Category: 1978

1978 ASA Women’s Major Fast Pitch Nationals

1978 held at Allentown, Pennsylvania.

Champion – Raybestos Brakettes, Stratford, Connecticut (78-8)
Runner Up – Law Equipment, Greeley, Colorado

The Brakettes won their 8th Straight ASA National Championship, a record that will never be broken. Kathy Arendsen was 3-0 and had 40 K in just 21 innings pitched. She hurled a no hitter and only gave up 5 hits in the 3 games. Barbara Reinalda was also 3-0 for the Brakettes. Reinalda is now 16-2 in the last three nationals.

  • MVP – Diane Schumacher, Raybestos Brakettes (8-20, .400)
  • Bertha Tickey Award (Pitching MVP) – Kathy Arendsen, Raybestos Brakettes (3-0, 0 ERs, 5 hits, 40 K, 21 IP and no hitter. 4-0 final game 2-hitter, 11 K)
  • Erv Lind Award (Defensive MVP) – Mary Faure, Greeley Lawn Equipment
  • Batting Leader – Reatha Stucky, Wichita Arrows (8-15) – .533
  • Batting Leader – Pam Rendell-Reinoehl, Santa Clara Golden Bobcats (8-15) – .533
  • HR Leaders – 8 tied with – 1 HR – Dot Richarson (Rebels), Linda Spagnolo (Bauer Brick), Susue Gaw (Saints), Venus Jennings (Law Equipment), Jill Wiedman (Bankettes), Gwen Berner (Shamrocks), Deanne Clark (Saints), and Chris Mueller (Dave Lee Sports)

1978 FIRST TEAM ALL AMERICANS

P – Lou Piel, Greeley Lawn Equipment (5-2, 2 Shutouts)
P – Barbara Reinalda, Raybestos Brakettes (3-0)
P – Kathy Arendsen, Raybestos Brakettes
C – Marilyn Rau, Sun City Saints
C – Lana Svec, Ashland Don Coburn Inc.
1B – Diane Schumacher, Raybestos Brakettes
2B – Ellen Tomasiewicz, Raybestos Brakettes
3B – Joan Van Ness, Raybestos Brakettes
SS – Marlys Taber, West Allis Bankettes
OF – Venus Jennings, Greeley Lawn Equipment
OF – Sue Enquist, Raybestos Brakettes
OF – Leslie Bade, West Allis Bankettes
OF – Jeri Findlay, West Allis Bankettes
UTIL – Suzie Gaw, Sun City Saints

1978 SECOND TEAM ALL AMERICANS

P – Carol Townsend, West Allis Bankettes
P – Pam Tarrh, Ashland Don Coburn Inc.
P – Paula Noel, Sun City Saints (3-2, 3 Shutouts)
C – Reatha Stucky, Wichita Kansas Arrows
C – Debbie Kaminske, West Allis Bankettes
1B – Linda Spagnolo, Bauer Buick Windmills
2B – Maria Miklos, Bauer Buick Windmills
3B – Cindy Renda, Tonawanda Shamrocks
SS – Gwen Berner, Tonawanda Shamrocks
OF – Jackie Tekotte, Frost’s Sporting Goods
OF – Maureen Ahern, Tonawanda Shamrocks
OF – Beth Quesnel, Raybestos Brakettes
OF – Chris Abrahamson, Orlando Rebels
UTIL – Lisa Wall, Greeley Lawn Equipment

FINAL STANDINGS

1. Raybestos Brakettes, Stratford, CT (5-0) (Defending Champ)
2. Law Equipment, Greeley, CO (5-2) (Rocky Mountain Alpine)
3. Orlando Rebels, Orlando, FL (4-2) (Southern At-Large)
4. Don Coburn Inc., Ashland, OH (4-2) (East Central)
5t. Bankettes, West Allis, WI (3-2) (Great Lakes)
5t. Sun City Saints, Sun City, AZ (3-2) (Rocky Mountain Cactus)
7t. Shamrocks, North Tonawanda, NY (3-2) (Mid-Atlantic)
7t. Arrows, Wichita, KS (3-2) (Northern At-Large)
9t. Shamrocks, Omaha, NE (1-2) (Mid-America At-Large)
9t. Frost Sporting Goods, Springfield, MO (2-2) (Mid-America)
9t. Bauer Buick Windmills, Harvey, IL (2-2) (Midwest)
9t. Golden Bobcats, Santa Clara, CA (1-2) (Pacific Coast)
13t. Orlando Suns, Orlando, FL (1-2) (Southern)
13t. Port City Comets, Port City, TX (0-2) (Texas)
13t. Dave Lee Sports, Portland OR (0-2) (Northwestern)
13t. Precision Plating, St. Paul, MN (1-2) (Northern)
17t. Ed Meier Ford, Memphis, TN (0-2) (Southwestern)
17t. Softball Association, Worcester, MA (0-2) (New England)
17t. Patriettes, Allentown, PA (0-2) (Host)
17t. VIP’s, Topton, PA (0-2) (Central Atlantic)
17t. East Lansing Laurels, Lansing, MI (0-2) (Great Lakes At-Large)

NOTES: South Atlantic Champ – Lorelei Ladies, Atlanta, GA did not attend.

1978 USSSA Men’s Major Slow Pitch World Series

1978 held at Petersburg, Virginia.

Champion – Howard’s Furniture, Denver, North Carolina
Runner Up – Howard & Carroll, Sherrills Ford, North Carolina

It was a North Carolina final as Howard’s dumped Howard & Carroll into the losers bracket early with a 25-5 pasting behind Don Arndt and Stan Harvey (2 HR each), Dave Jocobs had 5 hits and 5 RBI to aid in the cause. H&C went through the losers bracket eliminating a tough Corpus Christi Brick & Lumber team 14-13. H&C then revenged the defeat by Howards by beating them 23-15 to set up the final game. James Boyette and Dave Carroll both had 4 hits in the win. Joey Raby had 2 HR and 6 RBI. Howard’s Furniture, who had won two ASA titles already, won it’s first USSSA Championship by defeating H&C 20-15 in the final game. Denny Hogan had a pair of 3-run homers to lead the way. Joey Raby, Don Arndt and Stan Harvey all collected 2 HRs in the game. James Boyette (3 HR) and Tom Beall (2 HR) were the big hitters for H&C. Dave Jacobs was 16-24 (.667) for Howard’s, while Don Arndt and Bill Howes all were 12-19 (.631), both hammering out 5 HR. Stan Harvey hit 9 HR to lead Howard’s. In the Battle of the stats, it was Howard & Carroll with 54 HR to Howard’s Furniture’s 35 HR. But Howards team out hit H&C .550 to .470.

  • MVP – Denny Hogan, Howard’s (12-19, .632, 4 HR, 12 RBI, 11 Runs)
  • HR Leader – James Boyett, H&C (18-29, .621, 20 RBI, 15 Runs) – 13
  • Batting Leader – Bill Ferguson, C.C. Brick & Lumber (12-15, 4 HR, 9 RBI, 7 Runs) – .800

USSSA MAJOR ALL WORLD TEAM

  • Pitcher – Don Arndt – Howard’s Furniture (12-19, .632, 5 HR, 10 RBI, 10 Runs)
  • Catcher – Gene Fisher – Howard’s Furniture (10-19, .526, 4 HR, 6 RBI, 7 Runs)
  • First Base – Stan Harvey – Howard’s Furniture (11-21, .550, 9 HR, 15 RBI, 11 Runs)
  • Second Base – James Boyett – Howard & Carroll (18-29, .621, 13 HR, 20 RBI, 15 Runs)
  • Third Base – Tony Cloninger – Howard & Carroll (11-19, .579, 5 HR, 14 RBI, 9 Runs)
  • Shortstop – Steve Howard – Howard’s Furniture (8-17, .471, 1 HR, 6 RBI, 7 Runs)
  • Outfield – Dick Bartel – C.C. Brick & Lumber (11-15, .733, 5 HR, 9 RBI, 9 Runs)
  • Outfield – Denny Hogan – Howard’s Furniture (12-19, .632, 4 HR, 12 RBI, 11 Runs)
  • Outfield – Mike Jacobs – Howard’s Furniture (16-24, .667, 1 HR, 10 RBI, 12 Runs)
  • Outfield – Mickey Morrison – Howard & Carroll (13-28, .464, 5 HR, 7 RBI, 10 Runs)
  • Utility – Ron Woody – Howard & Carroll (12-20, .600, 2 RBI, 8 Runs)
  • Utility – Elby Bushong – Capitol Insulation (11-15, .733, 7 HR, 15 RBI, 9 Runs)
  • Utility – Mickey McCarty – C.C. Brick & Lumber (9-15, .600, 5 HR, 12 RBI, 8 Runs)
  • Utility – Bill Ferguson – C.C. Brick & Lumber (12-15, .800, 4 HR, 9 RBI, 7 Runs)
  • Utility – Gene Jones – Howard & Carroll (11-25, .440, 6 HR, 13 RBI, 12 Runs)
  • Utility – Joey Raby – Howard & Carroll (12-25, .480, 6 HR, 13 RBI, 10 Runs)
  • Manager – Bobby Lutz – Howard’s Furniture

OTHERS

  • John Davide, County Sports (4-5, .800, 1 RBI, 2 Runs)
  • Rick Linz, LaRosa’s (7-10, .700, 4 RBI, 5 Runs)
  • Braxton Speller, Snyders (7-10, .700, 1 HR, 3 RBI, 2 Runs)
  • Hank Cluess, County Sports (4-6, .667, 2 RBI, 3 Runs)
  • George Chernenko, Snyders (7-11, .636, 4 RBI, 4 Runs)
  • Bill Howes, Howard’s (12-19, .632, 5 HR, 7 RBI, 8 Runs)
  • Ron Shoquist, Snyders (7-12, .583, 3 RBI, 4 Runs)
  • Rick Scherr, Howard’s (10-18, .556, 4 HR, 13 RBI, 7 Runs)
  • Richard Wilborn, CC Brick (8-16, .500, 2 HR, 3 RBI, 9 Runs)
  • Hal Ward, LaRosa’s (5-10, .500, 1 HR, 3 RBI, 3 Runs)
  • Marty Rolnick, County Sports (3-6, .500, 2 HR, 5 RBI, 3 Runs)
  • Tom Beall, H&C (12-30, .400, 7 HRs, 16 RBI, 10 Runs)
  • Dave Hardt, H&C (10-24, .416, 3 HRs, 5 RBI, 10 Runs)
  • Don Clatterbaugh, H&C (10-26, .384, 3 HR, 5 RBI, 11 Runs)
  • Rick Pinto, Snyders (3-8, .375, 1 Run)
  • Dennis Myers, Capitol (5-14, .357, 3 HR, 5 RBI, 4 Runs)
  • Curtis Williams, Howard’s (5-16, .312, 2 HR, 4 RBI, 6 Runs)
  • Hank Kosmala, Capitol (4-14, .286, 2 HR, 2 RBI, 3 Runs)
  • Buddy Slater, CC Brick (4-14, .286, 4 Runs)
  • Lou Russo, County Sports (2-8, .250)

FINAL STANDINGS

1. Howard’s Furniture, Denver, NC (4-1)
2. Howard & Carroll, Sherills Ford, NC (5-2)
3. C.C. Brick & Lumber, Corpus Christi, TX (2-2)
4. Capitol Insulation, N. Hollywood, CA (2-2)
5t. LaRosa’s Greater Cincinnati Sports, Cincinnati, OH (1-2)
5t. Snyder’s Softball Club, Detroit, MI (1-2)
7t. May Tool, Paramount, CA (0-2)
7t. County Sports, Levittown, NY (0-2)

*By winning the 1978  World Series, Howard’s (QUALIFIED for 1979 WORLD SERIES)

1978 ASA Men’s Major Fast Pitch Nationals

1978 held at Springfield, Missouri.

Champion – Billard Barbell, Reading, Pennsylvania
Runner Up – Clearwater Bombers, Clearwater, Florida

Billard Barbell won its second straight ASA Championship and Pitcher Ty Stofflett was named MVP for the 5th time in the last 8 years. An incredible feat. He went 4-0 and struck out an amazing 61 batters in only 29 innings. He had a no hitter and two 1-hitters and only gave up 2 ERs and 6 hits in 4 games.

Joe Lynch, Clearwater Bombers (3-0, also hit 2 HRs). Mitch Harder also won 3 games for the Bombers as he finished up 3-2.

Larry Bergh, Billard (2-0) beat Clearwater 9-2 in championship game, he, along with Jeff Seip had 2 hits each.

Roy Burlison of CMI was 4-2 and he along with hitting star Ted Hicks led CMI to a 3rd place finish.

Leon Wood, Clearwater (12-27, .444, his 12 hits along with Ted Hicks of CMI broke the record of most hits in the National Tournament).

  • MVP – Ty Stofflet, Billard Barbell (4-0, 29 IP, 61 K, 2 Shutouts, No Hitter and 2 one-hitters, 2 ER, 6 Hits)
  • MVP – Ted Hicks, CMI (12-19, .632)
  • Batting Leader – Ted Hicks, CMI (12-19) – .632
  • Home Run Leader – N/A
  • Most Outstanding Pitcher Award  – Ty Stofflet, Billard Barbell (He may had the best season in Softball History, he was 46-1 on the season)

1978 FIRST TEAM ALL AMERICANS

P – Ty Stofflet, Billard Barbell
P – Roy Burlison, CMI
P – Joe Lynch, Clearwater Bombers
C – Carl Solarek, Billard Barbell
C – Albert “Buck” Delatorre, Clearwater Bombers
1B – Jeff Seip, Billard Barbell
2B – Kent Ingles, Neal’s Truck Parts
3B – Bob Yoder, Billard Barbell
SS – Leon Wood, Clearwater Bombers
OF – Ted Hicks, CMI
OF – Dallas Rountree, Guanella Brothers
OF – Richard Zeke Delong, Billard Barbell
OF – Ray Truluck, Clearwater Bombers
UTIL – Calvin Connor, Steve’s Exporters

1978 SECOND TEAM ALL AMERICANS

P – Larry Bergh, Billard Barbell
P – Mitch Harter, Clearwater Bombers
P – Jeff Kepner, Steve’s Exporters
C – Jim Nichols, CMI
C – George Papagelis, Raybestos Cardinals
1B – Jim Gosger, Neal’s Truck Parts
2B – Calvin Connor, Steve’s Exporters
3B – Mike Parnow, Guanella Brothers
SS – Evans Telegades, McArdle Pontiac-Cadillac
OF – David Grimes, Clearwater Bombers
OF – Beau Robinson, CMI
OF – Mickey Herbert, Raybestos Cardinals
OF – Jim Marsh, Guanella Brothers
UTIL – John White, Southern Truck Raiders

FINAL STANDINGS

1. Billard Barbell, Reading, PA (6-0) (Defending Champ)
2. Clearwater Bombers, Clearwater, FL (6-2) (Southern)
3. CMI, Springfield, MO (4-2) (Host)
4. Guanella Brothers, Santa Rosa, CA (5-2) (Pacific Coast)
5t. Steve’s Exporters, San Antonio, TX (3-2) (Texas)
5t. Peterbilt, Seattle, WA (2-2) (Northwestern)
7t. Neal’s Truck Parts, Grand Rapids, MI (2-2) (Great Lakes)
7t. Raybestos Cardinals, Stratford, CT (2-2) (New England)
9t. Southern Truck Raiders, Phoenix, AZ (2-2) (Rocky Mountain-Cactus-new)
9t. Butt’r Topp, Clear Lake, IA (2-2) (Mid America)
9t. York Barbell, York, PA (2-2) (Central Atlantic At-Large)
9t. McArdle Pontiac, Midland, MI (2-2) (Great Lakes At-Large)
13t. Bruce Hanson Printers, Littleton, CO (0-2) (Rocky Mountain-Alpine-new)
13t. Home Savings & Loan, Aurora, IL (0-2) (Midwest)
13t. Walnut Products, St. Joseph, MO (1-2) (Mid America At-Large)
13t. Poughkeepsie Brewers, Poughkeepsie, NY (1-2) (Mid-Atlantic)
17t. Sonny’s Exxon, Greenville, NC (0-2) (South Atlantic)
17t. Byerly’s, Minneapolis, MN (0-2) (Northern)
17t. Ohio Caverns, West Liberty, OH (0-2) (East Central)
17t. Wilson Powell Monarchs, Clinton, MD (0-2) (Central Atlantic)
17t. American Bank & Trust, Shreveport, LA (0-2) (Southwestern)

NOTES: Rocky Mountain was renamed Rocky Mountain-Alpine and Cactus was renamed Rocky Mountain-Cactus. Western (eliminated) and reformatted into Mid-America.

1978 Women’s College World Series (AIAW)

1978 held at Dill Softball Center in Omaha, Nebraska on May 25-28.

Champion – UCLA Bruins (31-3)
Runner Up – Northern Colorado (24-6)

UCLA swept through the Women’s College World Series of Softball undefeated and added the title to the national basketball championship it won earlier this spring.

The Bruins stopped Northern Colorado 3-0 Monday in the title game of the 16-team Association of Intercollegiate Athletics for Women double-elimination tournament that was plagued by weather throughout its five-day run.

Jan Jeffers stopped the Bears in the trophy game for her third victory in the tourney. UCLA, 5-0 in the meet, got three-hit pitching from Jeffers, who struck out three and walked none. Bruin batters collected six safeties off Brooks Swanson and Lou Piel, who relieved in the third inning.

The champions got all the runs they needed when Gail Edson singled home Jeffers and Sue Enquist in the first inning. UCLA added a run in the fifth when Kathy Maurice singled and Swanson, then playing left field, erred on the pickup attempt to allow Enquist to score from second base.

Piel pitched a three-hitter earlier Monday as Northern Colorado eliminated Minnesota, 3-1. Northern Colorado finished at 5-2 and Minnesota 3.2 in the tournament.

Linda Witt contributed 3-for-3 batting as Piel won her fifth game of the tournament without a loss with the support of (light Northern Colorado hits.

Witt’s triple drove in two rims in a three run fourth inning and the Bears scored in the fifth when Jan Breckenridge singled home Mary Jackson.

Minnesota loaded the bases with no outs in the seventh inning and a fielder’s choice scored the Gophers’ only run before two fly balls to the infield ended the game. Vicki Swanson was the losing pitcher. The Sunday program ended after one game. Northern Colorado eliminated Texas Woman’s University 7-3 before tourney officials called a halt because of rain and a tornado threat. The funnel cloud did not touch down.

Tournament officials estimated that the total attendance for the event cleared the 10,000 spectator barrier for the first time.

  • Most Outstanding Player – Sue Enquist, UCLA .421 (8-19)
  • Batting Leader – Sue Enquist, UCLA
  • HR Champion – N/A

1978 ALL TOURNAMENT TEAM

N/A

SCORES

  1. SW Missouri State 11 Massachusetts 2
  2. UCLA 4 Texas Woman’s 0
  3. Arizona State 10 Portland State 0
  4. Utah State 11 South Carolina 0
  5. Southern Illinois 2 Stephen F. Austin 1
  6. Minnesota 2 Cal St Poly-Pomona 1
  7. Nebraska-Omaha 2 Illinois State 1
  8. Northern Colorado 3 Oregon State 0
  9. Texas Woman’s 1 Massachusetts 0
  10. Portland State 10 South Carolina 7
  11. Cal St Poly-Pomona 2 Stephen F. Austin 1
  12. Oregon State 4 Illinois State 2
  13. UCLA 1 SW Missouri State 0
  14. Utah State 2 Arizona State 0
  15. Minnesota 6 Southern Illinois 2
  16. Northern Colorado 3 Nebraska-Omaha 2
  17. Texas Woman’s 4 Nebraska-Omaha 0
  18. Southern Illinois 4 Portland State 1
  19. Cal St Poly-Pomona 1 Arizona State 0
  20. SW Missouri State 1 Oregon State 0
  21. UCLA 7 Utah State 0
  22. Minnesota 4 Northern Colorado 1
  23. Texas Woman’s 3 Southern Illinois 1
  24. Cal St Poly-Pomona 2 SW Missouri State 1
  25. Texas Woman’s 3 Utah State 0
  26. Northern Colorado 4 Cal St Poly-Pomona 3
  27. Northern Colorado 7 Texas Woman’s 3
  28. UCLA 3 Minnesota 0
  29. Northern Colorado 3 Minnesota 1
  30. UCLA 3 Northern Colorado 0

FINAL STANDINGS

1. UCLA Bruins (5-0)
2. Northern Colorado Bears (5-2)
3. Minnesota Golden Gophers (3-2)
4. Texas Woman’s Tessies (4-2)
5t. Cal-State Poly-Pomona Broncos (3-2)
5t. Southern Illinois Salukis (2-2)
7t. Utah State Aggies (2-2)
7t. SW Missouri State Bears (2-2)
9t. Arizona State Sun Devils (1-2)
9t. Oregon State Beavers (1-2)
9t. Nebraska-Omaha Mavericks (1-2)
9t. Portland State Vikings (1-2)
13t. South Carolina Gamecocks (0-2)
13t. Illinois State Redbirds (0-2)
13t. Massachusetts Minutemen (0-2)
13t. Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks (0-2)

1978 ASA Women’s Major Slow Pitch Nationals

1978 held at Jacksonville, Florida.

Champion: Bob Hoffman’s Dots, Miami, Florida
Runner Up: Getz, Atlanta, Georgia

Behind the dominant defense and pitching of Judy Hedgecock, the Dots went undefeated winning all five games, two of them by shutout. The score in the final game was 7-2. Kristy Boston has a monster tournament for the Dots and was named MVP.

  • MVP – Kristy Boston, Dots (15-23, .652)
  • Batting Leader – Kristy Boston, Dots – .652
  • Home Run Leader – N/A

1978 FIRST TEAM ALL AMERICANS

P – Cathy Herrington, Getz
P – Judy Hedgecock, Bob Hoffman’s Dots
C – Chris Keller, Wray Roofing
C – Jeanne Ghostley, Spooks
1B – Mary Kay Sharp, Spooks
2B – Kristy Boston, Bob Hoffman’s Dots
3B – Terry Allen, Getz
SS – Chris Padgett, Bob Hoffman’s Dots
OF – Ernestine Hamel, Bob Hoffman’s Dots
OF – Mary Ann Holmes, Tamps Gremlins
OF – Dru Wise, Nelson’s Painting Saints
OF – Lori Brenner, Wray Roofing
UT – Sharon Gallagher, M&M Debs
UT – Branda Marshall, CC Brick & Lumber

1978 SECOND TEAM ALL AMERICANS

P – Curnie Webster, Stompers
P – Sandra VanLandingham, Tampa Gremlins
C – Linda Ares, Bob Hoffman’s Dots
C – Cheryl Hall, Stompers
1B – Val Nicholson, M&M Debs
2B – Sherri Pickard, Rubi-Otts
3B – Sue Stead, M&M Debs
SS – Dot Stansal, Denny Morgan’s Rebels
OF – Holly Perzel, Broglio’s Rockettes
OF – Elaine Roberson, Gets
OF – Evelyn Hayes, Bob Hoffman’s Dots
OF – Carol Stromberg, Spooks
UT – Darlene Werhnyak, Getz
UT – Jennie Garrison, Getz

FINAL STANDINGS (Incomplete)

1. Bob Hoffman’s Dots, Miami, FL
2. Getz, Atlanta, GA

TBD on paper 41 teams

Danny’s Angels – MA
Amr-Co Travel – Copaque, NY
The King and I – Rochester, NY
Roy Wheeler Realty – Charlottesville, VA
Mid-Region Petroleum – Tulsa, OK
Capps Realty – AR
HIC – Dallas, TX
CC Brick and Lumber – Corpus Christi, TX
Bernward Hall – Fond du Lac, WI
Oak Creek Equipment – Franklin, WI
Roadrunners – Columbus, OH
Independence Rockettes – Cleveland, OH
Kentucky Fried Chicken – Franklin, IN
Americs – Minneapolis, MN
Cowley County – KS
Gibson Contractors – Greeley, CO
Forrest Datson – CA
Bellingham Belles – Bellingham, WA
Coeur d’Alene Auto Parts – Coeur d’Alene, ID
Cardinals – Cincinnati, OH
Barnette Pavers – Lexington, KY
Spartan Sporting Goods – MO
Universal Plastics – Cookeville, TN
Raintree Steak & Pizza – Seattle, WA
Armed Forces – Annville, PA
Mason Majors – Mason, MI
Glenn Sporting Goods – WV
James Gang – Albany, GA
Scott Equipment Co. – Chattanooga, TN