Category: 1967

1967 ASA Industrial Men’s Major Slow Pitch Nationals

1967 held at Jones Beach State Park in Jones Beach, New York, on August 1-9.

Champion – Grumman Aircraft, Long Island, New York
Runner Up – Louisville Gas & Electric, Louisville, Kentucky

  • MVP – Jim Vertaramo, Grumman (9-30, .300, 2 HR, 5 RBI; 6-1 pitching record, gave up only 27 runs in 7 games, and his defense turned 15 double plays)
  • HR Leaders – Jim Vertaramo, Grumman – 2
  • HR Leaders – Jim York, Pharr Yarn – 2
  • HR Leaders – Bill Braden, Louisville Gas & Electric – 2

ASA MAJOR INDUSTRIAL ALL AMERICANS FIRST TEAM

  • P – Jim Verteramo, Grumman Aircraft, NY (MVP)
  • C – Jim York, Pharr Yarn, McAdenville, NC
  • 1B – Gary Friedley, IBM, Lexington, KY
  • 2B – Bob DeMarco, E.L. Weigand, Pittsburgh, PA
  • 3B – Ken Perry, IBM, Lexington, KY
  • SS – Bob Hurd, Sikorsky, Stratford, CT
  • OF – Don Caslow, Louisville Gas and Electric, KY
  • OF – Dennnis Pluto, Long Island Lighting, NY
  • OF – Bob Moore, Louisville Gas and Electric, KY
  • OF – Joe Bartunek, E.L. Weigand, Pittsburgh, PA
  • Util – Clyde Nixon, Pharr Yarn, McAdenville, NC
  • Util – Joe Mallins, Grumman Aircraft, Long Island, NY

FINAL STANDINGS

1. Grumman Aircraft, Long Island, NY (6-1)
2. Louisville Gas & Electric, Louisville, KY (5-2)
3. IBM, Lexington, KY (7-2)
4. Long Island Lighting, Long Island, NY (4-2)
5t. Allen-Bradley, Milwaukee, WI (3-2)
5t. E.L. Wiegand, Pittsburgh, PA (6-2)
7t. US Post Office, Cincinnati, OH (3-2)
7t. Pharr Yarn, McAdenville, NC (3-2)
9t. Minneapolis Gas, Minneapolis, MN (3-2)
9t. Olson Plumbing, Columbia Heights, MN (3-2)
9t. Sikorsky Aircraft, Stratford, CT (2-2)
9t. Pro Brush, Northampton, MA (2-2)
13t. AMF, York, PA (2-2)
13t. Lehigh Valley Dairy, Bordentown, NJ (3-2)
13t. Chattanooga Combustion, Chattanooga, TN (2-2)
13t. ACIC, St. Louis, MO (2-2)
17t. Wisconsin Centrifugal, Waukesha, WI (1-2)
17t. JIK Case, Burlington, IA (1-2)
17t. Banco Credito, Puerto Rico (1-2)
17t. Dupont, Waynesboro, VA (1-2)
17t. R.R. Donnelly, Willard, OH (1-2)
17t. U.S. Gypsum, New York City, NY (1-2)
17t. Browerman Construction, Providence, RI (1-2)
25t. Setchell-Carlson, St. Paul, MN (1-2)
25t. Bausch & Lomb, Rochester, NY (1-2)
25t. Local 808, Evansville, IN (0-2)
25t. Cleveland Drill, Cleveland, OH (0-2)
25t. Fulton Cotton Mills, Atlanta, GA (0-2)
25t. Grumman Aircraft, Houston, TX (0-2)
25t. McLouth Steel, Detroit, MI (0-2)
25t. Public Safety, White Plains, NY (0-2)
33t. Dana Corp,. Toledo, OH (0-2)
33t. Rigel Textile, Trion, GA (0-2)

1967 Copper Hearth

Front Row, L-R: Doc Neubauer, Mickey Grbich, Jim Becker, Wayne Staplefort, Gus Kelepouris – batboy, Chuck Vento, Don Wagner, Tony Galecke, Jim Mortl

Back Row, L-R: John Korinek, Milt Held – manager, Dave Holz, Tom Kannenberg, Tom Sorcic, Fred “Duke” Maas, John Stone, Eugene Cupertino

Front Row, L-R: Tony Galecke, John Korinek, Gus Kelepouris – batboy, Milt Held – manager, Wayne Staplefort

Back Row, L-R:   Robert Cooney, Mickey Grbich, Tom Sorcic, Jim Becker, Fred “Duke” Maas, Eugene Cupertino, Doc Neubauer, Tom Kannenberg

Milt Held, Manager of the Copper Hearth softball team, accepting the ASA Regional Championship trophy

1967 ISC Men’s Fast Pitch World Tournament

1967 held at Rock Island, Illinois on August 25-September 3.

Champion – Harrelson Motor Co., Moline, Illinois
Runner Up – Patriots, Allentown, Pennsylvania

  • Cleo Goyette Memorial MVP Award – Ty Stofflet, Patriots
  • Leroy Zimmerman Memorial Pitching Award – Jim Sperry, Sports Shop
  • Leading Hitter – Larry Lucht, Nitehawks – .500
  • Most RBI – N/A

1967 ISC FIRST TEAM ALL WORLD

P – Richie Stephens, Nitehawks (2-0, 0.00 ERA, 30 K, 1 BB)
P – Ty Stofflet, Patriots (4-2, 0.13 ERA, 85 K, 18 BB)
P – Jim Sperry, Sports Shop (4-0, 0.22 ERA, 56 K, 3 BB)
C – Jim Johnson, M&M Charters .200
C – Larry Stevens, Bill’s Trim Shop .273
C – Norm Zloklikovits, O’Keefe Crossroads .250
IF – Frank Trejo, Harrelson Motor Co. .476
IF – Tug Baughn, Phillips 66 .450
IF – Rich Oreb, M&M Charters .400
IF – Bob Korthase, .353
UTIL – Dick Bingell, Patriots .409
OF – Larry Lucht, Corbett Motor Co. OF .500
OF – Ralph Smith, Nitehawks .400
OF – Ben Breskovich, M&M Charters .353
OF – Gary Dobereiner, Harrelson Motor Co. .333

FINAL STANDINGS

1. Harrelson Motor Co., Moline, IL
2. Patriots, Allentown, PA
3. M&M Charters, Lakewood, CA
4. Sports Shop, Rock Island, IL
5t. Lux Club, Dubuque, IA
5t. Corbett Motor Co., Gardena, CA
7t. Phillips 66, Bartlesville, OK
7t. Bon-Air, Moline, IL
9t. Bill’s Trim Shop Las Vegas, Ft. Worth, TX
9t. Nighthawks, Long Beach, CA
9t. Hawks, Columbia, SC
9t. Farm Supply, Lamar, CO
13t. Hays Roofers, Phoenix, AZ
13t. O’Keefe Crossroads, Prince George, BC
13t. Dobbs Diesels, Commerce City, CO
13t. Mc Comas Truck Line, Chickasha, OK
17t. Merchants, Austin, TX
17t. Elway Express, Van Wert, OH
17t. All Indian Champs, Apache, OK
17t. Valpo Kings, Valparaiso, IN
17t. Interior Decorators, Ogden, UT
17t. Spears Dehner, Fort Wayne, IN

1967 ASA Men’s Open Slow Pitch Nationals

1967 held at State Road Park in Parma, Ohio.

Champion – Jim’s Sport Shop, Pittsburgh Pennsylvania (75-13)
Runner Up – Michael’s Lounge, Detroit, Michigan (96-5)

ASA started the “Regional Championships” this season. After 62 teams entered the 1966 National and with the rain and delays, the tournament was played throughout the night. It became too much, so ASA divided up the country into 30 regions and no longer were State and Metro Champs guaranteed a spot in the Nationals.

The Regionals brought together a specified number of State and Metro Champs to play in that particular Regional Championship Tournament. That winner then earned a berth to the National Championship.

The Defending Champion also had an automatic berth at each National along with the Host Team. This cut the number of teams down to a manageable number each year.

Jim’s Sports Shop started the season as Skip Athletic Club, but Jim’s Sports Shop took over the financial backing by the end of the season. Miller “Killer” Adams of Jim’s was a dominating force at bat and in the field as Jim’s beat the defending champs 14-8 to win the title.

Paul Tomasovich hit a home run and collected 3 RBI in the final game. Tomasovich ended up 15-29 (.517) for the tournament. Both Ray Kruel and Andy Zilka also had 3 RBI.

Tex Collins of Michael’s hit 4 HR against County Sports, but it took Jack Westerlund’s walk off 3-run homer in the 7th inning to eliminate the Long Islanders 22-21. Collins’ effort offset great individual performances by County Sports Jim Galloway and Bill Brown who each hit 3 homers apiece in the loss. Michael’s then went to the finals where they defeated Jim’s 9-5 in the first final. Collins hit 13 HR to set a record, 6 straight at one point.

  • MVP – Miller “Killer” Adams, Jim’s Sports Shop
  • HR Leader – Carl “Tex” Collins, Michael’s Lounge – 13
  • Batting Leader – Ray “Corky” Kruel, Jim’s Sport Shop – .840

FIRST TEAM ALL-AMERICANS

P – Bill Brown, County Sports
C – Carl “Tex” Collins, Michael’s Lounge (17-27, .630, 13 HR, 27 RBI, set new national tournament HR record which broke old HR record of 11.)
1B – John Stone, Copper Hearth
2B – Ray “Corky” Kruel, Jim’s Sport Shop (19-23, .840)
3B – Jim Galloway, County Sports
SS – John Lorenzo, Twin Cities Construction
OF – Miller “Killer” Adams, Jim’s Sport Shop (16-24, .667, 7 HR, 13 RBI)
OF – Mike Gouin, Michael’s Lounge
OF – Bob Malicki, Michael’s Lounge
OF – Steve Shurina, County Sports

OTHERS

Paul Tomasovich, Jim’s Sport Shop (15-29, .517, 7 HR, 12 RBI, 11 Runs)
Bill Malloy, County Sports (6 HR)
Bert Smith, County Sports (2 HR)

FINAL STANDINGS

1. Jim’s Sports Shop, Pittsburgh, PA (6-1)
2. Michael’s Lounge, Detroit, MI (6-2)
3. County Sports, Levittown, NY (4-2)
4. Twin City Construction, Southington, CT (5-2)
5t. Huffman Oil, Burlington, NC (3-2)
5t. Copper Hearth, Milwaukee, MI (4-2)
7t. Erie Sheet Metal, Cleveland, OH (2-2)
7t. Snyder Masonry, Detroit, MI (3-2)
9t. Hudepohl Beer, Springfield, OH (2-2)
9t. Jiffy Club, Louisville, KY (3-2)
9t. LaGrange Screw, LaGrange, OH (3-2)
9t. Kwik Car Wash, Parma, OH (2-2)
13t. Heidelberg, Tacoma, WA (2-2)
13t. Abrams Texaco, Cincinnati, MO (2-2)
13t. Breton Motors, Rochester, NY (2-2)
13t. Kobax Corporation, Chattanooga, TN (2-2)
17t. AD McCombs, San Antonio, TX (1-2)
17t. Countryside Realty, Hopkins, MN (0-2)
17t. Dominique’s Motors, Beau Bridge, LA (1-2)
17t. Jimmy’s Colonial Inn, Richmond, VA (0-2)
17t. Marks Brothers, Miami, FL (1-2)
17t. Tom’s #2, Columbus, GA (1-2)
17t. Bayer-Mingola, Millbury, MA (1-2)
17t. Fred’s Colonial Inn, Washington DC (1-2)
25t. Jo’s Pizza House, Milton, FL (0-2)
25t. Martin Hay Specialties, Phoenix, AZ (0-2)
25t. Kutis Funeral Home, St. Louis, MO (0-2)
25t. Non-Ferrous Metal Fabrics, Cleveland, OH (0-2)
25t. E.C. Womack Athletic Club, Virginia Beach, VA (0-2)

NOTES

The following teams did not show up: Loray, El Cerrito, CA, Hilo All Stars, Hilo, HI, Northwest Region 27 team.

REGIONAL CHAMPIONS

  • Defending Champ – Michaels Lounge, Detroit, Michigan
  • Host – Kwik Car Wash, Parma, Ohio
  • ASA Region 1 – Marks Brothers, Miami, Florida
  • ASA Region 2 – Jo’s Pizza, Milton, Florida
  • ASA Region 3 – Tom’s #2, Columbus, Georgia
  • ASA Region 4 – Huffman Oil, Burlington, North Carolina
  • ASA Region 5 – EC. Womack A.C, Vuginia Beach, Virginia
  • ASA Region 6 – Jimmy’s Colonial Inn, Richmond, Virginia
  • ASA Region 7 – Fred’s Colonial Inn, Rockville, Maryland
  • ASA Region 8 – Breton Motors, Rochester, New York
  • ASA Region 9 – Twin Cities Construction, Southington, Connecticut
  • ASA Region 10 – County Sports, Levittown, New York
  • ASA Region 11 – Bayer-Mingolla Industries, Milbury, Massachusetts
  • ASA Region 12 – Jim’s Sports Shop, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (defeated Vigilante AA, York, PA)
  • ASA Region 13 – Hudepohl Beer, Springfield, Ohio
  • ASA Region 14 – LaGrange Screw Products, LaGrange, Ohio
  • ASA Region 15 – Snyder’s Masonry, Detroit, Michigan
  • ASA Region 16 – Non-Ferrrous Metal Fab, Cleveland, Ohio
  • ASA Region 17 – Erie Sheet Metal, Cleveland, Ohio
  • ASA Region 18 – Abrams Texaco, Cincinnati, Ohio
  • ASA Region 19 – Jiffy Club, Louisville, Kentucky
  • ASA Region 20 – Kobax Corp, Chattanooga, Tennessee
  • ASA Region 21 – Countryside Realty, Hopkins, Minnesota
  • ASA Region 22 – Copper Hearth, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
  • ASA Region 23 – Kutis Funeral Home, St. Louis, Missouri
  • ASA Region 24 – Dominiques Motors, Breau Bridge, Lousiana
  • ASA Region 25 – AD McCombs, San Antonio, Texas
  • ASA Region 26 – Heidelberg, Tacoma, Washington
  • ASA Region 27 – N/A – (only 1 team came from Region 26/27 area)
  • ASA Region 28 – Loray, El Cerrito, California – (Could not attend National)
  • ASA Region 29 – Martin Hay Specialists, Phoenix, Arizona
  • ASA Region 30 – N/A

1967 ASA Women’s Major Fast Pitch Nationals

1967 held at Stratford, Connecticut.

Champion – Raybestos Brakettes, Stratford, Connecticut (67-2)
Runner Up – Lock Drug Jets, Redwood City, California

Joan Joyce, back home in Stratford after a three year stint in California with the Orange Lionettes, pitched a 6-0 two hit shutout in the Championship game. Joyce struck out 13 batters. Joyce and Donna Lopiano both walloped home runs over the fence in the game. Five Brakettes had at least 2 hits in the game. The Brakettes ran through the tournament shutting out 6 straight opponents and their combined score was 41-0. Their team pitching total was 6-0, 43 IP, 75 K, 0 Runs, 0 ERs, and surrendering only 7 hits in 6 games.

Connie Kennedy pitcher for Ohse Meats, went 2-2.

Ginny Hanselman (3-1, 3 shutouts) and Myrt Baker (1-1) were the pitchers for the Redwood City Jets. They Surrendered only 18 runs, 10 coming against the Brakettes.

Joan Joyce, Brakettes (2-0, 2 shutouts, 25 Ks/15 IP, 0 ER, 3 hits, pitched 6-0 shutout with 13 K in final and went 2-4 with 2-Run HR).

ASA Hall of Famer, Margie Law came out of retirement to pitch a game for the Sun City Saints. She won the game and pitched a 3-hit shutout, striking out 7.

  • MVP – Mary Miller, Ohse Meats
  • HR Leader – Joan Joyce, Brakettes – 1
  • HR Leader – Donna Lopiano, Brakettes – 1
  • HR Leader – Nera White, Oak Motors Mustangs – 1
  • HR Leader – Kay Mayhill, OSHE (5-21,.238, 4 RBI, 3 Runs) – 1
  • Batting Leader – Jane Hughes, Salt Lake City Shamrocks – .471
  • Erv Lind Defensive Award – Margaret Propst, Ohse Meats

FIRST TEAM ALL-AMERICANS

P – Bertha Ragan-Tickey, Raybestos Brakettes (2-0, 2 shutouts, 29 K/14 IP, 0 ER, 1 hit, including 10-0 perfect game with 15 Ks in WB finals) She announced her retirement after the tournament.
P – Donna Lopiano, Raybestos Brakettes (2-0, 2 shutouts, 21 Ks/14 IP, 0 ER, 3 Hits) (9-21, .429, 1 HR 7 Runs, 4 RBI)
P – Mary Miller, Topeka Ohse Meats (4-0, 3 shutouts, 22 K, 30 IP, 1 ER)
C – Mary McGinn, Raybestos Brakettes
C – Judy Akers, Topeka Ohse Meats
1B – Joan Joyce, Raybestos Brakettes (8-21, .381, 8 Runs, 5 RBI)
2B – Sue Gunther, Oak Park Mustangs (7-13, .538, 4 Runs, 3 RBI)
3B – Billie Moore, Topeka Ohse Meats
SS – Carol Spanks, Orange Lionettes
OF – Willie Roze, Raybestos Brakettes
OF – Cecilia Ponce, Raybestos Brakettes
OF – Pat Walker, Orlando Rebels
OF – Katherine Washington, Oak Park Mustangs
UTIL – Joy Peterson, Utah Shamrocks

SECOND TEAM ALL-AMERICANS

P – Virginia Hanselman, Redwood City Jets
P – Jean Daves, Orlando Rebels
P – Jackie Rice, Orange Lionettes
C – Nancy Ito, Orange Lionettes
C – Maggie Bean, Yakima Webb Cats
1B – Shirley Topley, Orange Lionettes
2B – Jane Hughes, Utah Shamrocks (8-17, .437 3 Runs, 2 RBI)
3B – Mary Nell Meadors, Oak Park Mustangs
SS – Margaret Propst, Topeka Ohse Meats
OF – Lynne Justino, Redwood City Jets
OF – Karen Swarts, Topeka Ohse Meats
OF – Mickey Davis, Orlando Rebels
OF – Marla Bankhead, Utah Shamrocks
UTIL – Nera “Sally” White, Oak Park Mustangs (5-15, .333, 4 RBI, also 1-0 pitching)

FINAL STANDINGS

1. Raybestos Brakettes, Stratford, CT (6-0) (Defending Champ)
2. Lock Drug Jets, Redwood City, CA (4-2) (North Pacific Coast)
3. Oshe Meat Company, Topeka, KS (6-2) (Western)
4. Utah Shamrocks, Salt Lake City, UT (3-2) (Rocky Mountain)
5t. Orange Lionettes, Orange, CA (3-2) (South Pacific Coast)
5t. Yakima Webb Cats, Yakima, WA (2-2) (Northwestern)
7t. Orlando Rebels, Orlando, FL (2-2) (Southern)
7t. Oak Motors Mustangs, Nashville, TN (2-2) (South Atlantic)
9t. Sun City Saints, Sun City, AZ (1-2) (Cactus)
9t. Lock Auto Electric, Sioux Falls, SD (2-2) (Northern)
9t. Panza Const. Superiorettes, West Haven, CT (2-2) (Host)
9t. Perkasie Glenettes, Perkasie, PA (1-2) (Central Atlantic)
13t. Dierk’s Oak Park Chargers, Chicago, IL (1-2) (West Central
13t. Manero’s Waltham Drifters, Waltham, MA (1-2) (New England)
13t. A1 Movers Softball Club, Memphis, TN (0-2) (Southwestern)
13t. Brazosport Girls, Brazosport, TX (0-2) (Texas)
17t. Bud Kouts Chevrolet, Lansing, MI (0-2) (East Central)
17t. Holland All-Stars, Haarlem, Netherlands (0-2) (Europe)
17t. Maurauders, Elizabeth, NJ (0-2) (Mid-Atlantic)

NOTES

Alaska Champ – Anchorage Gold Nuggets, Anchorage, AK did not attend. Hawaii Champ – no representative was listed. Canada Champ – Toronto Carpetland, Toronto, ON did not attend.

1967 ASA Men’s Major Fast Pitch Nationals

1967 held at Meador Park in Springfield, Missouri.

Champion – Aurora Sealmasters, Aurora, Illinois
Runner Up – Fairchild Falcons, Mountain View, California

Harvey Sterkal of Aurora Sealmasters pitched a 4-0 one-hit shutout to defeat the Falcons in the championship game. Sterkal fanned 17 batters. Bob Barron and George Kinder both hit homers for the Sealmasters in the title game.

Rick Balswick, who pitched his heart out for Fairchild Falcons was the losing pitcher.

  • MVP – Rick Balswick, Fairchild Falcons
  • Batting Leader – Bill Parker, Clearwater Bombers – .409
  • Home Run Leader – N/A – (Clearwater Bombers and Whitaker Buick both hit 3 HR as a team)
  • Most Outstanding Pitcher Award – Rick Balswick, Fairchild Falcons

FIRST TEAM ALL-AMERICANS

P – Joe Lynch, Aurora Sealmasters (3-0, 28 K, 21 IP)
P – Rick Balswick, Fairchild Falcons (4-2, 38 IP, 34 K; 3-12, .250 hitting)
P – Bill Massey, Texas Instrument Texans (3-1, 28 IP, 39 K)
C – Dave Timok, Aurora Sealmasters
C – Joe Jones, Texas Instrument Texans
1B – Roy Hughes, Texas Instrument Texans
2B – Bill Parker, Clearwater Bombers (9-22, 3 RBI, 2 Runs)
3B – Marv Detloff, Aurora Sealmasters
SS – Frank Hurtt, Aurora Sealmasters
OF – Ron Weathersby, Clearwater Bombers
OF – Jack Chlebeck, Whitaker Buick
OF – Bill Stewart, Aurora Sealmasters
UT – Weldon Haney, Clearwater Bombers (2-1)

SECOND TEAM ALL-AMERICANS

P – Bob Kuykendall, Clearwater Bombers
P – Eddie King, Fairchild Falcons (2-1)
P – Sam Beavers, Texas Instrument Texans
P – Harvey Sterkel, Aurora Sealmasters (2-0, 27 K, 14 IP)
C – Bob Kuykendall, Clearwater Bombers
C – John Noce, Fairchild Falcons
1B – Don Voigt, Aurora Sealmasters
2B – Bob Barron, Aurora Sealmasters
3B – Chuck Caldera, Fairchild Falcons (6-18, .333, 5 RBI)
SS – George Giles, Armed Forces
OF – Larry Wiseman, Armed Forces
OF – Ed Cobos, Kings
OF – Jim Matthews, Federal Old Line
OF – Bruce Evans, Texas Instrument Texans
UT – Bob Kassanavoid, Boosters

OTHERS

Ray Phillips, Fairchild Falcons (6-19, .319, 4 Runs)
Charlie Richard, Aurora Sealmasters (1-0, 7 K, 7 IP)

FINAL STANDINGS

1. Aurora Sealmasters, Aurora, IL (6-0) (West Central)
2. Fairchild Falcons, Mountain View, CA (4-2) (North Pacific Coast)
3. Clearwater Bombers, Clearwater, FL (5-2) (Defending Champ)
4. Texas Instrument Texans, Dallas, TX (5-2) (Texas)
5t. Whitaker Buick, St. Paul, MN (3-2) (Northern)
5t. Federal Old Line Insurance, Seattle, WA (2-2) (Northwestern)
7t. Oxnard Kings, Oxnard, CA (2-2) (South Pacific Coast)
7t. Wichita Boosters, Wichita, KS (2-2) (Western)
9t. US Armed Forces, USA (2-2) (Armed Forces)
9t. Fox Hill All-Stars, Hampton, VA (1-2) (Central Atlantic)
9t. Faultless Rubber Company, Ashland, OH (1-2) (East Central)
9t. Champion Paper, Canton, NC (1-2) (South Atlantic)
13t. Local 57 Engineers, Providence, RI (1-2) (New England)
13t. Paterson Chevrolet Panthers, Paterson, NJ (0-2) (Mid Atlantic)
13t. Barnes Store, Springfield, MO (0-2) (Host)
13t. Jerry’s Caterers, Miami, FL (0-2) (Southern)
17t. State Highway, Phoenix, AZ (0-2) (Cactus)
17t. Spencer Sporting Goods, Englewood, CO (0-2) (Rocky Mountain)
17t. Farmland Industries, Enid, OK (0-2) (Southwestern)

NOTES

State Highway, Phoenix, AZ went in place of Cactus Champ – Albuquerque Angles #357, Albuquerque, NM, who could not attend. Alaska Champ – Eielsen AFB Outlaws, Fairbanks, AK did not attend. Hawaii Champ – Hamakua Hawks, Honokaa, HI did not attend. Canada Champ – Winnipeg Molson Canadians, Manitoba did not attend.

1967 ASA Women’s Major Slow Pitch Nationals

1967 held at Sheboygan, Wisconsin.

Champion: Ridge Maintenance, Cleveland, Ohio
Runner Up: Dana Gardens, Cincinnati, Ohio (33-4)

Dana Gardens defeated Publix, from Lakeland, FL to win their 6th game of the tournament. They needed to win the 7th and 8th to win it all. It wasn’t meant to be. The best women’s slow pitch team ever assembled that previously won National Championships in 1957 and finished 3rd in 1958. Then in 1962, started a string of excellence that would have them win national titles in 1962, 1963 and 1964. Their national record was 14-0. In 1965, they finished 5th, but came back in 1966 to go 7-1 and capture the title once again. This year, 2nd place is the best they could do (6-2 record). The teams national record in the 1960s was 29-5. it took a good young team like Ridge Maintenance to defeat the Cincinnati squad. They did so by defeating the defending champs 6-4 in the winner’s bracket final and then 4-3. In the final game, Ridge scored 3 runs in the 4th inning to take a 4-1 lead they would never relinquish. The Cincinnati club came back and scored 2 runs in the 7th inning, but fell just short in the 4-3 loss.

Ida Jean Hopkins was named MVP for her exceptional play and leadership. This tournament was so balanced, that only one team placed more then one player on the all tournament team. The championship team, Ridge Maintenance from Cleveland had one player on the team, MVP Ida Jean ‘Hoppy’ Hopkins. Hopkins went 1-2 and scored a run in the championship game.

BeeJay Tausch of Ridge scored the tying run and drove in the winning run for Ridge.

16 year old Shortstop Jenny Johnson had 2 hits to lead Dana Gardens. She was 11-22 (.500) in the tournament and batted .502 on the season.

  • MVP – Ida Jean Hopkins, Ridge (1-2 with run scored in 4-3 final)
  • Home Run Leader – Sue Palmer, Peterson (.410) – 4
  • Batting Leader – N/A

FIRST TEAM ALL AMERICANS

P – Betsy Harrill, Publix Tigers (5-2 record)
C – Erma Richardson, Dana Gardens
1B – Susan Clark, Steele Concrete
2B – Pete Brown, Steele Concrete
3B – Foxie Kellum, Carter Furniture
SS – Ida “Hoppy” Hopkins, Ridge Maintenance
SF – Marsha Smaltz, Portsmouth Merchants
LF – Millie Ruen, Columbus Redbirds
CF – Marilyn Busse, Publix Tigers
RF – Kathy Walz, Rutenschroer Florist

OTHERS

Dot Bailey, Dana Gardens (5-1 Pitching, 3 Shutouts)
Jenny Johnson, Dana Gardens (11-22, .500)
Becky Rogers, Steele Concrete(3-2 Pitching, hurled a no hitter, but lost)

FINAL STANDINGS

1. Ridge Maintenance, Cleveland, OH (6-0)
2. Dana Gardens, Cincinnati, OH (6-2)
3. Publix Tigers, Lakeland, FL (5-2)
4. Rutenschroer Florist, Cincinnati, OH (5-2)
5t. Merchants, Portsmouth, VA (5-2)
5t. Soul Sisters, Detroit, MI (4-2)
7t. Peterson, Oconomowoc, WI (3-2)
7t. Carter’s, Jacksonville, FL (3-2)
9t. Rebel Drive-In, Chattanooga, TN (3-2)
9t. Steele Concrete, Burlington, NC (3-2)
9t. Jerry’s, Lexington, KY (3-2)
9t. Jeffersonville, Louisville, KY (3-2)
13t. Windy Tap, Milwaukee, WI (2-2)
13t. Avanti’s, Minneapolis, MN (2-2)
13t. All-Sports, Great Falls, MT (2-2)
13t. Martin, New Orleans, LA (2-2)
17t. Redbirds, Columbus, OH (2-2)
17t. Casey’s, North Little Rock, AR (2-2)
17t. Poolettes, Sheboygan, WI (1-2)
17t. Berry Jinx, Omaha, NE (1-2)
17t. Toni, St. Paul, MN (1-2)
17t. Lassies, St. Charles, LA (1-2)
17t. Continentals, Indianapolis, IN (1-2)
17t. Fansler, Garden City, KS (1-2)
25t. First Methodist, Atlanta, GA (1-2)
25t. Hofbrau, Brooklym Center, MN (1-2)
25t. Jorgen Giesler, St. Louis, MO (1-2)
25t. Spindler, Columbus, MS (0-2)
25t. Andrew, Rome, GA (0-2)
25t. Park, Charleston, WV (0-2)
25t. Maumee, Toledo, OH (0-2)
25t. Moosettes, Anchorage, AK (0-2)
33t. Royals, Monroe, MI (0-2)
33t. Merry Players, Fargo, ND (0-2)
33t. Remington, Bridgeport, CT (0-2)
33t. Nonotuck, South Hadley, MA (0-2)