 |
Salem, VA Results | |
|
Salem, VA Results | |
March 4, 2000
The opening tournament of the new season for
the South Boston Golden Corral Softball Club was the Salem Open, in Salem, VA. In
the opening game of the round robin portion, Golden Corral met Zestland. GC came out
just a little flat in this one and fell behind, 1-3 after 2 complete innings. The
South Boston based club got it going in the third, however. Kevin Henderson got
things going with a double down the line and was brought home by a single from Jason
Younger. After two quick outs, GC got consecutive singles from Kevin Neal, Curtis
Duffer, Scott Lester (playing just this one weekend), Tuffy Eggleston, and Tommy Crews to
score 5 more runs for a slim 6-4 lead after 3 complete. More hitting from JoJo
Owens, Hendo, and Younger coupled with big homeruns from Matt Hunt and Neal spread the
lead out to 11-6, but Zestland would not go quietly. They rallied to take a 13-12 lead
into the seventh. In the top half, Duffer singled, Lester homered, and Owens blasted
his second homer of the game to put Golden Corral up 16-13, and Zestland could only score
1 run in the bottom of the seventh, when the pitcher, Neal, confused the Zestland
pinch-hit batter into striking out with the bases loaded.
Next up for Golden Corral was Miss Kitty's from
Lynchburg, who were out-matched badly, as GC rolled to a 23-9 final. Owens led the
way, going 4 for 4, while several others chipped in 3 hits each.
Golden Corral, then, had to face a powerful
team, The Firm, that added a couple of players from last year's tough Demolition squad.
GC played good defense early and took advantage of The Firm's slow start to build a
7-2 lead after three complete innings. After Hunt and Neal each hit their second
homers of the game in the fifth and sixth innings, the game was well in hand, and GC had a
relatively easy 15-7 win. Neal went 4 for 4 (2 HRs), Hunt homered twice, as well,
and Crews added a clutch 3-run homer.
Now, Zestland had made it back to challenge
Golden Corral in the undefeated game. Consecutive hits to open the game from Hendo
and Hunt, followed by a 3-run bomb from Neal set the tone for this one early. A
6-run second inning, that was powered by hits from Owens, Crews, Tony Conner, Eddie Poole,
Hendo, Neal, Duffer, and Lester, made it 9-4 after two innings. Zestland tried to
battle back, but Golden Corral slammed the door every time with big-run innings.
Zestland managed 5 runs in the bottom of the seventh to make the score a more respectable
24-16. Owens led the way in this one, going 5 for 5. Neal and Lester added 4
hits each, and Hendo, Duffer, and Poole each hit safely 3 times.
This put Golden Corral into the championship
game, where they would have to be beaten twice if anyone was to deny them the title.
In this matchup, GC faced Omega/Independent Athletic Club. This was a tight
battle through the first four innings, with the score tied at 16. But that's when
the bottom fell out on Golden Corral. Omega/Independent started hitting and hitting.
As Independent's lead grew, daylight was nearing its end. With no lights
available, the championship was going to have to be decided by coin toss, if the "if
necessary" game couldn't be played, so Golden Corral used a strategy that proved to
be an excellent call. GC decided to concede the game, rather than try to battle all
the way back, possibly still lose, and then have the possibility of losing a coin toss if
the second game couldn't be played due to darkness. This forced the final game for
first place. A 2-run double from Neal in the first got GC and early lead, and a
clutch 3-run blast from Conner capped a 6-run third. A couple of 2-run dingers from
Duffer and Eggleston built the lead to 17-9, and when Omega/Independents plated only 5 in
their last inning, Golden Corral was the tournament winner.
JoJo Owens hit an incredible 20 for 23 (.870, 4
HRs) for the day to lead the team.