2019 Women's Major Softball
National Championship
August 1-4, Stratford, CT
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The Brakettes are the 2019 WMS Tournament Champions! Aug 5 – by Jeff Glazer – The Stratford Brakettes defeated the Lyons Spirit 11-3 in the WMS Championship Game on Sunday afternoon. The Brakettes have now claimed their ninth WMS title.The Brakettes entered the final game of their season on fire, outscoring their three opponents 39-1 in bracket play. The championship would be no exception. The team tallied 11 runs in the first inning alone, sending 15 hitters to the plate. Spirit pitchers Liz Parkins and Amanda Houck, who had been excellent throughout the tournament had no answer for the Brakettes onslaught to begin this one. Alex Heinen, who finished the season as the team's leader in RBIs, got things started with a two-run single. Marcelino followed her up with an RBI single of her own. After Lauren Pitney was hit by a pitch to load the bases, Adriana Gambino knocked in two more with a double. Gillian Birk piled on with a run-scoring single and Val Suto and Theresa Kane each knocked in a pair in their second at-bats of the inning. Jolie Duffner drove in one more for good measure before the inning concluded. Every single Brakette in the starting lineup, all 10 of them, scored a run in the first inning of this one. The team did all their damage here, driving in 11 runs on seven hits before the Spirit would even have a chance to pick up a bat and it would prove to be more than enough. 
Kaycee Talcik and Raeanne Geffert split this game between the two of them. Talcik would work two scoreless innings to start the game before getting herself in a bit of trouble against a tough Lyons Spirit squad. After the Spirit managed to put a dent into the lead, making it an 11-3 ballgame, Talcik gave way to Geffert to a tune of a standing ovation for a fantastic season on the mound for the Brakettes.Geffert, no stranger to big games like this having been awarded the Most Valuable Pitcher award in last year's tournament, would dominate the remainder of this one. It seemed almost poetic that she would be the one to close out the final game of the Brakettes season after her performance last year. She would be credited with the win in this one. This championship game held extra meaning for some, of course. With two outs in the fifth, the Brakettes just an out away from winning it all, they made a substitution. The all-time franchise leader in home runs and doubles and one of the all-time greats to ever wear the Brakettes jersey, Denise Denis, goes out on top to a standing ovation and her 10th championship victory. Denise has played with the team for the last 15 years and has been a force to be reckoned with in every single one. She was met with hugs from her teammates as well as members of the Spirit who have played alongside her over the years. A great moment for a great player. This game would end in the fifth with Geffert ending the Brakette's season with a strikeout, kicking off the celebrations. The WMS Championship Game had many of the same characteristics of most of the games this year, dominant pitching and plenty of run support. The Lyons Spirit fought hard throughout the tournament, proving themselves to be a force to be reckoned with by making it to their first final as a team. They were a joy to watch throughout and should be proud of their performance. Elaine Bedell, a mainstay in the Spirit lineup for so many years, also hangs them up after this game. The Brakettes wish her well and congratulate her on a fantastic career. The Brakettes finished their season winning 46 games in a row. It was an incredible run and ended in the best way it could have, a ninth WMS title for a team that deserved nothing less. |
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| 2019 WMS Champion Brakettes |
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| Lyons Spirit, 2019 WMS Second Place |
| WMS Championship Game (16) 1:00 p.m., Sunday, Aug 4 |
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| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | R | H | E | |||||
| BRAKETTES | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 7 | 0 | ||||||
| LYONS SPIRIT | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 5 | 1 | ||||||
| Batteries: Spirit- Liz Parkins (L), Amanda Houck (1) and Jesssica Strong; Brakettes- Kaci Talcik, Raeanne Geffert (3, W, 6-1) and Alex Heinen |
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