final Score A’s 6, Aces 3

WP: Adam Rueckwald – 7 innings, 8 k’s, 3 runs

LP: Brad Porter – 7 innings, 13 k’s, 6 runs

West Carleton wins "Harbour Days" game vs Quyon

Thursday night was the Greater Ottawa Fastball League's annual "Harbour Days" game in Fitzroy Harbour, with West Carleton Electric prevailing 5-1 over the Quyon Flyers.

A decent sized crowd was on hand for the event. Andy Barber had the win, tossing a three hitter, while Matt Greer took the loss.

West Carleton got on the board in the bottom of the second on a two-out Neil Murphy solo home run. Spencer Rodd then reached on an error and Andy Barber doubled, but both were stranded when Greer struck the next blogger batter out.

Quyon responded in the top of the third as savvy veteran Earl Kearns hit a solo shot to straight away centre to make it 1-1.

The home team took the lead for good in the bottom of the third. Kevin Shonfield singled, followed by Jon Daley getting hit by a pitch. Jeff Barber's sac bunt moved both runners over and they scored on Jeff Cavanagh's single.

WC added another pair of runs in the fifth. Shonfield singled and after a fly out, Jeff Barber reached on an infield single. Chris Costello then mashed a ball off the fence to score two more for Fitzroy.

The Flyers looked like the may start a rally in the top of the sixth when Dennis McCleary hit a flare to right, but a hard charging Jon Daley made a spectacular catch in shallow right field, much to the delight of the assembled crowd (and JCav).

Fitzroy

Andy Barber WIN 7IP 1R 1ER 3H 12K 2BB

Kevin Shonfield 2-4, 2R

Jeff Barber 1-2, R, sac bunt

Chris Costello 1-3, 2RBI

Jeff Cavanagh 1-3, 2RBI

Neil Murphy 1-3, HR, RBI, R

Spencer Rodd 1-3

Andy Barber 1-1, 2B

Quyon

Matt Greer LOSS 6IP 5R 5ER 9H 8K 0BB 1HBP

Dennis McCleary 1-3

Dave Hobbs 1-3, 2B

Earl Kearns 1-3, HR, R, RBI

GOFL Wednesday night scores

Results from the Greater Ottawa Fastball League on Wednesday night:

Ottawa Valley As 6 Kars Aces 1 (Game 1)
In the first game of the doubleheader in Manotick, the Ottawa Valley As defeated the Kars Aces 6-1. Todd Wilson had the win for the As while Luke Severson took the loss.

Ottawa Valley As 6 Kars Aces 3 (Game 2)
In the second game of the night in Manotick, the Valley As won another one, this time 6-3 over the Aces. Adam Rueckwald was the winning pitcher while Brad Porter threw for Kars.

Micksburg Twins 5 Stittsville 56ers 0
At the Grove in Stittsville, the Micksburg Twins shut out the Stittsville 56ers 5-0. Joran Graham had the win, throwing a no-hitter and helping his cause with a home run. Adam Smith was the pitcher for Stittsville.

OASA 2017 Peewee U14 Eliminations

The Ontario Amateur Softball Association Elimination Tournament for Peewee Boys (U14) was held this past weekend in Napanee with 18 teams competing to finish in the top four to earn an invite to the Canadians August 9-13 in Palmerston, ON.

Amongst eastern Ontario teams, host Napanee finished 1-2, and the Wesport Storm finished 2-2 to make the top 8.

Top finishers were:
Gold - Palmerston
Silver - Shallow Lake
Bronze - Six Nations
Fourth - Tavistock

Au Sable Forks Men's Fastpitch Tournament

The 55th Annual Men's Fastpitch Tournament will be held in Au Sable Forks, NY this coming weekend with nine teams participating:

1. Au Sable Forks, NY Spirits
2. Boston, MA Seadogs
3. Au Sable Forks, NY Loreman's
4. Oswego, NY CPI
5. Forestport, NY A's
6. Ottawa, ON Broker4Tickets
7. Mountain Brook Lodge / Durham, ON Diamondbacks
8. Ephrata, PA Bear Bottom Haymakers
9. St Leonard D'Aston, QC Juniors

The full schedule is on their Facebook page and below.

The top four teams will advance to the single elim playoff bracket with 1st vs 4th at 11 am on Sunday and 2nd vs 3rd at 1 pm on Sunday. Finals will follow at 3 pm.

West Carleton wins at home over I4C

West Carleton Electric defeated a short staffed I4C Victory in Greater Ottawa Fastball League play in Fitzroy Harbour on Tuesday night. Final score was 8-1 in five innings.

Steve Cavanagh had the win for WC, while Neil Cooke took the loss for I4C.

A late arriving Electric player meant that the Caveman had his GOFL debut as the 12 year old played right field for two batters in the top of the first. Once the ninth man arrived, he quickly made the transition from outfielder to scorekeeper.

After two scoreless innings, I4C got on the board first with a Curt Scurr solo homer in the top of the third.

However, West Carleton responded in a big way in the bottom of the third with a seven run inning. Andy Barber started things off with a walk and was brought in on Neil Murphy's home run to centrefield.  Then Jeff Cavanagh doubled and scored on Chris Costello's home run. The next batter, Trevor Barton, reached on an error. After a strike out and a flyout, Adam Brown reached on what the Caveman scored an error despite his father's protestations. Both Barton and Brown scored on Mitch Taylor's double to the gap. Taylor then scored on Barber's double to make it 7-1.

Fitzroy got an eighth run in the bottom of the fourth. Jeff Cavanagh doubled and was brought in on Barton's RBI single.

A three up three down inning in the top of the fifth sealed the win for the Electric.

Fitzroy
Steve Cavanagh WIN 5IP 1R 1ER 3H 2K 2BB

Andy Barber 2-2, BB, R, 2B, RBI
Neil Murphy 2-3, HR, 2RBI, R
Jeff Cavanagh 2-3, 2x2B, 2R
Chris Costello 1-3, HR, 2RBI, R
Trevor Barton 1-3, R, RBI
Alex Boucaud 1-3
Mitch Taylor 1-2, 2B, R, 2RBI

I4C
Neil Cooke LOSS 4IP 8R 5ER 10H 5K 1BB

Curt Scurr 1-2, HR, R, RBI, BB
Bobby Jack Hart 1-2, BB
Chris MacFarlane 1-3

Eastern Ontario umpires recognized with assignments

Congratulations to all Eastern Ontario softball umpires who have been recognized by Softball Canada with assignments as follows:

• Steve Fitzsimmons - Junior Men's Fastpitch - Canada Games - July 29 to Aug 4 – Winnipeg, MB
• Andrew Fleck - U18 Women’s Fastpitch Canadian Championship - July 31 to Aug 6 – Lloydminster,  AB
• Sarah-Eve Jacob -Women’s Fastpitch Canadian Championship - Aug 16 to Aug 20 - Brampton, ON
• George Findley – Umpire-In-Chief U14 Girl’s Fastpitch Canadian Championship Aug 16 to Aug 20 - Brampton, ON
• Audrey Desmarteaux-Houle – Deputy Umpire-In-Chief U14 Girl’s Fastpitch Canadian Championship Aug 16 to Aug 20 - Brampton, ON

West Carleton wins Canada Day game over Quyon

West Carleton Electric won the annual Canada Day match up in Quyon over the Flyers on Friday night by a score of 7-1.

Andy Barber had the pitching win, allowing only four hits and striking out 14. Trevor Lahey had the loss with relief from Matt Greer.

Fitzroy scored two in the first inning. With two outs, Jeff Barber reached on an error and was brought home on a moon shot home run from Chris Costello that hit the lights in left centre field.

Quyon responded with a run in the bottom of the inning. Dave Hobbs lead off with a single, stole second and moved to third on a wild pitch. Hobbs scored on Steve McCord's single.

West Carleton put another two on the board in the fourth. Jeff Barber and Costello hit back to back singles. When Jeff Cavanagh reached on an error, Barber scored. Costello was brought in on Jon Daley's RBI single.

The Electric padded their lead in the sixth. Matt MacKay started things with a single. After a strikeout and a hard liner caught in centrefield, Jeff Barber singled again, as did Costello who drove in MacKay. After Jeff Cavanagh walked, Daley drove in Barber and Costello with a single to make it 7-1.

Quyon got two men aboard in the bottom of the sixth on walks to Greer and Nick Armitage, but Barber got out of the jam with a strikeout.

Just as the bottom of the seventh was wrapping up, the annual Quyon fireworks display began.

Fitzroy
Andy Barber WIN 7IP 1R 1ER 4H 14K 2BB

Andy Barber 2-5, 2B
Jeff Barber 2-5, 3R
Chris Costello 3-5, 3R, HR, 3RBI
Jeff Cavanagh 1-3, BB
Jon Daley 1-3, SB, 2RBI, BB
Adam Brown 1-1
Matt MacKay 2-2, R

Quyon
Trevor Lahey LOSS 4IP 4R 1ER 6H 5K 1BB
Matt Greer 3IP 3R 3ER 6H 7K 2BB

Dave Hobbs 1-3, R, SB
Steve McCord 1-3, RBI
Nick Armitage 1-2, BB
Shawn Laframboise 1-2