Apex team wins Senior Softball title
While many of the rest of us were keeping to air-conditioned spaces, more than 800 athletes ages 50 to 80-plus were braving the heat and humidity over the past week for the Senior Softball-USA Eastern National Championships at the Walnut Creek Softball Complex in Raleigh.
Fifty-six teams from east of the Mississippi River competed in 15 divisions and earned the opportunity to compete in the Oct. 15-24 World Championships in Phoenix, said Senior Softball CEO Terry Hennessy of Sacramento, Calif., who was in Raleigh for the event.
North Carolina was represented by two of the nine women's teams and 11 of the 47 men's teams in age groups ranging from Women's 40 to Men's 80. The Carolina Cardinals of Apex won the Men's 70 Silver title in a showdown of N.C. teams, defeating the Burlington Classic 70s 20-11, and the Carolina Cobras of Chapel Hill finished second in the Men's 55 AAA Division, losing 21-8 to Eagle Tile of Stevensville, Md. Code Electric of Wake Forest finished fourth in the Men's 60 AAA.
The Cobras are trying to raise funds for their Phoenix trip. The team will hold a golf tournament at 1 p.m. Sept. 24 at The River Golf Course in Louisburg. Entry costs $50. Contact Tom Stankus at 919-545-0702.
Read more about the Senior Softball tournament at blogs.newsobserver.com/play.
Men's championships: 50 Major: Sweet Construction (New York City) 22, Omega (Germantown, Md.) 20 50 AAA: Carolina A's (Concord) 20, Eagle Tile (Stevensville, Md.) 17 55 Major Plus: Black and Blue (Evansville, Ind.) 43, Bass Gloves (Richmond, Va.) 21 55-60: Sweet Construction (New York) 18, Turn Two (Richmond, Va.) 11 55 AAA: Bay State Bombers (Springfield, Mass.) 21, Carolina Cobras (Chapel Hill) 8 60 AAA: South Florida Heat (Coral Springs, Fla.) 19, Doc Martens (Martin, Mich.) 18 60 AA: Hitmen (Chicago) 21, Ohio Silverados (Mansfield, Ohio) 20; 60 Major: Northern Virginia Force (Springfield, Va.) 19, Bay State Bombers (Springfield, Mass.) 13 65 Silver: Syracuse (N.Y.) Cyclones 7, Bostonian Shoes (Boston) 0 65-70 Platinum: Southeast 70s (The Villages, Fla.) 14, Sun Coast Orthopedic Surgery (Englewood, Fla.) 1 70 Silver: Carolina Cardinals (Apex) 20, Burlington (N.C.) 70s 11 75 Major: Joseph Chevrolet (Fort Wright, Ky.) 19, Mitchell Construction (Stewartstown, Pa.) 7 75-80: Center for Sight 80s (Venice, Fla.) 22, Mami Construction (Columbus, N.J.) 19
Women's championships: 50: Dreamgirlz (Virginia Beach, Va.) 11, Maryland Roadrunners (Gaithersburg, Md.) 10 55-60: Golden Girls 55 (Burke. Va.) 8, Golden Girls 60 (Burke, Va.) 7
Cary golfers win junior championships
Two golfers from Cary won their first Carolinas Golf Association championships on Thursday, taking the overall titles at the sixth Dogwood State Junior Championship. Will Thomas of Cary defeated Andrew Decker of Greenville on the first playoff hole for the boys title, and Sarah Bae took a three-stroke victory for the girls title at Jack Nicklaus-designed The Club at 12 Oaks in Holly Springs.
N.C. Amateur Match Play Championship: Grant Houser of Holly Springs, Thomas Bass of Holly Springs and Jordan Walor of Wake Forest reached the quarterfinals of the inaugural N.C. Amateur Match Play Championship, but it was a player from outside the Triangle who took the title. Payne McLeod, 19, of Reidsville defeated Ryan Heisey of Greensboro 1-up in the final match on Sunday at The Country Club of Salisbury.
RSA wins Tar Heel States Swim Meet
Led by the North Carolina Aquatic Club, teams from the Triangle swept the top six places at the Tar Heel States Swim Meet held July 30-Aug. 1 at the Triangle Aquatic Club in Cary.
Host NCAC took first place with 3,070.50 points. Second place went to the Raleigh Swimming Association (2,808). Duke Aquatics (2,712.50) was third, followed by YMCA of the Triangle Area (2,280), the Marlins of Raleigh (2,337) and Wake County's New Wave Swim Team (1,439).
More than 600 athletes from 20 teams from across the state competed, assistant meet director Jack O'Donnell of NCAC reported.
High-point boys: 10-and-under, Connor Sept, 10, Duke Aquatics, 157; 11-12, Will Richie, 12, RSA, 136; 13-14 (tie), Stephen Hollinshead, 14, YOTA, 111, and Tommy Bilden, 13, Duke Aquatics, 111; and 15-up, David G. Williams, 16, NCAC, 120.
High-point girls: 10-and-under, Mary Pruden, 10, New Wave, 155.5; 11-12, Claire DeSelm, 12, NCAC, 142; 13-14, Allie Snyder, 14, YOTA, 117.5; and 15-up, Sarah M. Henry, 18, RSA.
For complete team scores and a link to individual results, go to blogs.newsobserver.com/play.
How to Play!
Print calendar: Type "PLAY!" into subject field and e-mail requests by 5 p.m. Thursday to play@newsobserver.com. (No attachments.)
More calendar listings: Find an expanded Play! calendar at share.triangle.com/playcal.
Team photos: Photos printed in the Play! report chosen from those posted by coaches at share.triangle.com/playpics.
News and announcements: Post anytime at share.triangle.com/play (in middle of page, find green "News & results" bar and click "Post").
Phone: Teri Boggess 919-829-4831 after 6 p.m. Fax: 919-829-4888 Mail: Play!, The N&O Sports Dept., 215 S. McDowell St., Raleigh, NC 27602
