Editors note: this story actually appeared back in April of this year, but we thought still deserving of posting here, in view of the accomplishment.
(click logo for original news story)
By TONY SMITH – The Press
The Canterbury Red Sox men’s softball team are celebrating their first major tournament title in 14 years after winning the Southern Cross Challenge series in Brisbane.
Vice-captain Scott Higgins batted home skipper Gareth Cook in the seventh inning to give Canterbury a 4-3 win over the Queensland Patriots state team in the tournament grand final which ended at 2am yesterday (NZ time).
“It’s Canterbury’s first major tournament win since 1996 when we won the national title [in New Zealand],” said Red Sox manager Jayden Moore.
“We’ve won Jefferies Cup [South Island] tournaments but nothing as big as this since `96, against real quality pitching.
“Carl Franklin [the Canterbury coach] is very happy with the way the boys stepped up against a real flame-thrower pitcher, Andrew Blackshaw.”
Cook won the tournament’s top batter award with a .667 average – meaning he got two safe hits from every three turns at bat. He also had a tournament on-base average of .800.
Moore said strike pitcher Nathan Taikato “got better and better as the week went on”. “He came out and contained the Queensland hitters last night.”
Shortstop Josh Harbrow proved Canterbury’s rising star with some outstanding infield plays. “He has great range and some of the plays he made were some of the best we’ve seen for a while,” Moore said.
Harbrow also hit four home runs during the tournament. He slugged a homer and a triple off Te Wai Pounamu pitcher Craig Gibson to win a round-robin game.
The Red Sox went into the final after losing 2-3 to Queensland in an earlier playoff.
They then crushed Te Wai Pounamu 15-0 in six innings in the preliminary final.
Josh Davison, a member of Australia’s world championship winning squad, slammed a home run to give Queensland a 1-0 lead in the final. But Callum Muir singled to score Josh Thompson for Canterbury’s tying run.
The Patriots edged ahead with another home run off Taikato, but Cook made it 2-2 in the fifth inning, scoring when the Queensland catcher dropped the ball at home plate on a force play.
A Harbrow mis-hit dribbled back to the Queensland pitcher, allowing a Canterbury runner to scoot home from third base to make the score 3-2 in the top of the sixth inning.
Davison did the damage again with a triple in the bottom of the sixth before scoring on a hit by former Black Sox international Corey Matakatea to tie the ballgame.
Cook singled in the top of the seventh and stole second base. Higgins – who had been hitless before the final – stepped up with his second safe hit of the game to bat in Cook for the go-ahead run. “Scott came up trumps when it was needed,” Moore said.
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“A lot of guys stepped up in the final. Carl [Franklin] was really happy because it was a real gutsy effort. There was nothing special, but the guys battled hard in the batter’s box against a guy who throws the ball very hard and they ground out a good victory.”
Moore said Blackshaw, who has just broken into the Australian squad, was “another Adam Folkard”, referring to the pitcher who shut out the Black Sox twice at the 2009 world championships in Canada.
He said the Canterbury hitters had done well against Te Wai Pounamu’s Gibson, a leading New Zealand pitcher. They also beat Brisbane club Scorpions with former Black Sox hurler Thomas Cameron on the mound.
Taikato got the ball for the final but Moore said backup pitcher Scott Sutherland “stepped up for us again” during the tournament and was in commanding form in the elimination game.
The Queensland Heat beat Australia under-19 2-1 in the women’s grand final. The Canterbury Red Hawks avoided the wooden spoon after beating Manolos 11-4 in the fourth-place playoff.
RED SOX
Canterbury’s title-winning squad was: Nathan Taikato, Scott Sutherland, Martin Warren, Brendon Batten, Ant Stuart, Josh Harbrow, Gareth Cook, Scott Higgins, Josh Thompson, Callum Muir, Matt Holmes, Carl McIlroy, James Johnston. Coaches: Carl Franklin, Mike Mountford.