The USSSA (United States Specialty Sports Association) State Championship was held recently in Canton, with 28 teams competing in the three-day event.
The Great Lakes ThunderCats were ranked number one in the state, and 34th in the nation. As the top seed, the ‘Cats were the team to beat, and their first challenger was the Michigan Vipers.
Greg Gay and Bill Cribbs homered for the ‘Cats with additional run support from Brian Robinson and Brandon Riggsbee.
The team defense was impenetrable, and the Vipers went down in four innings, 17-0. Starting pitcher Matt LaMothe had an excellent game.
In the second game, starter Brett Mazmanian held the Michigan Wild to two runs in four innings of work.
The ‘Cats manufactured two runs early, and Cribbs capped off the scoring with a three-run homerun in the fourth inning.
Josh Deeg faced nine Wild batters, striking out seven in three innings of relief. The ‘Cats prevailed, 5-2.
The ThunderCats had to face the Windsor Titans in the quarterfinal. The Titans had beaten the ‘Cats in their two previous meetings.
The Titans had the ‘Cats down early, 5-2, but Tyrel Taylor went 4-4 at the plate, and sparked the comeback victory.
Cribbs squeezed home Deeg for the game winner in the bottom of the seventh inning. Pitchers Gay and LaMothe combined for the 6-5 win.
The semifinal round found the ‘Cats matched against the scrappy Michigan Tornadoes from Flint. LaMothe started the game and went five strong innings.
Mazmanian went 3-3 with a homerun, while Riggsbee and Andy Harrison provided additional offensive punch to quiet the winds of the Tornadoes.
David Pardon’s speed on the base path was important. Taylor Phillips and Trey Larocque had key catches in the outfield, as the ThunderCats won, 8-6.
In the state championship game, the ‘Cats faced off against the team ranked number two in the state, the Metro Detroit Dodgers.
ThunderCats starter Chris Lum pitched four strong innings of the game, and the ‘Cats found themselves fighting from behind for the third straight game.
Mazmanian and Cribbs came up big for the ‘Cats offensively. LaMothe, pitching the last three innings, held on for the 5-4 championship victory.
This marked the seventh title won by the ThunderCats in the 2004 season.