LISMORE, NSW – The first day of the Bendigo Bank Australian Little League Championships saw balls fly over fences in the northern rivers sunshine, as 20 teams from across the country flocked to Far North Coast Baseball Association’s fields. Pool play began with a series of double-digit wins for strong sides, while sportsmanship and an undying love of the game also shined through. Here’s a rundown of all the action from Day 1 games, along with information about Day 2.
Swan Hills 16, Adelaide West 0
Visiting team Swan Hills scored seven runs in the second innings and added nine more in the top of the fifth to shut out Adelaide West 16-0. Daniel Carter, Maddux Stivey, and Jordan Norvall all homered for the Aces en route to victory.
Perth Metro East 47, Northern Territory 1
Depeche Oven hit a grand slam as Perth Metro East beat Northern Territory 47-1. Timmy Zimmerman also chipped in a hit for the Terrotorians, who got on the board in the final frame.
Cronulla 31, Gold Coast 1
Cronulla rode a 12-run third innings to a 31-1 win over Gold Coast. Keanu Cowley smashed a grand slam for Cronulla while Ian Lee struck out three batters on the mound for Gold Coast.
Southern Mariners 5, Manly 2
Southern Mariners held Manly to two runs in one of the closest contests of the day. Cameron Zimmerman hit a two-run home run and Josh Ashen made a great diving catch to help the Mariners seal the win.
Adelaide North 12, Brisbane North 0
Adelaide North scored eight times in the third inning to beat Brisbane North 12-0. Cooper Peacock smashed a solo home run for Adelaide North in the game.
Perth Metro East 5, Central Coast 0
Perth Metro East scored five runs in the middle two frames to shut out Central Coast 5-0.
Hills 16, Perth Metro North 7
Hills put runs on the board in each inning to beat reigning champion Perth Metro North 16-7. Clayton Campbell doubled and homered while Liam McCallum did double duty by pitching and going 4-for-4 at the plate.
Manly 9, West Coast 4
Manly jumped ahead to an early 6-3 lead after twin innings to cruise past West Coast. Michael Amir homered while Nathan Guerrero and Zac Newbold each tripled as Manly’s offence flexed its muscles, while Riley Walsh went deep for West Coast.
Central Coast 15, Northern Territory 0
Central Coast scored ten runs in the bottom of the second innings to shut out Northern Territory 15-0.
Ryde South 8, Northern Diamondbacks 3
Ryde South jumped to an early 4-1 lead after the first frame and scored in alternating innings to win 8-3 over Northern Diamondbacks.
Ryde North 11, Canberra 1
Ewan Ney hit a three-run home run in the bottom of the first innings to lead Ryde North to an 11-1 win over Canberra.
Gold Coast 6, West Coast 1
Gold Coast got on the board early with a pair of runs in the first innings to eventually win 6-1 over West Coast. Ian Lee homered and drove in two runs in the win.
Hills 18, Yarra Rangers 1
Hills scored early and often to defeat Yarra Rangers, with six runs crossing the plate in the first and fourth innings and three runs going on the board in the middle two frames. Dylan Martin hit a three-run blast for Hills and went 4-for-4, while Alessandro Ranieri also smashed a solo shot in the game.
Perth Metro Central 17, Northern Diamondbacks 6
The game was a close one-run contest until the fifth innings, when Perth Metro Central busted out for 10 runs in the top of the frame to defeat Northern Diamondbacks in the final game of the day.
For box scores click here.
Tomorrow’s schedule can be found here.