- Members of the 2011 Dallas Woody’s Wreckin’ Crew include Jesse Baker, Ray Bishop, Ruben Castillo, Craig Clifton, Scott Dye, Alan Evans, Mark Fiorello, Mark Keerbs, Brian McCall, Luke Quinter, Jason Ramsey, Nick Sehr, Andy Soderberg, Charles Urich and Head Coach Chris Lawson.
BRIAN McCALL | Special Contributor
LAS VEGAS — In what many consider one of the most competitive softball tournaments in the country, the Dallas Woody’s Wreckin’ Crew captured the C division title at the 4th Annual Sin City Shootout in Las Vegas, Jan. 15-16, after posting a perfect 8-0 record over the two-day tournament. It’s the first time a team from Dallas has captured a title at the Sin City Shootout.
The Wreckin’ Crew went 2-0 in pool play on Saturday after posting wins over the Long Beach Havoc (13-4) and the Fort Lauderdale Wolves (18-3) to secure the No. 6 seed entering the double-elimination bracket portion of the tournament.
The Crew opened bracket play in dominating fashion, knocking off the Los Angeles Angels 24-8, but had a tougher time with a feisty Havoc squad in its second game. Against the Havoc, the Crew looked to be in control with a 16-4 lead after three innings, but the Havoc would not go away. In the final inning, the Havoc rallied for 10 runs, but that would not be enough, as the Crew held on for a 16-14 victory.
On Sunday in their first game, the Wreckin’ Crew took down the San Francisco Hustlers, 15-3, to move into the winner’s bracket semifinals where they defeated the San Diego Renegades 11-9.
The Minneapolis Edge awaited the Crew in the winner’s bracket final, and the game turned out to be the most exciting of the entire tournament. Both teams battled back and forth, and it took extra innings to decide the winner. With the game tied 11-11, the Wreckin’ Crew scored three runs in the top of the eighth inning to take a 14-11 lead, but the Edge came right back, scoring two runs to cut the lead to one. With the potential tying and winning runners on first and second, the Crew managed to get a pop-up to left field to end the game and earn a trip to the championship game.
The Edge was able to come back out of the loser’s bracket to earn a rematch with the Wreckin’ Crew in the championship game, but it wouldn’t be as close this time around. After holding Minneapolis scoreless in the top of the first inning, the Crew put up 14 runs in the bottom of the first inning to cruise to a 15-4 run-rule victory and the 2011 Sin City Shootout title.
“I couldn’t be happier with the way our team represented Dallas at the 2011 Sin City Shootout,” said head coach Chris Lawson. “Despite the recent cold weather, they practiced very hard and were as prepared as any team in Las Vegas. This is a great way to kick off the year and hopefully will be just the beginning for many great things to come this season.”
