The Cayman Islands Softball Association (CISA) recently sent a CO-ED team of twelve players to represent the Cayman Islands in the International Softball Federation (ISF) CO-ED World Cup. The international tournament was held in Plant City Florida from the 7th to the 11th of October with participants from Great Britain, Scotland, Ireland, Bahamas, U.S. and the Cayman Islands. It was anticipated to be a highly competitive event and game one featured the Cayman Islands verses one of the two registered USA teams. This was Cayman’s first glimpse of how the competition was going to be like and it was obvious that the Cayman squad was a bit unsettled participating in its first match. The final score in game one was 19-4 in favor of the U.S. however the final score was considered misleading as the Cayman squad walked away from the game with a renewed confidence that the U.S. team did not dominate the game but simply won due to the unsettledness of Cayman squad in their first match.
The second match for the Cayman Islands was against the defending (2003 & 2004) CO-ED World Cup champions, Great Britain’s ‘A’ team. It was evident from the first pitch of the game that the Cayman squad was determined to make a stand and take charge. Great Britain struck first with three runs in the third inning but this did not deter the Cayman Islands as they struck back in the forth inning with four runs which included two massive home runs from short stop Johnny Johnson and third baseman Johnny Morelli. It was a very tight and evenly matched game with the score tide at six in the sixth inning. However Great Britain pulled off a run in the bottom of the seventh inning giving them the win and a final score of seven to six. It was a heart breaking loss for the Cayman Islands however team confidence continued to be extremely high from having the defending champions on the ropes.
Cayman continued in the tournament losing another tight game with Ireland but bounced back to win five games beating the Bahamas teams from Nassau and Freeport as well as the second team from Great Britain. This allowed the Cayman Islands to be the only team representing the Caribbean to advance to the playoffs where they were again faced with their rivals the ‘A’ team from Great Britain. However Great Britain won the game with a final score of nine to six which halted Cayman’s advancement in the playoffs.
Team Manager Rex Whittaker indicated that the team did extremely well for its first international CO-ED tournament.
‘We certainly got everyone’s attention and we were clearly recognized as a team that could not be taken lightly,’ he said. ‘ The Cayman team was well balanced on offence and defense. We had dominating pitching from Ian Katz who managed the tempo of the game very well. Defensively our players were at the top of their game which included double plays from Johnny Johnson and Jessica Cribb and outstanding outfield catches from Marlon Thomas, Peter, Margo and Dionne Whittaker.
‘Our bats were also very active with six home runs in total from Johnny Johnson and Johnny Morelli and equally impressive was the high batting averages from Peter Whittaker, Jessica Cribb and Marlon Thomas,’ Whittaker continued. ‘I am very proud of the team and how they performed and everyone from opposing teams to ISF officials was impressed with our caliber of players. By tournament’s end the Cayman squad was invited to participate in four different upcoming international events. The team now knows what to expect at these international events and the Cayman squad already has the caliber of players in place to succeed. With continued international experience and the right preparation it’s only a matter of time before the Cayman Islands are a dominating force in our region.’
The team thanked the Department of Tourism and the Tortuga Rum Co. Ltd. for their support and providing solidarity gifts which were used as gift exchange with all participants. This was particularly a great hit with all participants as the Cayman squad was regularly approached by opposing teams and other tournament officials requesting additional souvenirs and rum cakes.
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