The National Primary School Softball Championships took place on Thursday and Friday, May 19 and 20, in Belize City with male and female champion teams representing their respective districts in games played at the Rogers Stadium and Youth Hostel Field. And it was the bitter end of a three-year reign for Crooked Tree Gov’t girls team who were undefeated until the final game, losing in an abbreviated two inning game to new primary school female national champions St. Jude RC of Camalote Village, Cayo District. San Jose Succotz RC, also of Cayo, took the male championship by beating Belize City’s Central Christian in the finals.
Male (M) and female (F) champions of each of the six districts participated in the tournament, with each team playing two games in the first stage on Thursday, and then on Friday the semifinals and finals were played.
In a quick summary of Thursday’s games, (F) Crooked Tree Gov’t defeated St. Jude, 9-2; (M) San Jose Succotz RC edged Central Christian, 6-5; (F) Independence Primary shut out Louisiana Gov’t, 8-0; (M) Independence Primary clobbered Louisiana Gov’t, 19-2; (F) St. Jude RC dropped Corozal Methodist, 10-4; (M) San Jose Succotz RC won over Our Lady of Guadalupe, 9-3; (F) Louisiana Gov’t clipped Forest Home Methodist, 3-1; (M) Toledo Christian Academy squeezed by Louisiana Gov’t, 2-1; (F) Crooked Tree Gov’t whipped Corozal Methodist, 3-0; (M) Central Christian slammed Our Lady of Guadalupe, 14-2; (F) Independence Primary earned a 7-2 win over Forest Home Methodist; and (M) Independence Primary shut out Toledo Christian Academy, 6-0.
In Friday’s semifinals, (F) Crooked Tree Gov’t crushed Louisiana Gov’t, 8-0; (M) San Jose Succotz RC swept Toledo Christian Academy, 6-0; (F) St. Jude RC burned Independence Primary, 3-2; and (M) Central Christian slipped past Independence Primary, 1-0.
The consolation 3rd place matches were next, and Independence Primary males and females both showed that their 1 run losses in the semifinals were proof of their high quality of play, when they handily beat their respective opponents for third place. (F) Independence Primary drilled Louisiana Gov’t, 12-0; and (M) Independence Primary got the win over Toledo Christian Academy, 6-3.
The female championship match was a mild upset, since in the first game of the tournament on Thursday, defending champion Crooked Tree Gov’t had easily dispensed with St. Jude RC, 9-2; but the tables were turned in the finals, as the game was called after the 2nd inning with St. Jude up 5-1, which gave them the victory and the female primary school championship.
The male championship match saw a repeat of their first encounter between San Jose Succotz RC and Central Christian. San Jose Succotz had won that meeting on Thursday by a 1 run margin, 6-5; and in the championship match on Friday, it was another 1 run margin, 7-6, with San Jose Succotz again the winners and the male primary school champions.
Female MVP for the tournament was Leonelle Aldana, pitcher for St. Jude RC (Cayo); and male MVP was Sergio Chan, pitcher for San Jose Succotz RC (Cayo).
(Information courtesy Ms. Barbara Cadle, Belize District Sports Coordinator, N.S.C.)