Series MVP Lindsey Meadows pitches for Tex Town. (Photo by Marco Stoovelaar)

HISTORIC CONCLUSION TO DUTCH SOFTBALL SEASON
2008-10-23

By Marco Stoovelaar, in Holand

This past weekend, Computer SOS Tex Town Tigers defeated Sparks Haarlem, 4-3, in eight innings at Haarlem to win the Holland Series three games to one and become the first Dutch champion from the eastern part of the country. All four games of the Holland Series attracted hundreds of spectators and offered great softball. Two of the games were played at Sportpark de Kroedkotten, the Tex Town Tigers' home field in Enschede, the site of last year’s ISF VIII Junior Women’s World Championship, while the other two were played on the Noordersportpark in Haarlem, which has been the location of several international events in the past, such European Championships, European Cups, and the Haarlem Softball Week.

The Tex Town Tigers initially won the first two games of the best-of-five final against Sparks Haarlem and looked to end the Holland Series with a sweep. In the opener, playing at home on October 10, Tex Town won an exciting game, 6-5, and then also won the second game the next day in Haarlem, 6-2. However, playing at home again on October 12, the team lost Game Three, 9-5, forcing a fourth match-up.

In the playoffs, Sparks Haarlem had lost the first two games against Terrasvogels, but then came back to win the next three and dethrone the latter as national champion to qualify for this year’s Holland Series against the Tigers. In the 2004 Holland Series, Sparks Haarlem had done the same. After losing the first two, it came back to win three in a row and then claimed the title.

It appeared Sparks Haarlem was forcing a fifth game again this time, as it was leading 3-1 when the sixth inning started. But Tex Town then came back to tie the score, and went on to win it all in the tie-breaker.

After Sparks Haarlem opened the scoring in the first inning on a double by 2008 Olympian Jolanda Kroesen, the Tigers tied the score in the second inning when Karin Tuk homered. In the third at bat, Sparks Haarlem re-took the lead, thanks to the second double in the game by Kroesen and a single by Nathalie Timmermans, another member of the Netherlands team that competed at the Games in Beijing this past August. Singles by Marloes Fellinger, yet another Olympian, and Lynn Geertman loaded the bases, but all three runners were left stranded.

In the sixth inning, Tex Town tied the score again. An error on a bunt by Areke Spel and a bunt-single by Karin Tuk accounted for the runs in this at-bat. In the eighth inning, the international tie-breaker rule was put into effect. Nadine Marinus, the runner at second base, scored what would be the winning run on a double by Areke Spel. Lindsey Meadows, the Tigers' American pitcher, ended the game with a strikeout, winning her third game and earning Series MVP honors.

Tex Town can look back to a good year, as it ended the regular season in first place. The team, coached by American Monti VanBrunt (photo below), swept Twins Oosterhout, 3-0, in the playoffs to qualify for its first-ever Holland Series.

That a team from the eastern part of the country won the title again underscored the development of softball throughout the Netherlands. The club is known for its good player development and has had success in the past with youth teams. This season, another club from the east, Robur '58 from the city of Apeldoorn, won the title in the First Division and therefore will play on the highest level next season. Besides that, southern-based Gryphons, which played in its first big league-season this year, succeeded in securing its spot for the highest league. With the addition of Robur '58 and Gryphons, the Dutch big league, which eyes more and more professionally, has a good spreading next year. Two teams (Terrasvogels, Sparks Haarlem) come from the west, two (Tex Town Tigers, Robur '58) from the east, two (Twins, Gryphons) from the south, one (Euro Stars) from the southwest, and one (Centrals) from the center of the country, making for what should be an interesting competition in 2009.

The Tex Town Tigers are the 57th Dutch softball champion, but only the fourth club to win the title outside the Haarlem area. Of the previous champions, 45 came from that area, led by Terrasvogels, which won 14 national titles. Of the first 33 champions since 1952, only one came from outside the Haarlem area, being VODO from the city of The Hague in 1964. From 1985-1997, only three champions came from Haarlem, with HCAW (Bussum) winning the Dutch title nine times and the Twins from the southern city of Oosterhout winning once. The Haarlem area reigned again with ten titles from 1998-2007, but the Tex Town Tigers have now ended that streak.

Coach Monti VanBrunt (left end) and the 2008 Dutch champion Tex Town Tigers.  (Photo by Marco Stoovelaar)