Pantera’s 14th Annual Valentine’s Day Tournament
C and B Division
February 18th and 19th, 2006
Pool Play on Saturday; Single Elimination on Sunday
Entry Fee: $300.00
Make all checks and money orders to: Panteras Sports Club
Awards will be awarded to 1st & 2nd Place teams
For Info please Contact: Fernie Ramirez (562) 762-8397
Archive for the ‘So Cal’ Category
Pantera’s 14th Annual Valentine’s Day Tournament
Tuesday, February 7th, 2006Long Beach Nitehawks Named to Top 50 Sports Moments
Monday, February 6th, 2006From the Press-Telegram Newspaper, Long Beach California:
LB Nitehawks # 14 on Press-Telegram’s 50 Greatest Moments in Long Beach Sports History
ISC Hall of Famer and LB Nitehawk Great Nick Hopkins Was Honored by the Long Beach Century Club this week. (File Photo by Press-Telegram)
Before there was Sean Burroughs and the Little League heroes, before the Dirtbags were born, before Lisa Fernandez, before Tony Gwynn, before Sean’s dad Jeff, before Joe Hicks, before Blair Field, before all those CIF champs and stars, even before Bob Lemon became a star, there were the Long Beach Nitehawks.
Born in 1933, relocated to Long Beach in 1939. Winners of 10 International Softball Congress world championships. Twenty-three Hall of Famers. That is not a misprint.
The franchise folded in 1988 and scarcely anyone but the old-timers in town noticed because men’s professional fast-pitch softball had lost whatever modest appeal it once held for the masses. On the sports menu, it went from entree to appetizer to fast-dissolving after-dinner mint.
But in its own time, the Nitehawks were a source of pride and success in town. The ball-and-bat lineage of Lemon and Vern Stephens can be traced to the Nitehawks, and former Cubs and PCL star Lou Novikoff had an entire second act on the field with the Nitehawks.
Nick Hopkins was one of the finest-fielding shortstops in pro softball history, and the Wilson product and one-time Boston Red Sox prospect played 19 seasons for the Nitehawks. Saturday night, he’ll be inducted into the Century Club Hall of Fame, joining two other Nitehawk legends, team founder Joe Rodgers and former player, manager and owner Red Meairs.
Amid all of Long Beach’s rich baseball history, the Nitehawks also earned a lofty spot on the Century Club’s 50 Greatest Sports Moments List that was compiled in honor of the club’s 50th anniversary.
So Cal Bombers sign Evan Potskin
Sunday, January 29th, 2006From Al’s Fastball: So Cal Bombers sign Evan Potskin
The Southern California Bombers have acquired the services of Evan Potskin for the 2006 season.
Long Beach Black Sox Capture Amigos Tournament Title
Saturday, January 28th, 2006From the Long Beach Black Sox website
The Long Beach Black Sox put it all together this weekend in going 5-0 in Whittier Narrows in route to the championship. The Sox scored 48 runs and only allowed 16 in the 5 games. Chuck Vranich was 3-0 and his counterpart Randy Clay was 2-0. Fred Hanker and John Otte led the offensive attack going a combined 20-28 with 22 RBI.
Click link above for complete recap.
So Cal Bombers Ink Chad Ghostkeeper for 2006 Season
Tuesday, January 24th, 2006From Al’s Fastball: So Cal Bombers Add Ghostkeeper Southern California Bombers out of Calimesa, CA have acquired the services of Chad Ghostkeeper for the 2006 season. The Bombers welcome Chad to the Bombers fastball team. Chad hails from Prince George, British Columbia.
Editor’s note: Chad Ghostkeeper was the leading hitter at the Senior Canadians in 2005, hitting .517 in the tournament (15 for 29). Cap tip to Blair Setford for the link.
Vilanders, Long Beach Gamecocks roll out new website
Tuesday, January 17th, 2006Be sure to check out the Long Beach Gamecocks new website:
Long Beach Gamecocks
Here’s a short excerpt about the team from their site:
The Long Beach Gamecocks Fastpitch Softball Team was founded by the father and son combo of Don and Tyler Vilander in 2005.
The father-son tandem has been in or around the game for the last thirty years, whether it was Don bringing Tyler’s little league baseball team out to Joe Roger’s, or taking the family to Hawaii to watch his team win the Bob Rapp tournament; it was just a matter of time until Tyler picked up the game.
That time came this past summer when Tyler was invited to fill in with “Those Guys†at the Santa Barbara tournament. After that tournament Tyler’s excitement rubbed off onto his friends and they all teamed up with “Those Guys†in the Cal Cup, where they met Joe Edwards. With a verbal commitment from Joe to join the new team Don and Tyler started the “Long Beach Gamecocks.â€
Editor’s note: Don Vilander and I went to school together, growing up playing fastpitch on the playgrounds in Long Beach. It’s great to see him passing the game on to “the next generation”, to his son Tyler and his friends.
Click here to visit our “Teams” webpage which now includes a link for the Gamecocks. Is your team’s website or webpage listed? If not, email us and we’ll add you! (jim [at] fastpitchwest.com)
So Cal Bombers Announce Ambitious Schedule for 2006
Monday, January 16th, 2006The So Cal Bombers, who recently announced the signing of All World catcher Darren Box to cap off a busy free agent season, announced their schedule for the 2006 season, playing in a number of top tournaments out west, as well as the midwest, which many of the top teams call home. They’ll do battle for the ASA Major title in South Bend, IN, then head on to the biggest challenge of them all, the ISC World Tournament in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada. Last year — without the benefit of some of the recent all-star additions — the squad took 10th place out of 40 teams, the first time a team from California finished in the top 10 in more than a decade. This schedule will put them to the test.
February 18-19 Norwalk, CA
April 22-23 Palm Springs, CA
May 6-7 Red Rock-St. George, UT
May 26-28, Pueblo, Colorado
June 16-18 Saskatoon, Alberta-strike that, it’s Saskatchewan, thanks Blair.
June 23-25 Portland, Oregon – Rose Cup
July 7-9 Denmark, WI – Boys of Summer
July (TBA) Best of the West, CA
July 28-30 Vancouver, BC – Vancouver Challenge
Aug 3-6 South Bend, IN – ASA Majors
Aug 11-19 Kitchener, ON – I.S.C. World Tournament 2006
The team also released its roster for 2006, noting that another signing or two is possible before the season begins:
So Cal Casa Trejo Bombers
2006 RosterAlbert Mandibles IF Prescott, AZ
Arturo Solano DH/IF Calexico, CA
Dan Winick OF Walnut Creek, CA
Darren Box DH/IF Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Glen Ormsby IF Kaelowna,BC, Canada
Jason Gruckman IN/OF Granada Hills, CA
Jason Porto OF Elk Grove, CA
Mike Butler IF La Verne, CA
Nate Devine OF La Verne, CA
Raymundo Parra IF/DH Ensenada, BC, MX
Kellie Winstrom IF Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Ryan Brand P Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Tony Peeples P San Miguel, CA
Travis Price P Corona, CAManager Kellie Winstrom Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Coach Cesar Rodriguez Huntington Beach, CA
Thanks to the Bombers’ coach and webmaster, Cesar Rodriguez for this report.
Amigos Tournament Rescheduled for Jan 21-22 After Rainout
Sunday, January 15th, 2006The Amigos Tournament at Whittier Narrows, CA has been Re-Scheduled for Saturday 1/21 and Sunday 1/22/06 due to a rainout Saturday morning.
The first 2 Games were completed with the Black Sox and Primos winning. The tournament will resume with the current schedule beginning at 10:00 am on Saturday. Read about the Black Sox’ first win of 2006 at Fred Hanker’s Long Beach Black Sox website.
So Cal Bombers Sign Three Time ISC World Champion Darren Box
Saturday, January 14th, 2006The So Cal Bombers have acquired the services of Darren Box from Edmonton, Alberta, Canada & Kelly Wenstrom from Langdon, Alberta, Canada for the 2006 season. The team announced the signing Friday, stating:
“The Bombers are extremely happy to add a world class player like Darren Box and Kelly Wenstrom.”
The team is still in negotiations with one more player, the Bombers will be posting their final roster and tourney schedule for the 2006 Season in the coming days.
(Click photo to enlarge)
Editor’s Notes:
Box, at age 29, has already achieved what many spend a career trying to accomplish. He has three ISC World Tournament Championship rings, having been a member of the Broken Bow Spirit, which won the tournament in 2001, 2003 and 2004. He was selected All World catcher at the ISC World Tournament in those championship runs, and named the tournament’s MVP in 2001 at age 25.
Darren hails from the home of “The Great One”, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, is currently a member of the Senior Canadian’s men’s team (Team Canada), and has competed internationally, playing in the Pan American Qualifier in Guatemala in 2002. He was also a member of the Canadian championship team in 1999.
Box, at 6 foot 4, 240 pounds, is one of those rare athletes that combines size, power and speed, even batting leadoff at times last year. Darren started playing fastball at age 6, also playing hockey until he was 15. When he’s not playing fastball, Box makes his living as a private investigator, which gives him the freedom to take time off for fastball. His talent and leadership could propel the Bombers to a place among the elite teams in the game.
In 2004, the Bombers finished 10th out of 40 teams in the ISC World Tournament, the first time a California team had done so in more than a decade. With the addition of Box and several other Canadian players, including pitcher Ryan Brand, the Bombers are positioned to run with the big dogs in 2006.
2006 Southern California ASA Schedules
Sunday, January 8th, 2006The 2006 schedule of league weekends for the So Cal ASA has been posted to the So Cal ASA website:
2006 Southern California ASA Schedules:
March 4-5 Santa Fe Springs A/B & C
March 25-26 Palm Springs A/B & C
April 1-2 Santa Fe Springs A/B & C
April 22-23 Palm Springs A/B & C
May 20-21 Lancaster A/B & C
May 27-29 Palm Springs A/B
June 24-25 Lancaster B & C
July 8-9 Santa Fe Springs A/B & C
July 22-23 Santa Fe Springs A/B & C