The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

BAHAMAS Softball Federation’s outgoing president Burkett Dorsett, who was re-elected as president of the English Caribbean Amateur Softball Confederation, said the Bahamas men’s triumph as the Leon ‘Apache’ Knowles champions in the four-day ECASC tournament was a spark in the right direction.

“The Bahamas had the most dominant fast pitch team and although they won the tournament, I don’t want the players to rest on their laurels,” Dorsett said. “I want them to use this as the road back to regaining their prominence in the third spot in the world.

“We just have to keep working at it, play more games and go to more tournaments. The team is a relatively young team and they can only improve on it. So with the plans afoot for softball in the Bahamas, with the help of the Canadian Softball Federation and what they plan to do for us and in the region as a whole, can only improve softball for the men and ladies in the future.”

There are plans by ECASC to set up a few pitching clinics - one in Aruba and the other in the Bahamas - and an umpiring clinic in the British Virgin Islands and Prime Minister Perry Christie has pledged the commitment from CARICOM as the chairman for the countries in the region.

Christie made his remarks to the teams during the opening ceremony on Thursday night. Also in attendance were Minister of Tourism Obie Wilchcombe, Minister of Youth, Sports snd Culture Dr Daniel Johnson and Bahamas Olympic Committee president Wellington Miller.

Wilchcombe was also in attendance and he showed up on the closing night on Sunday, along with Deputy Prime Minister Philip ‘Brave’ Davis.

Dale McMann, president of the International Softball Federation, also attended the event. McMann was in town for a dual purpose as he inducted Rommell Knowles and Oria Wood-Knowles as the 14th and 15th Bahamians into the ISF’s Hall of Fame at Government House on Wednesday night.

The dignitaries and a jam-packed Bankers Field at the Baillou Hills Sporting Complex got a chance to watch as the Bahamas men blasted Aruba 15-2 to win the Leon ‘Apache’ Knowles trophy as the initial champions of the men’s tournament. The British Virgin Islands had to settle for the bronze after getting shut out 9-0 by Aruba, while the Cayman Islands rounded out the four-team field in fourth place.

• Here’s a look at the individual winners of the various awards:

Batting champion (Billy McKlewhite award)

Nateshon Thomas (British Virgin Islands) - 10-for-13 for a .716 average

Most hits (Rudy Evans award) - Sherman Ferguson (Bahamas) - 11 hits

Most strike out (Jimmy Lee award) - Thomas Davis (Bahamas) - 21

Most wins (Foster Bethel award) - Thomas Davis (Bahamas) - 3-0 win-loss record

Most runs batted in (Charlie ‘Binks’ Bethel award) - Sherman Ferguson (Bahamas) - 12 RBI

Round robin MVP (Colin ‘Troppy’ Knowles award) - Sherman Ferguson (Bahamas) - most hits (11); most RBI (12); most home runs (4), most runs scored (10), batting 11-for-15 for a .718 average

• All-Tournament team (Arthur ‘Old Art’ Thompson award):

Pitcher - Thomas Davis (Bahamas); catcher - Angelo Dillet (Bahamas); first base - Kelvin Silvania (Aruba); second base - Richard Bain (Bahamas); third base - Nateshon Thomas (British Virgin Islkands); shortstop - Desmond Russell (Bahamas); leftfield - Garfield Bethel (Bahamas); centerfield - Kenny Hart (Aruba); right field - Sherman Ferguson (Bahamas) and utility plaayer - Edward Cannister (Aruba).

Championship MVP (Colin ‘Trophy’ Knowles award) - Wayne Johnson (Bahamas)