J&B defeats Maccabi USA 6-5 in 8 innings to win Championship of 2011 BreederRupp Tournament in Long Beach.
J & B reached the finals with an 11-0 win over the Panteras, while Maccabi USA topped Black Curtain, 11-9. The Championship game at 2:30 was quite an exciting affair. Sonny Perkins started in the circle for J&B, and Jason Gluckman toed the rubber for Maccabi USA. After a few innings, the score was tied 1-1 when J&B later added two runs to take a 3-1 lead. In the top of the 7th, Maccabi USA Shortstop David Shpiro hit a dramatic triple in the gap with two runners on, to make the score 3-3. Shpiro then subsequently scored from 3rd to stake Maccabi to a 4-3 lead, heading into the bottom of the 7th. J&B answered with a run in the bottom of the 7th to send the game into extra innings, and the International tie breaker.
With each team starting with a runner on 2nd Base, Maccabi managed to score a single run in top of the 8th, but J&B answered the bell again, and added two runs in the bottom of the 8th to win the 2011 BreederRupp Championship.
This off season tournament was held at beautiful El Dorado Park in Long Beach.
The purpose of the tournament is two-fold. With no entry fees required for the 7 participating teams, This is a way for the Maccabi USA softball program to say “Thank you” to all of the Southern California teams who we compete against during the Spring and Summer. We also use the tournament as a fund raiser project for the Charlotte Blackburn Fund within Maccabi USA to support the Men’s Fastpitch Softball Fund. I organized a contest among the players on Saturday to pick the order of finish for the 5 Heisman Trophy finalists. We had 5 correct entries out of 67 participants and generated $335 for the fund.
On Dec 24th, Twenty Jewish Mens Fastpitch players from the United States will be making up a USA Red Team, and a USA Blue Team, and heading South of the Equator. They will be among 2,000 Jewish athletes from countries in the Western Hemisphere that will be participating in the 12th Pan-American Maccabiah Games in Sao Paolo, Brazil. 6 Fastpitch Teams will play in the softball competition within the games, and they will return to the USA on January 3rd, 2012. For the Sao Paolo New Years Celebration, all the players will need to be able to count backwards from 10, in the Portugese language to ring in the New Year. It should be a great fastpitch adventure for all 20 players, and leave them with memories and new friendships for a lifetime. I know that to be true, as I previously participated for Maccabi USA fastpitch in the 8th, 9th, 10th, and 11th Pan American Maccabiah Games.
Many special thanks to Maccabi USA player Larry Silfen, who is the driving force behind organizing, promoting, and executing the annual BreederRupp Tournament. Larry was introduced to fastpitch in the summer of 2008 when he tried out for the Maccabi USA Masters team that would travel to Israel in the summer of 2009 for the 18th World Maccabiah Games. Needless to say, he made the ball club, and subsequently was inflicted with Fastpitch Fever. Larry has given much of his personal time, and financial commitment to our program. The BreederRupp is just one way that Larry plays a much appreciated leadership role in our ongoing Maccabi USA Men’s Fastpitch Program.
Larry has worked hard to become an accomplished hitter from both sides of the plate, and he is among Southern California’s most versatile defensive players, as he has played at all 8 defensive positions, outside of pitching. He is truly an asset to our program on many levels.
Dave
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