Newfoundlanders Blair Ezekiel and Daniel Dalton fell just short of winning an International Softball Congress men’s world championship Saturday as their Circle Tap Dukes, based out of Denmark, Wisc., fell 8-1 to the New York Gremlins in the ISC final at the Peter Hallman Ball Yard in Kitchener, Ont.
Both Dalton (.417 batting average) and Ezekiel (.350, two home runs and six RBI) were named first-team, all-world players.
They weren’t the only players from the Molson St. John’s Senior Men’s Softball League toiling in Kitchener over the weekend.
The defending champion Hill United Chiefs of Ohsweken, Ont. featured Shane Boland, Brad Ezekiel and Jason Hill, along with head coach John Hill. The Chiefs, who won three straight ISC crowns from 2013-15, failed in their bid to make it two in a row after dropping a 6-2 quarter-final game to the Hallman, Ont. Twins.
Brad Ezekiel was a first-team all-world player, and also led the tournament with 14 RBIs. Boland was a second-team all-star.
The Twins had Ryan Boland, Sean Cleary and Stephen Mullaley in their lineup (Mullaley, from Freshwater, now lives in Oakville, Ont.).
Hallman reached the semis before losing 2-1 to the Dukes. Both Cleary and Ryan Boland were first-team all-world players.
Colin Walsh suited up for the Kitchener Hallman Cubs and was named to the second all-world team, while Kyle Ezekiel and Ryan Kirk both played for the Kegel Black Knights out of Fargo, N.D.
As an aside, 3 Cheers Pub of St. John’s traveled to the Kitchener to play in the ISCs, the first time since 1997 that a Newfoundland team played in the ISCs when the Corner Brook Monarchs took part in the event.
The Monarchs also played in the 1996 tournament, and Green Sleeves from St. John’s took part in the 1994 ISC championship, finishing 4-2 and 13th of 48 teams.
In Kitchener, 3 Cheers had a decent showing, finishing second in the Tier II division.
3 Cheers Pub dropped their first two games in the ISC world tournament, and as a result were relegated to the ISC II bracket.
The St. John’s senior men’s league squad dropped its first game in the Tier II bracket, 1-0 to Ontario’s Puslinch Kodiaks in eight innings, but would string together five straight wins to reach the final.
3 Cheers lost 5-1 to Alberta’s Irma Tigers in the final.
Import pitcher Tidima Kekana of South Africa, Justin Gill, Shane Kelly, Danny Mullins and Jeremy O’Reilly were Tier II all-tournament all-stars.
Gosse stars for Ontario squad in Legends tourney
Future Hall of Famer Ward Gosse of Torbay, one of the all-time Newfoundland and Labrador softball greats, was named MVP and top pitcher as his Relics of Sudbury squad from Ontario won the International Softball Congress Legends World Tournament Saturday in Kitchener, Ont.
Gosse threw a three-hitter with nine strikeouts, and knocked in the game’s only run with an RBI single in the bottom of the fifth inning as Sudbury beat the Bay Arena Merchants 1-0 in the championship game.
Sudbury went 6-0 and outscored their opponents 42-5.
