Softball: Tough semi just the tonic for Auckland

Auckland coach Nardi Leonard says her side owe Central Vikings some credit for Auckland's win over Hutt Valley in the final of the National Women's League in Wellington yesterday.

Auckland beat defending champions Hutt Valley to win the women's title, while North Harbour beat defending champions Wellington to win the men's league.

Neither Auckland nor North Harbour made the top four last year.

In the women's competition, Auckland went into the weekend unbeaten, but lost the major playoff semifinal against Hutt Valley on Saturday and just managed to edge out Central Vikings in a tiebreaker yesterday morning to win through to the final.

Leonard believes the hard-fought battle against Central Vikings put her side in the right frame of mind for the final.

"We came off a really big win which gave us that big adrenalin rush going into the next game," she said. "We just had a big jump on Hutt Valley right from that first pitch. We hit them in that first innings, which meant they had to play catch-up softball."

Auckland scored the first run of the game in the top of the first when lead-off hitter Atsuku Tanaka singled to centrefield and scored on a hit by Fiona Timu.

Auckland went further ahead in the top of the third innings when Tania Misa picked up a home run with Talilotu Tonu'u on base to give Auckland a three-run advantage.

Hutt Valley struck back with their only run, in the bottom of the third innings. They had more chances in the game but could not convert them. The best came in the bottom of the seventh innings when they had the bases loaded with none down. But Auckland pitcher Carina Hale struck out the next two batters, ending Hutt Valley's chances.

Leonard identified captain Timu as the league's standout player.

"Both on and off the diamond she is a class player and she led the way for those junior players," she said.

North Harbour men's coach Neil Morrison said the difference between the old North Harbour team and the new was the acquisition of one man, Black Sox captain Jarrad Martin.

"Jarrad was named MVP and there is no other person in the competition that deserves it. He was truly deserving of the award," Morrison said.

"There are other players that have contributed with the bat, but Jarrad is out there doing the job on the mound as well as hitting."

North Harbour won the final on the back of two home runs. Brad Rona smashed the ball over the left-field fence in the fourth innings with Martin on base.

Duane Jerard then put the ball over the centrefield fence in the bottom of the sixth with two runners on to give his side a big lead.

Wellington scored one run in the fifth innings, when Damian McCulloch scored on a hit by John Stratford, but they could not add to it and North Harbour won 5-1.

FINALS

Women

Auckland 3 Hutt Valley 1

Men

North Harbour 5 Wellington 1