The Mannheim Tornados defended the German Softball title with a 4-1 win against the Brauweiler Raging Abbots. It is their eight championship since 1996. They overcame a 0-1 deficit in the fourth. The Abbots had scored on a wild pitch. Alexandra MISELES tied the game after a squeeze bunt in the top of the fifth. Fridericke MEINCK brought the lead with a RBI-infield-single. Sonja GARNETT followed with a sacrifice fly. Christine LIPP plated the fourth run in the sixth with a RBI-triple. Mirjam TWEDELL dove for the ball, but he got through and rolled to the fence. GARNETT struck out six in the last three innings and got the save. Jutta LEHMEYER won the game, Anna NEUSER earned lost.
MAT 0 0 0 0 3 1 0 4 7 1
BRA 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 3 5
The Final Four in Ratingen began on Saturday with a preliminary round with round robin games. Brauweiler, Hamburg and Mannheim finished with the same 2-1 records. Only the Neunkirchen Nightmares lost all three games. The Raging Abbots got first place and a direct final berth due tie-breaker-rules. The Tornados and Knights were second and third.
They played a semifinal on Sunday morning to decide the opponent for Brauweiler in the afternoon. Mannheim clinched it with a 2-0 shutout. Anne-Maria GREWE and GARNETT dominated on the mound. Miriam KEMMER and MISELES took care of the run-support.
Results:
Saturday:
Mannheim Tornados – Brauweiler Raging Abbots 1-5
Hamburg Knights – Neunkirchen Nightmares 9-4
Brauweiler Raging Abbots – Hamburg Knights 6-7
Mannheim Tornados – Neunkirchen Nightmares 1-0
Hamburg Knights – Mannheim Tornados 8-9
Neunkirchen Nightmares – Brauweiler Raging Abbots 4-5
Standings after day one:
Team W-L
Brauweiler Raging Abbots 2-1
Mannheim Tornados 2-1
Hamburg Knights 2-1
Neunkirchen Nightmares 0-3
Sunday:
Semi-final (second vs. third):
Mannheim Tornados – Hamburg Knights 2-0
Final:
Brauweiler Raging Abbots – Mannheim Tornados 1-4
Final Standings Regular Season:
Mannheim Tornados
Brauweiler Raging Abbots
Hamburg Knights
Neunkirchen Nightmares
Individual Awards:
Best Batter: Alexandra MISELES
Best Pitcher: Sonja GARNETT
MVP: Anna NEUSER
BOXSCORES can be viewed on the Ratingen Gooseneck Website who have hosted the tournament.