BY MEL FERRAND
Chicago MSA's Women's Softball League proved that 'Anything can happen...' saying this year, where there were upsets in three of four divisions and amazing games.
The 'A' division held the only playoffs where what you would expect to happen, happened. The No. 1 and No. 2 seeded teams from the regular season played each other in the championship game and the returning champs, No. 1 seed, Nubians, won the division for a second year in a row. However, even that wasn't ordinary, because the game itself was spectacular. No. 2 team, SPIN Fusion, came out swinging. They scored one run in the first inning and 12 in the second.
Unfazed, the defending champs held them for the next five innings. In the top of the seventh inning, SPIN Fusion had two runners on base and two outs. Ultimately, they ran out of steam when their final out was a long fly ball into center field. When the dust settled, the Nubians were victorious 14-13, delivering not only a second annual win, but dazzling their fans and general spectators alike. The Nubians are notorious for gathering a crowd and this year's championship game was no exception. Numbering around 50, their dedicated fans withstood the stifling heat of the day and the 3-hour wait between semi-final and championship games to ultimately celebrate with their heroes, a game that was well worth the anticipation.
Meanwhile, everywhere else in the league, things were up for grabs.
In the 'B' division, the largest in the league, with 14 teams, everyone was jockeying for a good spot as they charged toward the championship game. No. 2 seed, Swingers, was victorious after jumping three hurdles including defeating No. 1 seed, Joie Di Vine, in the championship game. Two beating one isn't unheard of, but the way they won bears mentioning. Joie De Vin sat comfortably in a 9-0 lead after the first inning. By the fourth, they still had a comfortable lead with a score of 12-4.
However, the game took a significant turn during this mid-point. Both teams were hitting well and Swingers was closing the gap. Going into the seventh, and presumably last inning, the Swingers team was down 17-12, had two outs and needed five runs to tie the game or face defeat. Without even considering the alternative, Swingers pushed themselves to their limits and drove the game into extra innings. Joie De Vin made a valiant effort at hanging on to their quickly disappearing lead, but Swingers rallied the rest of their strength and won the game 20-19.
In each of the sister 'C' divisions ( C1 and C2 ) the third and fourth seeded teams trounced through the playoffs to meet each other in the championship games. The second largest division in the league, C1 boasted 11 teams this year and the most upsets during playoffs. Honorable mention must go to tenth seed, Closet Babes. They bested not only seventh seed Star Gaze Crush but also No. 2 seed, Scot's Tomcats. The Closet Babes ultimately had their doors closed down by the eventual division champs Team Fun in the semi-final game. However, Team Fun's path to the winner's circle was also cleared in part by the team they played for the championship, Guurl Trouble. This No. 5 seeded team eliminated first-place Spin during their semi-final game. Unfortunately for the Guurls, they met up with trouble they couldn't handle during the championship game and Team Fun was victorious.
Finally, C2 ( essentially the 'D' division ) had significant upsets, despite having the smallest number of teams in the league. Weighing in with only six, each team had the luxury of playing the others twice during the regular season. However, this division performed possibly truest to the adage, anything can happen in the playoffs, because it did.
Not only did the third-seeded team beat the No. 2 team, additionally, the No. 4 team, t's Master Batters, eliminated the first-place Shirts Illustrated Sparks. Ending the season with an 8-2 record, Shirts Illustrated expected to enter the playoffs and make it to the championship where they would meet their season nemesis CLSC Uptown Addicts. Much to everyone's surprise, neither team saw the winner's circle. At the end of two fierce semi-final games, both were knocked out. Master Batters, who had lost both regular season games to the Sparks, beat them by one run in the last inning. And to prove lightning can strike the same place twice, a similar upset happened between Chaos and the Addicts on the neighboring field. The final game was a romp. Whether it was riding the high of their win against the Sparks, Chaos has that name for a reason, or just maybe, simply because anything can happen in the playoffs, Master Batters slaughtered Chaos 31-15. Whew! I can hardly wait for flag football season!
See www.chicagomsa.com .
