Archive for the ‘So Cal’ Category

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Boatnik Playoffs Today

Monday, May 25th, 2009

The Cal State Builders won their fourth game without a loss last night, and advanced in the playoffs in today’s final day of play at the Boatnik Tournament at Grants Pass, Oregon. Portland also won last night, running their record to 3-1.

The Cal State Builders will face Portland in one semi-final today at 11am PDT, while Brotherton and the Bandits will match up in the other semi-final. (not the Pueblo Bandits for those wondering)

Update at 12:15pm PDT: Builders up 6-0 in the 3rd. Dean Waltier another rbi. Builders went up 3-0 in the 1st on waltier 2 run double. Mark Bennett pitching for Portland vs. Matt Barnes for the builders. Winner faces Brotherton in the final.

Posted in General, Nor Cal, So Cal, Tournaments | No Comments »

Cal State Builders Win Again at Boatnik

Sunday, May 24th, 2009

The Cal State Buildings are continuing their winning ways, the latest a 7-0 win over Mock Ford, with Matt Barnes and Gerald Pyle combining for a no-hitter (their second of the tournament). Dean Waltier hit a 3 run homer to power the offense.

Playoffs start at 9pm tonight. (Sunday)

We’ll update as information becomes available.

Posted in General, Nor Cal, So Cal, Tournaments | No Comments »

Boatnik Scores from Grants Pass Oregon

Sunday, May 24th, 2009

The Cal State Builders are off to a good start at the Boatnik, winning their first two games.

In the first game against Tule Lake, Matt Barnes and Gerald Pyle combined for a perfect game, 8-0 win.

In the second, the California squad topped Brotherton Pipeline, 11-5, with Gerald Pyle picking up the win in relief of Ron Rupp.

I guess those two did survive the 10 hour drive to the tournament after all 😉

Posted in Nor Cal, So Cal, Tournaments | No Comments »

More Maddy’s Photos – Las Vegas 2008

Thursday, May 21st, 2009

We’re pleased to share another batch of Maddy’s Photos. These were taken at the SCIFL league weekend last year in Las Vegas, but didn’t make it to the website. Better late than never — we thought you’d enjoy them just the same. That’s Matt Shaw of the So Cal Hustlers that you see center stage when clicking in. And umpire Clyde Bennett behind the plate.


(click logo above to view photos)

If you spotted one non-west coast team in the mix, you’ve got a good eye. That is Jeramie Holman and the boys from New Image, who traveled to Sin City for some sun and fastpitch. Always liked that “NI” – NY Yankee look-alike logo. Well, except for the time they beat my Rounders team at the NAFA World Seriers. And yes, that’s Josh Johnson on their travel roster. “Tournament in Vegas?” “Sounded like a good road trip, I’m there”.

But those fields needed more than a little bit of water, eh?

Good stride by this young hurler from Utah.

Hey Graham, last guy to make the cover of Sports Illustrated with a one of those was ….Dick Allen of the Phillies back in 1972.

“Youth shall be served” — the kids from Cedar Ridge Utah.

“He said he didn’t want to come out, but I told him, you’ve got nothing on the ball today“.

Great effort — and the grass stains to prove it.

David Blackburn finding time amidst his ISC Streaming Media duties to take the hill.

So much speed, you’d swear his feet never touch the ground.

“Don’t look at me – I told you to pack the sun-block.”

Proof that not everything that happens in Vegas stays in Vegas.

Editor’s note: Be sure to take a peek at the slide show in the “Featured” section, a collection of Maddy’s magazine covers.

Posted in General, Leagues, Photos, So Cal | No Comments »

Cal State Builders Head to Boatnik in Oregon

Thursday, May 21st, 2009

The Cal State Builders will be headed to the Boatnik Tournament in Grant’s Pass, Oregon over the Memorial Holiday weekend. Started in 1959, the Boatnik includes boat racing, fastpitch tournament and other community events, and will be celebrating their 50th year !

If your first question was “Who are the Cal State Builders?”, I’m right with you. The answer is that they are team organized for this one tournament. The next question many will ask (Fastpitchwest Forum readers in particular) will be: “Are Ron Rupp and Gerald Pyle really going to be in the same dugout, playing for the same team?”. The answer is “yes”. No wait – it gets better — they will be riding up to the tournament in the same van for the 10 hour drive ! That might redefine the term “Rupp’s Worst Nightmare ©” Oh, I can hear them going at it already. I give them until just north of Bakersfield before one of them winds up hitch hiking the rest of the way 😉


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Cal State Builders Roster

Matt Barnes P
Gerald Pyle P
Ron Rupp IF/P
Javier Fierro ss
Chris Paiva inf
Jason Gluckman C
Dan Winnick OF
Dean Waltier UTL
Ricky Moore UTL
John Abbott INF
Jeff Reich OF
Dave Carlton INF

There are 8 teams in the tournament and they just did the draw – here’s how it looks:

Pool A
CR Rockers, Portland, Oregon
Mock Ford, Grants Pass, Oregon
Southern Oregon Bandits, Grants Pass, Oregon
Paquin’s Well Drilling, Grants Pass, Oregon

Pool B
Cal State Builders, NorCal
Seargant & Sons/Mock Mazda, Norcal & So Or
Brotherton Pipe, Medford, Oregon
Tule Lake Aces, Tule Lake, California

2009 Game Schedule(All Games at Riverside Park)

Friday Night
7pm Pool A Game 1 Mock Ford vs Southern Oregon Bandits

Saturday(All Games at Riverside Park)

9:30 am Pool A Game 2 CR Rockers vs Paquin’s Well Drilling
11:15 am Pool B Game 1 Brotherton Pipe vs Seargant & Sons/Mock Mazda
1pm Pool A Game 3 Mock Ford vs CR Rockers
3pm Pool B Game 2 Cal State Builders vs Tule Lake Aces
4:45pm Pool A Game 4 SO Bandits vs Paquin’s
6:30pm Pool B Game 3 Brotherton Pipe vs Cal State Builders
8:30pm Pool B Game 4 Seargant & Sons/Mock Mazda vs Tule Lake Aces

Sunday(All games at Riverside Park)
8:30am Pool A Game 5 Mock Ford vs Paquin’s Well Drilling
10:15am Pool B Game 5 Brotherton Pipe vs Tule Lake Aces
Noon Pool A Game 6 Cal State Builders vs Seargeant & Sons/Mock Mazda
1:45pm Pool B Game 6 Southern Oregon Bandits vs CR Rockers

Sunday Single Elimination Playoffs Begins at 3:30 PM
3:30 PM Game 13 B4 vs A1
5:15 PM Game 14 B2 vs A3
7:00 PM Game 15 A2 vs B3
9:00 PM Game 16 A4 vs B1

Monday
9:00 AM Game 17 Semifinal game 13 winner vs game 14 winner
11:00 AM Game 18 Semifinal game 15 winner vs game 16 winner
1:00 PM Game 19 Championship game winner of game 17 and 18

Editor’s note: We expect to receive some updates from the tournament and will post them here at the Morning Brief as they become available.

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Posted in General, Nor Cal, So Cal, Teams, Tournaments | No Comments »

Maddys Photos from Santa Fe Springs

Tuesday, May 19th, 2009


(Matt Barnes, pitching for Panteras II Sunday at Santa Fe Springs, CA)


(click logo to view photos from Santa Fe Springs Sunday)

Maddy has posted her photos from Sunday’s SCIFL league play at Santa Fe Springs, California. If you’re on one of the teams not shown, wondering why not – we were only there for the last few of games, (Silverhawks vs. Panteras II, LB Black Sox vs. Panteras and the championship game between Panteras and Panteras II (lots of maroon on that diamond). Hope you enjoy them.

“Free for All”

You’ll notice that you can right click and save the photos in this gallery, so if you like one, it’s yours. Maddy’s “free for all” gift to the local So Cal guys. (if you decide to post any on your team or other website, please add a “photo by Maddy Flanagan”)

Editor’s note: You’ll spot the wild finish to the Panteras walk-off win in the title game on the final page of the galleries, page 6. You can see the finish unfold, with Keith Barker at the plate, the swing, the game winning hit, and then the jubilation of the Panteras.

Feel free to peruse the Maddy’s Photos website to see what other events she’s been covering. The “featured” link on the top menu is a collection of shots that have been published in softball magazine. If you missed the earlier announcement, she is also blogging on her site, with some links to other galleries, including a video of a recent emergency response event at the airport, set to music.

Click here for the blog at Maddy’s photos.

You can always email Maddy directly, maddy (at) maddysphotos (dot) com

Posted in General, Leagues, So Cal | No Comments »

Best of the West – Santa Barbara, CA – May 30-31

Monday, May 18th, 2009

We’ll be posting more info shortly on the upcoming Best of the West Tournament in Santa Barbara, May 30-31, 2009, including the schedule of games. In the meantime, a few “notes on my scorecard”:

Tournament director David Blackburn told me yesterday, that he has sixteen (16) teams lined up for the tournament (May 30-31) in Santa Barbara, the largest field of team ever in the tournament’s longstanding 18 year history.

Among the teams headed to the beautiful coastal city in 2009 are the Pueblo Bandits and Innovative Communications (the 2007 BoW champs). Last year saw a couple of classic pitching match-ups between Lucas Mata (So Cal Bombers) and Sebastian Gervusutti (Team Rainey). Mata and the Bombers won the Saturday round robin game, while Sebastian and Team Rainey came away with the win on Sunday in the playoff round, and went on to capture the 2008 title.

The tournament was started in 1991 by Long Beach Painter’s GM Allan Ruegsegger, and held that first year as the “Best of the West Shootout” at Joe Rodgers field in Long Beach. That one featured the two Salt Lake City powerhouses of the day, Larry Miller Toyota, with Peter Meredith, and Page Brake, with Neil Chadwick, the Guanella Brothers, the Painters and Vista Bombers. (held so long ago, that I played in it).


The image above is from an old T-shirt from the 2nd Best of the West in 1992.

Since then, the tournament has made the rounds, being held in places like Soboba, Winchester, but seems to have settled into a home in Santa Barbara the past few years. David Blackburn has been the tournament director for most of the tournament’s history and now getting a big assist from the tournament’s Santa Barbara host, Clyde Bennnett. The tournament has been up and down in terms of the number of teams (down to a half dozen a few years ago), but the most reliable event on the So Cal schedule for nearly two decades, thanks to Dave’s hard work.

Click here for a bit of history of the tournament.

Posted in ISC, ISC-II, So Cal, Tournaments | No Comments »

Panteras over Panteras II in SCIFL Final at SFS

Monday, May 18th, 2009

From:

(Click logo for official SCIFL website)

From the official SCIFL website:

SANTA FE SPRINGS II

PANTERAS WALK OFF WITH THE CHAMPIONSHIP

Panteras score four in the bottom of the seventh to walk off with the championship over Panteras II. Click logo above for more information.

Editor’s note: Maddy has some photos from the weekend to share with our readers, keep an eye out for a link soon.

And on a slightly different subject, our two favorite adversaries are polishing their barbs for the upcoming “Best of the West”. These two never fail to provide some great entertainment. Rumor has it their show due for syndication next year.

For the un-initiated, these two “characters” are members of competing teams in the SCIFL. Here is a “discussion” about pitching rules from earlier in the week 🙂

Both happen to be good hitting pitchers, so things tend to reach a fever pitch when their teams square off, and especially so when the grudge match becomes personal, pitcher vs. batter and vica versa. All in good fun…..

(and if you still can’t figure out the real life players in this matchup, see this exchange)

Lots more on So Cal fastpitch, posted by players, coaches and fans at the Fastpitchwest forum.

Posted in General, Leagues, So Cal | No Comments »

Recap of LB Black Sox SCIFL Win at Palm Springs

Saturday, May 2nd, 2009

From Fred Hanker’s Long Beach Black Sox team website:

Rupp Throws Shutout in SCIFL Finals at Palm Springs

The Long Beach Black Sox won their 3rd consecutive tournament and 12th game in a row beating Travis Price and The Panteras 3-0. Ron Rupp beat The Panteras again throwing a complete game shutout striking out two and allowing 5 hits. No batter would reach third base for the Panteras the entire game. Travis Price and Ron Rupp both pitched outstanding games. The game was tied 0-0 after 2 innings with both pitchers on their game. In the Sox 3rd with 2 outs Matt Shaw tripled to left. Fred Hanker than hit the first pitch he saw up the middle for a RBI double making the score 1-0. The score held up thru the 4th and 5th innings. The Sox turned inning ending double plays in both of those innings. In the bottom of the sixth with one out Fred Hanker lined a single to left field. Todd Budke followed with a single to right field with Hanker going to third. With 2 outs and 2 strikes Gerald Pyle hit a long fly ball to right field which the right fielder misplayed and 2 unearned runs scored making the score 3-0. Hanker and Budke scored on the error. Ron Rupp put The Panteras away in the 7th inning and the Sox victory. The Sox 1-2-3 hitters did all the damage going 4-8 off Price with 3 runs and a game winning RBI by Fred Hanker. The Sox only got 5 hits as Fred Hanker was 2-3 and Matt Shaw tripled and Todd Budke and Gerald Pyle also singled. Long Beach celebrates another championship for 2009. This is also the 25th tournament The Long Beach Black Sox have won in their career. They improve to 24 – 4 in the SCIFL and have a stronghold on 1st place.


Click here to view Fred Hanker’s Photo Gallery from the SCIFL Palm Springs Weekend

Bottom Row left to right, Carlos Romero, Doug Shaw,Chris Martinez, Fred Hanker, Matt Shaw; Top Row left to right, Ron Rupp, Todd Budke, Chris Paiva, Randy Clay, Gerald Pyle, and Ken Shaw.
(click to enlarge)

Hey G – put a cap on that head ! 😉

Posted in Leagues, So Cal, Teams | No Comments »

Long Beach Black Sox Win Again

Monday, April 27th, 2009

From:

(Click logo for official SCIFL website)

In the latest SCIFL action, the Long Beach Black Sox once again claimed the weekend title, this time at Palm Springs. From the SCIFL website:

Palm Springs Tournament
The Long Beach Black Sox are Champions of the Palm Springs Tournament going 6-0 over the weekend for their third championship of the season. The Black Sox shutout the Panteras in the championship game 3-0. More info to follow shortly…

The Palm Springs tournament marks the halfway point of the SCIFL season, with four weekends remaining, all at Santa Fe Springs, CA:

May 16 – 17 Santa Fe Springs
June 27 – 28 Santa Fe Springs
July 11 – 12 Santa Fe Springs
July 25 – 26 Santa Fe Springs

Posted in General, Leagues, So Cal | No Comments »

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