In the duel between the local rivals, the Challengers achieved an important 3-2 win on Saturday night. This reduced the gap to the Zurich Barracudas in the standings to one game.
Both teams were played internationally in the Federation Cup last week and were able to learn a lot against strong opponents. In the Heerenschürli ballpark however, the pitchers were dominating. Both Cee-Jay Savoldelli for the Barracudas and Ryan Byrne on the Challengers pitched really strong. After seven innings, the score was only 2-1 for the visitors after an early lead for the Challengers and two runs for the Barracudas in the fifth and the seventh inning. However all the three runs have been scored due to errors in the opposing defense. In the eighth inning the home team turned the game around. After a lead-off single by Ryan Byrne, Robert Sedin tied the game with an RBI double before the veteran was hit home by Leonel Sosa Marte to make it 3-2. Closer Simon Steffen didn’t let anything go wrong in the ninth inning and made out all three opposing batters, securing the important win for his team.
Derby win for the Challengers
Cadets at the top of the standings
The U15 Cadets beat their cantonal rivals Rümlang Kobras twice in the top game of the Group East, thereby moving a little ahead at the top of the table with a 7-1 record.
The title holders started strong in the rematch of last year’s U15 final. The Challengers immediately put the opponent under pressure on offense and were already leading 9-2 after two innings. Fabrizio Bucher with a 2-run single and Noam Müller with an RBI double provided the highlights. The Challengers also consistently exploited the opponent’s mistakes. Although the Kobras cut the lead to four runs in the meantime, Ben Dickow had the right answer with a 2-run single. Ultimately the Challengers won 13-7. Fabrizio Bucher had three hits and three RBI, Noam Müller and Ben Dickow each scored two hits and Yannik Hobi scored two runs, while Jasper Freigang recorded his third win.
The second game was all about the pitchers. The batters on both sides were hard-pressed to score. The Challengers only managed three hits, but because Jasper Freigang, Ilai Blickenstorfer and Ben Dickow combined for a one-hitter, this was still enough to win again. Ilai Blickenstorfer equalized the Kobras’ early lead in the second inning with an RBI double before Jimmy Siemers put his team in front with an RBI. The score remained 2-1 until the fifth inning. There Ben Dickow brought Len Blickenstorfer home to make it 3-1 before the Challengers profited from a Kobras error and a wild pitch to finally win 5-1. Ilai Blickenstorfer took the win, giving up only one hit and two walks in three innings with five strikeouts.
Local derby on Saturday night
On Saturday night the fifth and final local derby of the preliminary round between the Zurich Challengers and the Zurich Barracudas will take place at the Heerenschürli ballpark. The Challengers urgently need a win to reduce the gap to the first two places in the standings, which entitle them to advance to the final. First pitch will be thrown at 6 p.m.
The NLB-Team plays a doubleheader against the Lucerne Eagles on Sunday. A difficult task awaits the Challengers at the foot of Mount Pilatus, as the Central Swiss team is heavily staffed by several former NLA players. The game on the Hinterruopigen in Reussbühl starts at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m.
The U15-Cadets will face the prestigious duel with the Rümlang Kobras on Saturday. The reprise of the finals of the last two years in this age group will take place at 11 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. in Embrach PZ Hard. The first duel of the season on opening day ended in a split.
There is another home game for the U12-Juveniles on Sunday at Zurich’s Klopstockwiese. The Challengers will meet the Rümlang Kobras at 10 a.m. and the SG Mustangs/Lions at 3 p.m.
Softball-Team extends winning streak to nine
The softball players had a tough time against the Sissach Frogs, but narrowly defeated the Baselbieters twice. This means that the Challengers kept their winning streak alive.
Four weeks ago the Challengers celebrated two easy wins in Sissach. The Baselbieters have since strengthened their team with the addition of 22-year-old American Madison Johnson. She gave her team a lot of stability in defense and proved to be tough to crack in the second game as pitcher. But the home team had a hard time in the first game as well. In the third inning the Challengers took an 8-6 lead and managed to win early with four runs in the fifth inning to make it 14-7 thanks to the mercy rule. Isabelle Tan had two hits and three RBI, Carmen Lutz-Demetz scored two doubles, Leandra Simitovic and birthday girl Molly Mullens each scored two hits, while Tamara Ammeter and Amanda Marxer each contributed two RBI to the win. Ammeter gave up two runs, one hit and three walks in four innings with four strikeouts for the win.
Game two developed into a duel between the two defenses. The Challengers managed the maximum of five runs allowed by rule in the first inning, but then failed to score another run in six innings against Johnson. Carmen Lutz-Demetz and Lara Müller managed two doubles against the American, but ultimately the C’s had just four hits and struck out ten times. The fact that the Challengers still came away as winners was due to their excellent defense. The Frogs shortened the score to 4-5 in the third inning, but the Challengers defense around pitcher Leandra Simitovic prevented them from equalizing several times at the last minute. In the fifth inning, Simitovic and Isabelle Tan put Johnson out at home plate, in the sixth inning Lutz-Demetz and Simona Cellar erased a lead-off triple by Ramona Thommen with a spectacular double play and in the seventh inning center fielder Tamara Ammeter finished the game with a beautiful catch in right center with the tying run on second base, preserving the Challengers’ nine-game unbeaten streak. Leandra Simitovic was credited with the win by allowing just two runs, five hits and three walks in six innings, with three strikeouts.
Challengers remain winless
The Challengers lost their third game at the Federation Cup in Croatia. The Challengers were the underdogs against the strongest team in the tournament, Apollo Bratislava. The Slovakians left no doubt about which team was the favorite. They started like a rocket and were already leading 11-0 after two innings. However the C’s deserve credit for not giving in and being able to convert their chances as the game progressed. They made it the full nine innings. Ultimately they lost 9-18 to the Eastern Europeans.
Ryan Byrne and Noah Nussbaum shone with three hits and three RBI each, while Simon Steffen scored three runs. Byrne was the most successful player on the Challengers side in the tournament with seven hits and five RBI. In the final on Sunday Apollo Bratislava will face the host Vindija Varazdin.
Schedule:
Thursday, June 6th: Sofia Blues vs. Zürich Challengers 11-0 (8 in.)
Friday, June 7th: Zürich Challengers vs. Vindija Varazdin 7-10
Saturday, June 8th: Apollo Bratislava vs. Zürich Challengers 18-9
Sunday, June 9th, Final: Vindija Varazdin vs. Apollo Bratislava 7-5
Four home runs are not enough
The Challengers suffered their second loss at the Federation Cup in Croatia. Compared to the opening game against the Sofia Blues, the Zurich team clearly improved against the host Vindija Varazdin both defensively and offensively. Nevertheless it was not enough for a win. The Challengers built a 2-0 lead till the third inning thanks to two solo home runs from Leonel Sosa Marte, but the Croatians were not at a loss for a response and scored ten runs in a row till the seventh inning, including three home runs of their own. The Challengers tried to close the gap and get back into the game when Louis Bischof and Ryan Byrne were able to shorten the score to 7-10 with a home run each. In the end it was not enough. For the final game of the preliminary round, the Challengers will face the still unbeaten team Apollo Bratislava on Saturday.
The games will be streamed live on the Baseball Europe TV channel.
Schedule:
Thursday, June 6: Sofia Blues vs. Zürich Challengers 11-0 (8 inn.)
Friday, June 7: Zürich Challengers vs. Vindija Varazdin 7-10
Saturday, June 8th, 11:00 a.m.: Apollo Bratislava vs. Zurich Challengers
Sunday, June 9th, 2:00 p.m.: Final
Challengers lose opening game
The Challengers started the tournament at the Federation Cup in Croatia with a loss. The Swiss champions didn’t have much to gain against the Bulgarian representative Sofia Blues and especially their pitcher Evgenii Chernozemsky. The Zurich team delivered four hits only, which were wiped out by the Bulgarian defense with two double plays, while Chernozemsky collected a total of nine strikeouts. However, Dimitar Nassapov was responsible for the decision in the tournament opener with no fewer than three home runs, as he drove in eight of the eleven Bulgarian runs. On Friday the Challengers will face the host Vindija Varazdin.
The games will be streamed on the Baseball Europe TV channel.
Schedule:
Thursday, Juni 6: Sofia Blues vs. Zürich Challengers 11-0 (8 Inn.)
Friday, June 7, 11 a.m.: Zürich Challengers vs. Vindija Varazdin
Saturday, June 8, 11 a.m.: Apollo Bratislava vs. Zürich Challengers
Sunday, June 10, 2 p.m.: Final
Softball home game on Sunday
The Softball-Team welcomes the Sissach Frogs on the Klopstockwiese on Sunday. The Baselbieters are in their third season since the team was founded and are noticeably improving from year to year. But the Challengers are trying to keep pace with the top duo Zurich Barracudas and Wittenbach Panthers with two wins. The game starts at 11 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.
For the 1st League-Team the journey goes east. The third team of the Challengers organization will meet the hosts Wittenbach Pirates at the Sonnenrain in Wittenbach at 10 a.m. before they will face the Zurich Eighters again at 12:30 p.m.
The U12-Juveniles also travel to the canton of St. Gallen. The youngest Challengers face the Wil Devils in the Wiler Lindenhof. The games start at 11 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.
Schedule changes at the Federation Cup
As the reigning Swiss champions the Challengers represent Swiss baseball at the Federation Cup in Croatia. After the withdrawal of CNTU-OSDYSSOR-Gorn from the Ukraine the tournament in Varazdin will start newly on Thursday, June 6th and will last till Sunday, June 9th. The morning games start at 11 a.m., while the afternoon games are scheduled for 4 p.m. As the Challengers’ opponents remain Apollo Bratislava from Slovakia, Sofia Blues from Bulgaria and the host team Vindija Varazdin.
The C’s will play their first game newly on Thursday morning against the Bulgarian team Sofia Blues. The games will be streamed live on the Baseball Europe TV channel live gestreamt.
Schedule:
Thursday, Jun 6th, 11 a.m.: Sofia Blues vs. Zürich Challengers
Friday, June 7th, 11 a.m.: Zürich Challengers vs. Vindija Varazdin
Saturday, June8th , 11 a.m.: Apollo Bratislava vs. Zürich Challengers
Sunday, June 9th, 2 p.m.: Final
Even those at home don’t have to miss out on international baseball. The tournament of the second group of the Federation Cup with the Zurich Barracudas will be played at the Heerenschürli ballpark in Zurich. This tournament will take place from June 3rd to 8th.
Continue Reading » Schedule changes at the Federation CupChallengers at the Federation Cup in Croatia
As the reigning Swiss champions the Challengers represent Swiss baseball at the Federation Cup in Croatia. The tournament in Varazdin will take place from Tuesday, June 4th to Sunday, June 9th. The morning games start at 11 a.m. and the afternoon games are scheduled for 4 p.m. The Challengers’ opponents are CNTU-OSDYSSOR-Gorn from Ukraine, Apollo Bratislava from Slovakia, Sofia Blues from Bulgaria and the host team Vindija Varazdin.
The C’s will play their first game on Tuesday afternoon after the official opening ceremony against the home team from Varazdin. The games will be streamed live on the Baseball Europe TV channel.
Schedule:
Tuesday, June 4, 4 p.m.: Vindija Varazdin vs. Zürich Challengers
Thursday, June 6, 11 a.m.: CNTU-OSDYSSOR-Gorn vs. Zürich Challengers
Friday, June 7, 11 a.m.: Zürich Challengers vs. Apollo Bratislava
Saturday, June 8, 11 a.m.: Zürich Challengers vs. Sofia Blues
Sunday, June 9, 2 p.m.: Final
Even those at home don’t have to miss out on international baseball. The tournament of the second group of the Federation Cup with the Zurich Barracudas will be played at the Heerenschürli ballpark in Zurich. This tournament will take place from June 3rd to 8th.
Continue Reading » Challengers at the Federation Cup in Croatia