Softball action with Patrick Jones

The eyes of the softball world were fixed on Rogers Stadium this weekend as teams from El Salvador and Jamaica rolled into town to challenge the Belize National Team in two days of thrills and excitement on the diamond. Good Evening and welcome to Sports Monday, I am Patrick Jones, in tonight for James Adderley.

The Belize Softball Federation staged an international invitational tournament on Saturday and Sunday and it proved to be a huge success, as the ladies of Belize?s national team defended the nation?s softball pride in impressive fashion.

At brief opening ceremonies, Belize?s newest member of the International Hall of Fame Margaret usher was feted with gifts and words of praises fit for a queen. And when she threw out the ceremonial first pitch it showed that she?s still got what it takes.

When the pomp and ceremonies were over, it was time to play ball.

In the top of the first inning, Jamaica quickly got two runners on base via a series of illegal pitches and some first inning wildness on the part of the Marte Lotin pitcher Jacqueline Molina.

And when catcher Beverly Wallace punched this low outside pitch through the drawn in the third base position, Invaders were on the score board, at least ensuring that they would not be shut out on their first outing of the tournament.

But then Molina found her groove and it was pretty much lights out for the Jamaican offence for the next six innings.

Visa difficulties prevented the Invaders team from bringing their full contingent of players and coaches, but it didn?t mean they didn?t have supporters in the stands.

Down on the field pitcher Cachenne Barrett had a hard time finding the strike zone and walks El Salvador?s lead off hitter Lesbia Linares. That?s a no-no in softball, and two pitches later, Linares was off to the races, stealing her way into second base.

On the very next pitch, Cecy de Grijalva doubles to right centre, scoring Linares… and El Salvador was on the scoreboard.

But it wasn?t the only run they would score. As a matter of fact, El Salvador scored a whopping nine runs in the very first inning. The team scored seven in the second and for good measure added five more in the third bringing the score to 21-1.

The mercy rule was applied and El Salvador chalked up their first victory in the tournament.

In game two, Belize defeated Marte Lotin by a score of 6-2. The starting pitcher was Margaret Usher who, despite not very active in fast pitch competition, pitched two scoreless innings, proving that when you?re good, you?re good.

Mary Flowers and Kenisha Sutherland combined to keep the Salvadoran offence to only two runs over the next five innings.

In their second match up of the tournament, Jamaica, behind the pitching of Lanisha Jones of Esperanza whom they recruited at the last minute, gained some measure of satisfaction in holding the girls from El Salvador to just ten runs over seven innings, a marked improvement from the day before.

Get a good look at this pitcher people. A veteran of thirty years, Carmen Lizama is still going strong at fifty-four years old, and it doesn?t appear that she?s about to quit any time soon.

But in the second inning, Lizama gets no respect from the upstart Takiis Johnson who pulls the ball down the third base line. But an errant throw, allows the second Jamaican run to slide across home plate. Johnson winds up on second and the huge crowd at Rogers Stadium gives the Jamaican girls a well deserved round of applause.

Here we see Sonia Viscarra taking one of Jones? outside pitches and depositing it into left field. One run scores, but Viscarra gets adventurous and tries to score and is cut down at the plate and Jamaica celebrates.

In the end, El Salvador beat Jamaica by a score of 10-4.

Now that they were officially eliminated from the tournament, Jamaica took up a cheering role in the stand, routing for the Belizean girls.

In the final game of the triangular, behind the pitching of Shirlene Banner, the Belizean team took to the field for their second meeting with El Salvador.

The first half of the game was a scoreless affair, but what is pitcher Jacqueline Molina doing here in the fourth inning? It?s an obvious move by a veteran pitcher, trying to scuff the ball to get an unfair advantage over the hitter.

But nothing is going to get by crew chief Bernard Lynch and I.S.F. umpire Joel Westby on this night and they promptly put a new ball into play, much to the displeasure of the Salvadoran team. The coach comes out to argue, but really, this is a fight they can?t win and the game continues.

Here Lydia Cacho hits a routine ground ball to the short stop, but on a close play at first, the umpire calls her safe. El Salvador, more concerned about arguing with the umpire, gets caught up in a situation where they were throwing around the ball needlessly on the infield. When the ball gets away on an attempted put out at second base, Thalita Cruickshank scores and Cacho is right behind her.

And Belizean fans can feel a victory coming.

The game was pretty much out of reach by the time the sixth inning rolled around, but it didn?t stop Martha Rhys from depositing a Molina pitch into left field. She was off to the races and before the ball could be returned to the infield, she had circled the bases for an inside the park home run.

After the game, Rhys told Sports Monday that for her, the tournament served as a primer for the upcoming Champion of Champions tournament coming up in Guatemala at the end of the month.

Martha Rhys, Left Fielder, Team Belize

?For me it was a wonderful experience, especially like how we?re going on this trip to Guatemala come end of April, so as a workout, it was wonderful and it helped get me ready for when we go to Guatemala at the end of this month.?

Patrick Jones

?Did you expect this kind of game from El Salvador and Jamaica?

Martha Rhys

?Well I knew that they were not going to bring their full team, but it was as good as I expected. For Jamaica it was the first time, so I didn?t know what to expect.?

Carmen Lizama, Pitcher, Marte Lotin

“I feel very satisfied to have participated in these games. My team mates are new, and this is the first time that some of them are coming to Belize. I have played here before, last year I played in the inaugural Champion of Champions tournament here and we won the series two years ago. We didn?t win the series, but we enjoyed ourselves. Our real team, the full Marte Lotin team I believe is stronger, but we will see how it goes when we meet Belize in the upcoming tournament at the end of the month in Guatemala.”

The Invaders team has invited Belize to play in a tournament as part of Jamaica?s independence celebrations next year, and the Belize Softball Federation has accepted that invitation.

Turning to football, round one of the B.P.F.L. Regent Insurance Cup tournament ended this past weekend with four big matches. On Saturday night out at the Michael Ashcroft Stadium, Sagitun doubled up the San Pedro Sea Hawks 2-1. On Sunday at the Calcutta Field, the Calcutta Bulls and the Belmopan Builders Hardware Bandits played to a 1-1 draw. Out west at the Norman Broaster Stadium, Kulture Yabra defeated Hankook Verses 5-2. And in Dangriga at the Carl Ramos Stadium, league leaders Juventus handed Griga United a 1-nil defeat.

And so, going into round two, Juventus leads with 18 points, Kulture Yabra is second with 13 points, the Builders Hardware Bandits and Sagitun and tied at third with eleven points a piece, Griga United has nine points, San Pedro Seahawks seven points, Hankook Verdes six points and Calcutta Bulls brings up the rear with two points.

And that’s it for sports this week, I am Patrick Jones.