Triple Play / L T's Bar & Grill

Champions of Byron's USSSA Class E On April 26th

BYRON: Triple Play / L T's Bar & Grill (7-1) from Rockford bounced back from a third round loss to Guerilla Graphics (3-2) from Rockford 34-27 to run off five straight win including not only gaining revenge over Guerilla Graphics 15-6 but also double dipping S.A.K. (4-2) from Loves Park 16-12 & 15-4 in the tournaments final two games to win the title at the sixteen team national tournament qualifier held at the Byron Sports Complex in Byron on May 3 & 4, 2008. The champions earned a paid berth to play at the 2008 USSSA Men's Class E Great Lakes National Tournament to be held over Labor Day Weekend in Columbus, IN. Tournament runner up S. A. K. Softball earned a paid state berth to play at the 2008 Illinois USSSA State tournament to be held in Joliet's Inwood Sports Complex on August 22-24. Third place Guerilla Graphics also took home a state berth as did fourth place finisher Bada Bing / Firehouse Tattoos (3-2) from Romeoville.
Triple Play / L T's Bar & Grill opened tournament action with a first round contest against Infinity Softball from Machesney Park 28-9 to advance into the seconds round of play. Triple Play / L T's Bar & Grill continued their hot hitting as a team pounding out an impressive 16-1 win over Metro / Finnegan's from Rockford. Metro / Finnegan's had defeated Absolutely from Byron 19-9 in the first round of tournament play.
In a semifinal game of the winner's bracket Triple Play / L T's Bar & Grill was out hit by Guerilla Graphics losing 34-27 dropping them into the loser's bracket.
Triple Play / L T's Bar & Grill rebounded with an impressive 18-0 win over Marmaduke from Rockford to get back on the winning track as a team.
Bada Bing / Firehouse Tattoo's was excused from the tournament next at the hands of Triple Play / L T's Bar & Grill after the Rockford based ball club had posted a 14-8 win onto the bracket board to advance into the loser's bracket finals were they were now set to meet Guerilla Graphics and a chance at gaining a measure of revenge over the team that put them into the loser's bracket.
Triple Play / L T's Bar & Grill did just that sending home the team that had previously defeated them by a final score of 15-6 to earn the right to oppose undefeated S. A. K. Softball in the championship game.
Triple Play / L T's Bar & Grill still need two win to claim the title and they went about the business of doing just that winning that first game 16-12 and with that win force the need to have the 'if necessary game' played between these final two remaining ball clubs.
Now one game with the pot of marbles (a paid USSSA Men's Class E Great Lakes National Berth) going to the winner. Triple Play / L T's Bar & Grill finished what they started out to do winning that deciding final game 15-4 over S.A.K. Softball to claim the title.
Tournament runner-up S. A. K. Softball opened tournament play with a narrow 20-19 win over Fubar's from St Charles in the first round of play.
In their second contest of this sixteen team Men's Class e tournament S. A. K. Softball defeated Down & Dirty from Bolingbrook 19-6 to move into the semifinal of the winner's bracket. Down & Dirty had won their first round contest over Matt's Pizza / Country Insurance / Brunns from Stillman Valley 19-17 to advance into this second round contest with S. A. K. Softball.
Late on Saturday afternoon S. A. K. Softball and Bade Bing / Firehouse Tattoo's tangled with the Rockford based S. A. K. Softball winning a one run game 19-18 to advance into the winner's bracket undefeated game. Bada Bing / Firehouse Tattoo's made it to this semifinal game by opening play with a first round win over the Softball Mafia from Rockford 19-13 before stopping Marmaduke 22-7 in the second round to advance into this semifinal match-up against S. A.K. Softball.
In the tournaments undefeated game S. A. K. Softball and Guerilla Graphics went toe to toe in a high scoring game that saw both teams displaying not only their offense but using their defense to stop rallies from being bigger than they turned out to be. When that last out had been record into the official book the score board read 20-17 in favor of S. A. K. Softball putting them into the championship game against whichever team that would emerge from the losers bracket to challenge them in the finals. Guerilla Graphics made it to the winner's bracket finals by opening play with a first round 13-6 over Walkoff from Freeport. In the second round they met and defeated Splitters / Neighbors Bar & Grill from Machesney Park 15-9. In their semifinal game of the winner's bracket Guerilla Graphics and Triple Play Sports / LT's Bar & Grill with Guerilla Graphics handing the eventual champions a loss 34-27 to advance into the winner's bracket finals and a date with S. A. K. Softball.