Sunshine Auto Lady Wildcats take NPSA pennant

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

DON'T look now but the Sunshine Auto Lady Wildcats have added another New Providence Softball Association ladies' pennant to their collection.

But manager Anthony Bullard said they will be more satisfied when they hoist the league's championship crown in the air in the Banker's Field at Baillou Hills.

Saturday night, the Wildcats celebrated a feast with their sponsor Deanze 'Sunny' Cox and their fans after they took apart the Inventive Intellect Lady Warriors 12-4 in five innings.

"Pennant don't count," said Bullard, who can't remember how many they won, although they clinched the last three regular season-ending awards, this one with a 13-3 win-loss record over the Brackettes, who are 12-2, but whom they won 2-1 in their head-to-head confrontation.

"Championships is what we are aiming for. We had two back-to-back titles and so we want to go for the third one. With this team that I have, I think we can get that. We just feel we have the team to accomplish that goal."

Saturday night was a prime example as they survived a series of hit by pitches from the Lady Warriors' starting and losing pitcher Melinda Bastian to seal the abbreviated win.

Through the first four innings, Bastian beamed five Wildcats batters, including second sacker Mechelle Moss, who got knocked in her jaw and Bastian's sister, catcher Shara Woodside, who got bruised on her knee and had to limp off the field. "We know that we could beat this team here, but you can't put yourself down for the errors they make or if somebody gets hit," Bullard said. "If you hit somebody intentionally fine, but you don't want to intentionally, you have to remember that you are not getting paid to play this sport. So you to have to be competitive because at the end of the game, everybody is still friends."

There was no love loss for Sunshine Auto, who took advantage of Bastian's early erratic pitching to produce three runs in the bottom of the first, five in the second nd two in the third before she was replaced by Christine Jenoure and then Janette Hilton in the fourth as they added two more runs.

Shortstop Larikah Russell led the Lady Wildcats' offensive attack with a 1-for-3 outing with three runs bated in and scored another one. Their only other hit came from first sacker Lynette Kelly. Moss and center fielder Daria Cambridge, who also got hit by a pitch, both scored two runs.

Thela Johnson, with more control of her pitches, giving up three hits as many walks and seven strike outs. Johnson and the Lady Wildcats were working on a shutout until the third inning when the Inventive Intellect came up with three runs, highlighted by a run-producing single from first sacker Nadia Thompson. They added their final run in the fourth, but it wasn't enough.

Thompson paced the Lady Warriors' attack with a 1-for-3 night with a RBI and a run scored. Right fielder Shavonne Dames was 1-for-2 with a run scored and Jenoure was 1-for-1 with a run scored.

"Even though our ace pitcher (Brendisha Ferguson) was deployed (by the Royal Bahamas Defense Force to cover the Hurricane Dorian aftermath), we still got a good job from Melinda, who could have cut down on the hit pitches," said Lady Warriors' center fielder Keisha Pratt.

"Considering the circumstances, I think we came out and played our best. Some of our bats didn't come around as usual, but we played as best as we could."

As they now prepare for the playoffs, scheduled to start this weekend, Bullard said it doesn't matter who they face.

"You have to play every team as if this is your last game," he said. "Right now, a lot of girls were off and we're gelling together, which is good.

"So we expect for Mechelle (Moss), Ramona (Hanna) and Thela (Johnson) to carry this team straight through. We're probably the only team with three legitimate pitchers, so we will be okay."

Bullard was referring to the Bahamas Softball Federation women's national team's trip to Canada for the World Baseball Softball Confederation Softball Americas Qualifier for the 2020 Olympic Games in Surrey, Canada.

Bullard traveled as a coach, along with Johnson, Hanna and Cambridge.

Pratt, on the other hand, said once the Lady Warriors can get their offensive attack in a groove and their pitching hold up, they can be a team to reckon with in the postseason.

The league was scheduled to play a double header Saturday night, but only one game was played after the playoff bound University of the Bahamas Mingoes won by default over the hapless Strikers.

The league's regular season will close out on Tuesday with the final two games played. In the ladies' opener at 7 pm, the Inventive Intellect Lady Warriors will take on the UB Mingoes and in the men's feature contest, the pennant winning CS Enterprise Hitmen will play the Chances Mighty Mitts at 8:30 pm.

Current team standings

Ladies Division

Brackettes 12 2 .857 -

Sunshine Auto Lady Wildcats 13 3 .812 1

Inventive Intellect Lady Warriors 8 5 .615 31/2

University of the Bahamas Lady Mingoes 6 8 .428 6

Johnson's Lady Truckers 3 11 .214 9

Strikers 0 14 .000 12

Men's Division

CS Hitmen 12 1 .923 -

Chances Mighty Mitts 8 6 .571 41/2

Commando Security Truckers 8 7 .533 5

Renegades 0 14 .000 121/2