Aug. 12—BISMARCK, N.D. — The season came to an end for
Jamestown's Shady's Black Sox slowpitch softball team last weekend.
But it ended in the best possible way.
The Black Sox won the Men's Slowpitch Recreational 3 West State Softball Championship on Sunday. The tournament was held at Cottonwood Park in Bismarck. There were 32 teams that participated in the tourney. The Black Sox was the only team from Jamestown that participated in the tournament.
The state tournament action began on Saturday with a pair of games against Minot's Gooseneck Implement and Bismarck's Century Morrison. The Black Sox won the first two games 13-10 and 14-4.
On Sunday, the action heated up.
In the bottom of the sixth inning against Center Machinery, the Sox were down 9-8 when Zachary Ringer hit a go-ahead, three-run home run to help the team advance to the semifinals. The Black Sox won the game 11-10.
In the semis, the Sox dismissed Mandan's Silver Dollar Bar 7-4 to punch its ticket to the championship game.
The championship was a back and forth battle between the Sox and Bismarck's Prairie Pro Scoopers, but the Sox held tough. Jamestown High School Class of 2025 grad, Nate Walz, secured the last out in the top of the seventh before any runners could score. The final score was 10-9.
Walz was the top hitter for the weekend with a .714 at the plate. Tyson Jorissen, a JHS Class of 2024 grad and Blue Jay baseball standout, went .667 with a triple, double and a homerun. Blue Jay alum Adam Sortland acted as the team's leadoff hitter and ended his state tournament with a .278 average.
Travis Duffy contributed at the No. 3 spot with a .667 average, a pair of doubles and one home run.
Ringer went 10-for-18 on the weekend with a double, triple and three home runs. Austin Carr pitched in at the No. 5 spot with an average of .556 and six doubles.
Hunter Larson and Matt Grounds contributed averages of .533 and .500 while Matt Cook went 5-for-13 on the weekend. Team manager Dustin Scheer pitched all five games and turned in an average of .429 at the plate. Troy Herberholz went 4-for-10.
By winning the state title, the Black Sox will be moved up to the Recreational 2 level.
The Black Sox played in Jamestown's Wednesday night slowpitch softball league. The team earned the league runner-up title, dropping 2-1 to Esto Dignus in the championship series last week. The team finished the regular season with a record of 17-5. Overall, the team ended the season at 20-7.
State Tournament Results
Game 1: Shady's Black Sox 13, Gooseneck Implement 10
Game 2: Shady's Black Sox 14, Century Morrison 4
Game 3: Shady's Black Sox 11, Center Machinery 10
Game 4: Shady's Black Sox 7, Silver Dollar Bar 4
Game 5: Shady's Black Sox 10, Praire Pro Scoopers 9
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