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By: Policesoftball.com
Sep 05, 2010
NYPD Blues Defeat Ohio Lawmen 17-16. Motor City Blues Defeat Road Dogs 33-23
2010-WORLD SERIES VI
Policesoftball.com's World Series VI was held at a new venue this year after spending five successful years in Palm Springs, Ca. The brand new Big League Dreams facility in Las Vegas, Nv. was simply too enticing to pass up as it offered many benefits to the traveling teams including less expensive direct flights, less expensive hotels and the most state-of-the-art softball complex in the nation. The park boasts six replica fields including an American League side (Fenway, Yankee and Angel) and a National League side (Wrigley, Crosley and Dodger) and each side had its own clubhouse that served a variety of food and drinks. The infields were 100% turf so there were no bad hops and no dirt stained uniforms. Every dugout had a mister to keep the players cool despite the desert heat which was actually was not too bad as it rarely topped 90 degrees on the weekend. The park was located only 2 miles from the host hotel, the Golden Nugget, which received great reviews due to its high class feel, very low prices and its’ proximity to the ever interesting Fremont Street.

The World Series is an ever-evolving event and Policesoftball.com tries to forecast the best for the future of the sport and adapt accordingly. In addition to the new location, there was a huge change in the format. For the first time ever there were two divisions, a 30-team “upper” Platinum division for the top ranked teams and a “lower” Gold division for 24 up-and-coming teams and/or small market teams. Based on recent World Series history and based on results from dozens and dozens of tournaments in recent years it is clear there is a natural separation talent wise with the travel teams in our circuit. This year we pledged to offer something for both levels and we are proud to say that our decision was one of the best we have made since the advent of the website. There were far fewer run-rule games and teams that typically went 0-4 or 1-3 actually won or had a chance to win every game they played in. Many Gold division teams had never come close to being alive on Sunday, but on this weekend more than half did just that. For the Platinum teams, every game was a challenge and it truly brought out the best competition. No team could be accused of having an “easy draw” or backing their way into the championship game. For the Platinum teams that placed well, simply put, they earned it and silenced any and all haters. Some speculated that having a Gold division would diminish the Platinum division. Nothing could be further from the truth as it was game on in the Platinum division from the word go.

Thursday was the annual open field batting practice where those who arrived early could get some swings on the fields and socialize with other players. Also Thursday day was the Over The Line tournament which saw the team of Mark Tolliver, Todd Amlin and Matt Woolf take the championship. In the evening there was a brief coaches meeting where the rules were discussed including the use of a bat compression machine for the first time. The East vs. West wives/ladies game followed and a full house saw the West Ladies prevail in a very entertaining game. Next up was the Chicago style 16” game that was coordinated by Mike O’Neill of Chicago-Metro who urged all participants to go “gloveless.” Fortunately there were no broken fingers and the sluggers learned that only someone the caliber of Brett Helmer could actually hit one of those 16” pillows out of the park.

The official opening ceremony was well attended although the typical crowd of 1500+ was less due to the lure of the Vegas night life. Even so per BLD staff, Friday’s gate was 1200 and the sales at clubhouses were outstanding. The Hall of Fame inductions were announced and those players honored on the field included:

Robbie Freitas – Jacksonville Police Softball Club
Doug Cullen – Jacksonville Police Softball Club
Brian MacDermott – New York Metro
John “Doc” Grant – Minnesota Lawmen
Greg Beck – Cincinnati Lawmen
Steve Wilson – New York Metro
Derwin Longmire - Calif. Quake
Chirs Loera - Santa Cruz
Tom Laroque - Calif Quake
Jimmy Lemmon - West Coast Aftershock
Jimmy Gomez - DEA Combo
Gordon Smith - Sacramento Razorbacks
Doug Pullen - Eldorado County Lawmen
Joe Rodi San Diego Excessive Force
William Day - San Diego Blue/Gray
Anthony Costanzo - Sacramento Razorbacks

This year Policesoftball.com decided to declare its All-Time team and those players honored included:

 C- Dennis Leonard-Jacksonville PSC
P- Sam Sapienza- NYPD Metro/Lawmen
P- Dave Woolf - Dayton Metro
1B- Scott Affholter- Wayne-Oakland/Michigan Lawmen
2B- Richie Malek- NY Metro
SS- Johnny Mack- LASD Red
3B- Rick Record- LAPD Blue
5 Man- Donny Meyer- NY Metro
OF- John "Soup" Anderson-Michigan Lawmen
OF- Ron Connor LASD Red/DEA Combo/Quake
OF- Jerry Harkins-NY Metro
OF- Ron “Benji” Lehner- Minnesota Lawmen
OF- Derwin Longmire- Quake
DH- Doug Cullen- Jacksonville PSC
Utility IF/P- Jim Gomez- DEA Combo
Manager- Walt Conry- NY Metro
Coach- Dennis McKee- Wayne-Oakland
Coach- Terry Dugan- Virginia Lawmen
Coach- Robbie Freitas- Jacksonville PSC

In 2010, PoliceSoftball.com had each team name their season MVP and their names were read off at the World Series and the players were asked to step out onto the field. The 2010 MVPs were:

Matt Hernandez - Boys in Blue Road Dogs
Ryan McCay - Stanislaus 5.11
John Catuosco - NYPD Blues
John Zintak - Illinois Lawmen
David Braun - LAPD Blue
Mitch Brouillette - SoCal Alliance
Scotty Bridges - Jacksonville PSC
Shawn White - Chicago Metro PSC
Chad Martinka-Team Texas
Ken Dawley - RSD Red
Scott Samis - Team Jersey
Eddy Leal - Southwest Elite
Keith Habig - Sin City
Steve Buccellato - Sac Razorbacks
Frank Terronez - Direct Impact
Mike Ogliaruso - South Florida Lawmen
Jamie Givens - TKO
Mike Panackia - Michigan Lawmen
Matthew Lonczak - New Jersey Shamrocks
Tony Vitale - Greene County Lawmen
Grant Johnson - Minnesota Lawmen
AJ Biama - Concord Combo
Robin Gard - Virginia Lawmen
Mark Tolliver - HardCor
Scott Hall - Capital City
Chris Mason - Team Vargas
Ryan Milroth - Motor City Blues
Steve Lundquist - Suffolk County
Lowell Buck - Calif. Quake
Billy Caywood - Charles County
Jason Decanio - WestCoast Aftershock
Flip McGovern - NY Metro
Mario Barroso - Combat/Syndicate
Bill Judd - Officers Only
Dusty Bowling - Ohio Lawmen
Steve "Skip" Byers - Folsom J-Cats
Erin Miner - Norcal Choir Boys
Steve Leone - DEA Combo
Brandon St. Aubin - SoCal Lockdown
Daniel Mathews - Quit Resisting
Joe Boo Aguilar - Nitro 2 Go


As part of the ceremony the Year End Awards were presented and those honored were:

East Coast Sponsor of the Year: Don Caravona and Mike Czack - Team Kentucky and Ohio

West Coast Sponsor of the Year: Barona Resort and Casino

East Coast Manager of the Year: John Scollo - South Florida Lawmen

West Coast Manager of the Year: Noel Roberts - Sin City Combo

East Coast Shevy Wright Sportsman of the Year: Dan Pleckham and

Mike O’Neill - Chicago Metro

West Coast Shevy Wright Sportsman of the Year: Andy Domenici - Concord Combo

East Coast Defensive Player of the Year: Alain Cruz - South Florida Lawmen

West Coast Defensive Player of the Year: Chris Enriquez - WestCoast Aftershock

East Coast Player of the Year: Butch Crozier - NYPD Blues

West Coast Player of the Year: Alfonso “Zo” Trujillo - SoCal Alliance

Brett Helmer from Easton Sports was on the field to congratulate both the Players of the Year and present them each with a new Easton CNT+ SCN2 bat.

Afterward the first ever Hall of Fame Game was played where our games greatest legends squared off for the first and most likely last time in an East vs. West showcase. Only Hall of Fame members were invited to play. On this night the East prevailed and the game was capped by a final inning in which the entire defense consisted of current and former NY Metro players. Immediately following the game was the annual home run derby and it came down to the East representative Don Painter from Motor City Blues facing off against Robert Mason from the DEA Combo. Both players exchanged bombs but it was Mason who ultimately claimed the title of Home Run King. King Mason then got to face Brett Helmer in a challenge round that saw Helmer blast 23 home runs on 29 swings. The “challenge” was over before it started, but Mason did get a chance to swing against one of softballs all-time most prolific hitters which was something to be proud of.

Friday morning kicked off round robin play for seeding purposes and the Gold division bracket winners were: Pennsylvania Road Dogs, Greene County Ohio Enforcers, Motor City Blues, Cen-Cal Syndicate, Chicago Metro, Team Vargas, SoCal Riot and SoCal Lockdown. All those teams earned first round byes for the Saturday morning double elimination playoffs.

The playoffs began early Saturday and went into the evening. By Sunday there was plenty of action in the loser bracket including some exciting games including: Iowa Lawmen defeating the Charles County Lawmen in a slugfest, Virginia Lawmen plating 42 runs to eliminate Cen-Cal Syndicate, Chicago Metro posting a 25-14 victory over Toronto, Vegas Heat nipping and the DVI Gladiators by one run. As the day progressed more teams were eliminated in close games as the Virginia Lawmen defeated Iowa 29-28 and Vegas Heat slipping by Chicago. In the winners bracket both SoCal Lockdown and the Greene County Enforcers got bounced down into the loser bracket where they both proceeded to start winning again. Lockdown eliminated Virginia while Greene County sniped Vegas Heat. When the two met up it was the scrappy Lockdown team that bested Greene County and secured themselves a spot in the final three. The most anticipated match up was between two undefeated teams, Motor City Blues and the Road Dogs. Motor City rose to the occasion and advanced to the championship game while the Road Dogs suffered their first loss of the tournament. The Dogs wasted no time as they promptly ended Lockdown’s run at the title and advanced themselves into a rematch against the Motor City Blues. The Blues were sitting pretty as they would need to be double dipped, but the Dogs seemed up for the challenge. The Dogs handed Motor City their first loss by one run to force the “if” game. With rain threatening the game moved at a rapid pace, but in the end Motor City could not be denied as they scored big early and then cruised to a 33-23 win and earned the title of first ever, Policesoftball.Com World Series Gold Division Champions.

Platinum All Tourney and MVP Selections were

GOLD MVP
Roger Wechter - Motor City Blues

GOLD ALL TOURNAMENT

Mike Nagel - Motor City Blues
Matt Guigar - Motor City Blues
Mike Frazier - Motor City Blues
CJ Nelson - SoCal Lockdown
Richard Covarrubias - SoCal Lockdown
Brandon St. Aubin - SoCal Lockdown
Mike Lohan - Boys in Blue/Road Dogs
Vic Ortalano - Boys in Blue/Road Dogs
Matt Hernandez - Boys in Blue/Road Dogs

Here is how the Gold division played out:
T17. D.C. Enforcers, SoCal Riot, OC Probation, Quit Resisting, Montgomery County Young Guns, Officers Only (Washington), and Folsom-Sac JCats
T13. Nitro2Go, Team Vargas, Capital City Lawmen, and SoCal Dogs
T9. DVI Gladiators, Toronto Police Softball, Charles County Lawmen, and Cen-Cal Syndicate
T7. Chicago-Metro and Iowa Lawmen
T5. Virginia Lawmen and Vegas Heat
4.Greene County Enforcers
3. SoCal Lockdown
2. Road Dogs
1. Motor City Blues- World Champions

The Platinum division was reserved for the true heavyweight contenders in the police circuit. All 30 teams in the Platinum division were ranked in the nation’s top 15 from both the East and West including all previous World Series winners. Since there were no Division II type teams every game was evenly matched and nobody could claim any team had an “easy” run to the finals. Simply put, this was the toughest World Series and whoever claimed the title would have to earn it. The bracket winners were: SoCal Alliance, California Quake, HardCor, New Jersey Shamrocks, Sin City, NYPD Blues, Team Texas, Team Jersey, Minnesota Lawmen and NY Metro.

In the playoffs, one of the highly favored teams, the #1 ranked Ohio Lawmen suffered a shocking first round loss at the hands of the up and coming Illinois Lawmen to be bounced into the loser bracket. For the men from the Buckeye State that would mean they would have to win eight consecutive games without a break to claim the title. That had never happened in World Series history, but if any team was capable of pulling it off, it was Ohio. The tournament progressed and some teams were sent into the loser bracket much earlier than anticipated while others thrived. By Sunday morning half the teams had been eliminated including some that are accustomed to playing late into the day. The morning kicked off with Ohio eliminating Southwest Elite, Team Jersey sending their same state rivals the Shamrock Enforcers home, South Florida Lawmen over Illinois and the Michigan Lawmen eliminating the SoCal Alliance. Team Jersey could not keep the momentum rolling as they were later eliminated by NY Metro. Minnesota, the team that sent the two-time World Series Champs into the loser bracket posted a nice win over NY Metro but they were later eliminated by the Ohio Lawmen.

South Florida would post two more strong wins over Michigan Lawmen and HardCor before finally falling to, you guessed it, the Ohio Lawmen.

The undefeated game was a classic East vs. West matchup between the perennial powerhouse the NYPD Blues and the Sin City Combo from Las Vegas who burst onto the circuit like gangbusters about three years ago. The veteran Blues squad played like a team of destiny as they surgically dismantled Sin City and bounced them into the loser bracket to face the Ohio Lawmen who consequently were on a roll. The Sin City vs. Ohio Lawmen matchup gave the West one last hope to keep the title on the left coast but Ohio would have none of that. Ohio had posted their sixth win in a row and eliminated Sin City in the process. Ohio moved into the championship game to face the Rick Tirelli and his undefeated NYPD Blues. The Blues were 7-0 on the weekend and were playing inspired softball. On paper the Ohio Lawmen should have been favored but on this day there was magic in the air and there was a distinct New York vibe down on the field. The game was being broadcast live on the internet so many at home got to witness the epic match up. The New York Blues did not disappoint the crowd as they sealed the victory with a bases loaded walk off single by East Coast Player of the Year Butch Crozier. This was Butch’s second walk off hit of the tournament and it made the Blues 17-16 winners in what was PoliceSoftball.com first ever walk off win in World Series history. The celebration on the field was quite memorable as the NYPD Blues were declared 2010 Policesoftball.com World Series Champions!

Platinum All Tourney and MVP Selections were

PLATINUM MVP
Gary Villacres- NYPD Blues

PLATINUM ALL TOURNAMENT
Butch Crozier - NYPD Blues
Kevin Wahlig - NYPD Blues
Brian Wallace - NYPD Blues
Mike Mauntel - Sin City Combo
Shad Rollo - Sin City Combo
Trevor Neville - Sin City Combo
Butch Castor - Ohio Lawmen
Higinio Riviera - Ohio Lawmen
Dustin Bowling - Ohio Lawmen

Here is how the Platinum Division played out:
T 25. Team Kentucky-Ohio/TKO, Stanislaus, Jacksonville PSC, San Diego Force, Riverside Red
T17. LAPD Blue, NorCal Choir Boys, Concord, State Razed, Texas, Direct Impact, Steel city, DEA Combo
T13. West Coast Aftershock, Suffolk, Southwest Elite, Shamrock Enforcers
T9. SoCal Alliance, Cal-Quake, Illinois Lawmen, Team Jersey
T7. NY Metro, Michigan Lawmen
T5. HardCor, Minnesota
4. South Florida Lawmen
3. Sin City Combo
2. Ohio Lawmen
1. NYPD Blues WORLD CHAMPIONS!

Policesoftball.com would like to thank the event sponsor Brett Helmer and Easton Sports along with event supporters such as Sports55, Softball Magazine, 5:11 Tactical Gear, I-Initial Embroidery and Ed Farmer and his impressive staff at Big League Dreams.



POLICESOFTBALL.COM WORLD SERIES XIX
Host: policesoftball.com
Oct 10-13, 2024
Big League Dreams Complex LAS VEGAS, NV.
John Scollo Memorial/Space Coast Bash
Host: South Florida Lawmen
April 4-5, 2024 (Thu-Fri)
Space Coast Facility MELBOURNE, FL.
West Coast Championship
Host: Policesoftball.com
June 1 & 2, 2024
Sportsplex USA in San Diego County, Ca.
52nd Annual NPSC- East Coast Championship
Host: Kentucky Blue
June 22-23, 2024
Union County Complex, MARYSVILLE, OHIO
51st Annual NPSC
Show Me Classic
Host: Missouri Lawmen
Aug 9-10, 2024
O'Fallen Family Sports Park ST. LOUIS, MO.
Keepers of the Peace National Police Softball Championship
Host: San Antonio Lawmen
Sept 6-7, 2024
Waxahachie, Texas
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