The review will be managed by Directors Scott Dawes (Vice President) Director of Pathways, Competitions & Tournaments and Geoff Pearce Director of High Performance & Facilities.
In announcing the review the President of Baseball Victoria Myles Foreman said “this is an opportunity to encourage feedback on the State Team and Academy Program from our participants directly and to take the learnings to improve and enhance these programs”.
Neale Price CEO of Baseball Victoria said “I look forward to receiving the feedback from the review, analysing, and assessing each area in regards to inclusion into 2015/2016 programs”.
Scope
The review will cover all Baseball Victoria representative & high performance programs across all relevant age groups, including the women’s program.
Purpose
The review’s purpose is for Baseball Victoria to:
Test & measure it’s programs against Baseball Victoria’s strategic plan pillar of High Performance;
Garner feedback from key stakeholders, including players, parents, coaches & officials;
Determine what’s working, what’s not & what can be done better; and
Establish a selection policy for communication to all participants & the broader baseball community
Deliverables & Timelines
Stakeholder surveys conducted online by 26 June 2015
Interviews with selected stakeholders (coaches, officials & Baseball Victoria staff) conducted by 26 June 2015
Review of documented selection policies (within Baseball & from other sports) by 12 June 2015
Selection policy, program report & recommendations completed by 10 July 2015
The National Little League Championships wrapped up this week in Lismore New South Wales. Victoria was represented by the Yarra Rangers, Southern Mariners and the Northern Diamondbacks. All three teams picked up wins over the course of the tournament with the Mariners finishing 8th, the Rangers finishing 13th and Diamondbacks finishing 15th overall. More importantly all teams gave their all and had a blast.
Teigan Otter from the Yarra Rangers came second in the Home Run Derby and the Yarra Rangers also completed the Fielders Choice Little League Challenge. They won some great prizes to take home and use at their Little League training. The Diamondbacks put in a fantastic effort all week and won their final game against Ryde South 9 - 5. A fantastic fourth inning rally sparked an 11 - 5 win for the Southern Mariners over the Gold Coast. All teams played with a great spirit and had a blast and Baseball Victoria congratulates all of the participants from Victoria on a great tournament.
Cronulla finished first overall beating Swan Hills in the final and they now get the chance to compete at the Little League World Series this August. Congratulations to all the participants with the future of baseball in Australia looking bright after a showing like that.
Another successful State Winter Championships wrapped up on Monday with the Geelong Baseball Association playing through some close contests to win the Metro Division of the tournament over the City team. GBA scored early in the contest and with the pitching of Rowe and Lee they saw the game out. Zablan also chipped in and hit a 2 run blast to break the game open in the middle innings.
In the Country Division North East had a convincing win over Mt.Gambier in the morning but were outdone by Sunraysia in the championship game. Sunraysia had sealed their place in the final on Saturday afternoon and ran out winners 6-1.
Baseball Victoria was happy with the weekend with both competitions the strongest they had been for a number of years. Both the Metro and Country Divisions were evenly poised in pitching and hitting. The Country Division finalists were not decided until all of the scheduled matches were complete. Names like Daryl George (Aces Academy), Taylor Rowe (GBA), Blake Cunningham (DBA) as well as Jason Lester and Luke Ables (City) all showed their talents with the latter two excelling in the showcase game on Saturday night when the Academy side lost to GBA 1-0.
The crowds were up over the weekend and whilst the Senior Winter Championships are not as popular as they once were momentum is building as more and more people get behind the tournament. The addition of the academy team was a success and added to the strength of the competition as a whole. Hopefully next year the Diamond Valley and Ringwood associations can add teams and take it back to a six-team competition.
Thanks to the hosts Guild, GBA and the East Belmont Saints for hosting and providing food as well as the fantastic playing arenas. Thanks also to Stuart Howell and the crew of umpires and to all of the players who gave up their long weekend to play such an impressive brand of baseball.
Author: Cam Gleeson
For all match reports done over the weekend go to the link below.
http://baseballvictoria.com.au/News-Events/Around-the-Grounds
GBA website
http://www.geelongassociation.baseball.com.au/
Podcasts
https://soundcloud.com/search?q=Cam%20Gleeson
For all match reports done over the weekend go to the link below.
http://baseballvictoria.com.au/News-Events/Around-the-Grounds
GBA website
http://www.geelongassociation.baseball.com.au/
Podcasts
https://soundcloud.com/search?q=Cam%20Gleeson
LISMORE -- For the first time in history, a NSW side will represent Australia at the Little League World Series in Williamsport, USA. After trailing early, Cronulla rallied for four runs in the fifth innings to beat Swan Hills 7-3, and win the 2015 Bendigo Bank Australian Little League Championships.
“We knew that we had a pretty special group here but as you know, you come up to something like this and you need a little bit of luck along the way,” Cronulla Head Coach Darren Fullerton said.
Swan Hills got on the board first in the championship game, scoring a pair of runs in the top of the second innings on a fielder’s choice and an error. Cronulla rebounded to take a one-run lead in the bottom of the same frame. Blake Cavill led off the inning with a double and scored on Luke Krkovski’s single. Two more runs crossed the plate on a groundout and a single, and by mid-game Cronulla had a close 3-2 lead.
But the WA side wouldn’t go down without a fight and Swan Hills tied the game on a solo shot by Benjamin Hewett in the top of the fifth innings. The pressure was on for Cronulla, and the Sharks responded with the same bite they’d shown all throughout the tournament. With the bases loaded and no outs, Andrews hit a sacrifice fly that drove home the go-ahead run and started a string of Shark offence. By the inning’s end, Cronulla led by four runs, and held on to win the game 7-3.
“The hallmark of this team has been that we execute all the way down the order,” Fullerton said. “You saw that here today, not only swinging the bats but understanding what the situation is. We had guys put the ball in play when they had to, we had the bunts get down when they had to, you know I couldn’t be more impressed with this group of kids".
The tournament was deemed a major success in Lismore, with NSW Government representatives closely following the action.
“Congratulations to Cronulla on being crowned Australia’s best Little League team, following six fantastic days of competition here at the Albert Park Baseball and Softball Complex in Lismore," Member for Lismore Thomas George said.
“The Australian Little League Championships has demonstrated to hundreds of visitors why Lismore is a top destination for events, and also for enjoying spectacular scenery, great dining and visitor attractions," Minister for Trade, Tourism and Major Events Stuart Ayres said. “I’m very proud the NSW Government secured this event through our tourism and major events agency Destination NSW, in partnership with Lismore City Council.”
Final standings:
*Bottom four teams in no order
Cronulla
Swan Hills
Ryde North
Hills
Perth Metro Central
Perth Metro East
Perth Metro North
Southern Mariners
Manly
Adelaide West
Adelaide North
Central Coast
Northern Diamondbacks
Ryde South
Yarra Rangers
Gold Coast
West Coast
Northern Territory
Canberra
Brisbane North
WATCH GAME REPLAYS AND HIGHLIGHTS
FULL EVENT INFORMATION AND LINKS
LISMORE -- For the first time in history, a NSW side will represent Australia at the Little League World Series in Williamsport, USA. After trailing early, Cronulla rallied for four runs in the fifth innings to beat Swan Hills 7-3, and win the 2015 Bendigo Bank Australian Little League Championships.
“We knew that we had a pretty special group here but as you know, you come up to something like this and you need a little bit of luck along the way,” Cronulla Head Coach Darren Fullerton said.
Swan Hills got on the board first in the championship game, scoring a pair of runs in the top of the second innings on a fielder’s choice and an error. Cronulla rebounded to take a one-run lead in the bottom of the same frame. Blake Cavill led off the inning with a double and scored on Luke Krkovski’s single. Two more runs crossed the plate on a groundout and a single, and by mid-game Cronulla had a close 3-2 lead.
But the WA side wouldn’t go down without a fight and Swan Hills tied the game on a solo shot by Benjamin Hewett in the top of the fifth innings. The pressure was on for Cronulla, and the Sharks responded with the same bite they’d shown all throughout the tournament. With the bases loaded and no outs, Andrews hit a sacrifice fly that drove home the go-ahead run and started a string of Shark offence. By the inning’s end, Cronulla led by four runs, and held on to win the game 7-3.
“The hallmark of this team has been that we execute all the way down the order,” Fullerton said. “You saw that here today, not only swinging the bats but understanding what the situation is. We had guys put the ball in play when they had to, we had the bunts get down when they had to, you know I couldn’t be more impressed with this group of kids".
The tournament was deemed a major success in Lismore, with NSW Government representatives closely following the action.
“Congratulations to Cronulla on being crowned Australia’s best Little League team, following six fantastic days of competition here at the Albert Park Baseball and Softball Complex in Lismore," Member for Lismore Thomas George said.
“The Australian Little League Championships has demonstrated to hundreds of visitors why Lismore is a top destination for events, and also for enjoying spectacular scenery, great dining and visitor attractions," Minister for Trade, Tourism and Major Events Stuart Ayres said. “I’m very proud the NSW Government secured this event through our tourism and major events agency Destination NSW, in partnership with Lismore City Council.”
Final standings:
*Bottom four teams in no order
Cronulla
Swan Hills
Ryde North
Hills
Perth Metro Central
Perth Metro East
Perth Metro North
Southern Mariners
Manly
Adelaide West
Adelaide North
Central Coast
Northern Diamondbacks
Ryde South
Yarra Rangers
Gold Coast
West Coast
Northern Territory
Canberra
Brisbane North
WATCH GAME REPLAYS AND HIGHLIGHTS
FULL EVENT INFORMATION AND LINKS
LISMORE, NSW – The championship matchup of the Bendigo Bank Australian Little League Championships is set, with New South Wales side Cronulla taking on Western Australia team Swan Hills tomorrow afternoon at 3:15pm.
Both sides won their respective pools in the opening rounds of tournament play, with Cronulla defeating fellow NSW side Hills 4-2 to advance and Swan Hills winning its semifinal match against Ryde North by a score of 6-1.
Here are the rest of the results from Day 5.
Manly 13, Adelaide North 8
After taking an early lead, Manly pulled away late by scoring five runs in the top of the sixth innings and defeating Adelaide North 13-8. Tom Newbold and Luke Brown both homered for Manly in the win.
Southern Mariners 5, Perth Metro East 5
Perth Metro East scored three runs in the top of the sixth innings to tie Southern Mariners 5-5.
Yarra Rangers 14, Northern Diamondbacks 10
Home team the Yarra Rangers scored all 14 of its runs in the first three innings to win 14-10 over Northern Diamondbacks. The Diamondbacks rallied late, scoring seven runs in the top of the fourth innings, but it wasn’t enough to mount a complete comeback.
Brisbane North 19, Northern Territory 0
Lachlan Wilson tossed a four-inning no-hitter as Brisbane North won 19-0 over Northern Territory.
Gold Coast 11, Ryde South 2
Ian Lee homered and struck out 13 batters in 5.1 innings, leading Gold Coast to an 11-2 win over Ryde South. Jordan Cameron also went deep for Gold Coast in the win.
West Coast 6, Canberra 5
Embodying the Little League values of character, courage, and loyalty, West Coast defeated Canberra 6-5 in a game highlighted by strong pitching, good hitting, and even better sportsmanship on behalf of both teams.
Perth Metro Central 11, Perth Metro North 7
Perth Metro Central took an early lead and carried it through, even as Perth Metro North rallied for seven runs late in the game.
Adelaide West 6, Central Coast 5
Despite trailing early, Adelaide West rallied to defeat Central Coast 6-5. Liam Bull homered for the Rays in the win, while Jacob White and Henry McAuliffe both made spectacular catches in the outfield.
The schedule for tomorrow can be found here.
For box scores on Game Changer click here.
LISMORE, NSW – Quarterfinal fever was in the air as the sun shined on the fourth day of play at the Bendigo Bank Australian Little League Championships. Here are those results, along with the updated schedule for tomorrow’s semifinals.
Canberra 8, Brisbane North 3
Canberra scored in every inning except for two as they soundly defeated Brisbane North 8-3. Maddison Erwin earned the win for Canberra, tossing several solid innings.
West Coast 12, Northern Territory 2
The Chargers scored early and often against Northern Territory, winning the game 12-2. The Territorians got in the board in the top of the fifth innings, scoring a pair of runs.
Adelaide North 17, Yarra Rangers 6
Adelaide North put six-spots on the board in both the third and sixth innings, soundly defeating Yarra Rangers 17-6.
Adelaide West 10, Gold Coast 0
Adelaide West scored all ten of its runs in the first two innings to shut out Gold Coast.
Swan Hills 4, Southern Mariners 0
Swan Hills scored one run in the second innings and three in the third while holding Southern Mariners scoreless to complete a 4-0 shutout win.
Hills 12, Perth Metro North 2
Hills scored four runs in both the third and fourth innings to defeat Perth Metro North 12-2 in the quarterfinals.
Manly 10, Northern Diamondbacks 2
Manly scored five runs in the top of the fourth innings and went on to win 10-2.
Central Coast 5, Ryde South 4
Ryde South struck first but Central Coast roared back and won a close 5-4 ballgame.
Ryde North 12, Perth Metro East 2
Jimmy Nati and Mitch Steer homered as Ryde North beat Perth Metro East in the quarterfinal round.
Cronulla 3, Perth Metro Central 1
Cronulla’s Jake Burns struck out 11 batters in 4.2 innings to lead the Sharks.
The schedule for tomorrow's semifinals can be found here.
For box scores on Game Changer click here.
LISMORE, NSW – Pool play wrapped up on day 3 of the Bendigo Bank Australian Little League Championships. Mother Nature once again got in on the games, with each of the afternoon contests delayed by rain as clouds covered the complex.
Manly 22, Gold Coast 5
Manly ended pool play with a dominant 22-5 win over Gold Coast. Luke Brown and Eric Calder homered for home team Manly, while Ian Lee went deep for Gold Coast.
Hills 15, Adelaide North 0
Hills slugged four home runs en route to a 15-0 rout of Adelaide North. Solomon Maguire had two longballs including a grand slam, while Riley Watson and Dylan Martin also homered for Hills.
West Coast 9, Southern Mariners 0
West Coast scored six runs in the top of the sixth innings to secure a 9-0 shutout win over Southern Mariners. Joseph Lamm struck out 14 batters in 5.1 innings and Riley Walsh homered twice for the winning West Coast side.
Adelaide West 11, Central Coast 1
Adelaide West rode a six-run third innings to a decisive 11-1 win over Central Coast.
Cronulla 14, Southern Mariners 2
Cronulla continued its dominating performance in pool play, beating Southern Mariners 14-2. Jake Burns homered for the Sharks in the win.
Perth Metro North 16, Brisbane North 2
Perth Metro North jumped ahead to an early lead and never lost it, beating Brisbane North 16-2.
Perth Metro Central 16, Ryde South 2
After taking a close lead early, Perth Metro Central scored six runs in the top of the third innings and five more in the top of the fifth to beat Ryde South 16-2.
Swan Hills 17, Northern Territory 0
Swan Hills scored 12 runs in the bottom of the third innings to conclude pool play with a 17-0 win over Northern Territory.
Perth Metro East 5, Adelaide West 2
Perth Metro East eked out a close 5-2 win over Adelaide West on the heels of strong hitting by Jayden Middleton-Gepp, who doubled and tripled, and Tomas Druzianich, who had three hits. Connor McLeod struck out 12 batters on the mound for Adelaide West.
Perth Metro North 15, Yarra Rangers 2
Led by four home runs, including two off the bat of Daniel Stephenson, Perth Metro North concluded pool play with a 15-2 win over Yarra Rangers.
Ryde North 15, Ryde South 5
Ryde North used late offence to defeat Ryde South, scoring all 15 of its runs in the final two innings.
Northern Diamondbacks 8, Canberra 6
Strong offence and good pitching led Northern Diamondbacks to a close 8-6 win over Canberra. Trenell Hutchins homered for the Diamondbacks, while Noah Murray hit a massive shot for Canberra.
At the conclusion of pool play, teams were re-seeded according to their performances in pool play. Based on these calculations, tomorrow’s schedule can be found here.
For box scores on Game Changer click here.
Check out game replays and highlights from Diamond 1 on the Baseball Australia playlist on ABLtv.com.
For those following at home, the teams at the Bendigo Bank ALLC also have some fun games off the field with the Fielders Choice Little League Challenge.
It’s all about having fun, exploring Lismore and getting involved on and off the field.
1st Prize: Fielders Choice Voucher to the value of $300
2nd Prize: SKLZ Pitching Machine – from Fielders Choice
3rd Prize: 5 Dozen Baseballs
Below are the ten (10) challenges to be completed throughout the week. The aim is to have the most enthusiastic and fun participation in the challenges as a team.
FIELDERS CHOICE LITTLE LEAGUE CHALLENGE
1. Take a team photo at the Lismore Visitor Centre - post on Facebook and/or Instagram making sure to tag @baseballaustralia #LittleLeagueOz @LismoreCityCouncil
2. Where can you watch the live streaming of the ALLC? And for a bonus point what is the commentators name?
3. Take a team photo in front of the Fielders Choice Van with Helen - post on Facebook and/or Instagram making sure to tag @baseballaustralia @fielderschoiceaustralia #LittleLeagueOz
4. This *secret* challenge will be released on the @AustralianBaseballLeague Facebook page on Sunday 7th June at 9am. To complete this challenge you must also LIKE the ABL Facebook Page.
5. What is the name of the Fielders Choice very own Perth Heat ticket sales rep? Find the answer at http://fielders.net
6. PLEDGE IT. Record a video of your team saying the LL Pledge. Upload to Facebook and or Instagram but must tag @baseballaustralia #LittleLeagueOz #LLWS
7. Who won the 2015 ABL Championship Series? And what is the name of the perpetual trophy they won?
8. Get a photo with both teams who have been to the Little League World Series upload to Facebook and or Instagram but must tag @baseballaustralia #LittleLeagueOz #LLWS
9. Who is the proud sponsor of the 2015 ALLC and what is their company motto?
10. Get a photo with as many other teams as possible - post on Facebook and/or Instagram making sure to tag @baseballaustralia #LittleLeagueOz #LLWS
Keep watch on social media to see which teams are having the most fun with the challenge.
LISMORE, NSW – Day 2 of the Bendigo Bank Australian Little League Championships saw a mix of high-scoring games and close matchups. As runs crossed the plate, Mother Nature too flexed her muscles with a few light showers in the early evening that soon gave way to a spectacular sunset. Here are the results from the second day of pool play, with the third and final day of the tournament’s early rounds set for tomorrow.
Ryde North 4, Perth Metro Central 3
After getting on the board first with a run in the first innings, Ryde North emerged victorious in the end of an extra-inning thriller against Perth Metro Central. Travis Bazzana hit a solo home run in the top of the ninth innings to win the game for Ryde.
Southern Mariners 11, Gold Coast 5
After an early three-run lead in the second innings, Southern Mariners rode the wave of a six-run fourth innings to an 11-5 win over Gold Coast.
Cronulla 24, West Coast 3
Cronulla continued its dominance of pool play with a 24-3 win over West Coast. The Sharks scored 14 runs in the first innings in the win.
Adelaide North 11, Yarra Rangers 1
Adelaide North scored four runs in the first innings to take an early lead, eventually defeating Yarra Rangers 11-1.
Perth Metro North 6, Adelaide North 3
Reigning champion Perth Metro North scored twice in the bottom of the fifth innings to cruise past Adelaide North 6-3. Daniel Stephenson and Dylan Bojarski both homered for the Northern Metros in the win.
Swan Hills 11, Central Coast 4
Daniel Carter and Benjamin Hewett each clubbed solo home runs as Swan Hills defeated Central Coast 11-4.
Cronulla 12, Manly 1
Benjamin Andrews smashed a two-run home run as Cronulla scored six runs apiece in the first and third innings to beat Manly 12-1.
Yarra Rangers 11, Brisbane North 5
Yarra Rangers scored in every innings except for one to beat Brisbane North 11-5. Kurtis Smith led the Rangers at the plate, going 3-for-4 with a triple.
Perth Metro Central 15, Canberra 3
The Firebirds scored 11 times in the final two frames to beat Canberra 15-3. Benjamin Drew homered twice for Perth in the win, while Canberra got on the board in the top of the fifth innings thanks to hits by Jacob Van Leeuwen, Maddison Erwin, Sean Bennett, and Lochlainn Varian.
Swan Hills 9, Perth Metro East 1
Swan Hills jumped ahead to an early 5-0 lead in the first inning to win 9-1 over Perth Metro East. Jordan Norvall led the Aces at the plate with a home run and Bailey-Jay Cooke struck out seven batters on the mound.
Ryde North 23, Northern Diamondbacks 6
Ryde North sealed a decisive win over Northern Diamondbacks thanks to a 14-run outburst in the top of the fourth innings.
Hills 19, Brisbane North 0
NSW side Hills scored 11 runs in the top of the sixth frame en route to a 19-0 shutout of Brisbane North. Solomon Maguire homered twice for Hills, while Riley Watson also chipped in two singles and two triples.
Ryde South 9, Canberra 0
Ryde South put runs on the board early and late, with a pair in the first innings and seven more in the final two frames combined to shut out Canberra 9-0 in the final game of the day on Diamond 1.
Adelaide West 12, Northern Territory 1
Adelaide West defeated Northern Territory 12-1, led in part by a standout pitching performance by Harry Leaker and a solid day at the plate by Connor McLeod. Leaker struck out seven batters while McLeod clubbed a two-run home run.
For box scores click here.
Tomorrow’s schedule can be found here.
Check out game replays and highlights from Diamond 1 on the Baseball Australia playlist on ABLtv.com.