MIDLAND, TX - Representing Southern California in the 64-team ASA Men’s Class ‘D’ Slow Pitch Western National Championship, 3N2 So Cal (Arcadia, CA) dominated the tournament with an 8-0 record to capture the championship crown over the recent Labor Day weekend.

Winning the national title qualifies 3N2 for the Hooters Championship Series in Oklahoma City, September 23-25.

Posting an 8-0 record, 3N2 opened the weekend run to the title by crushing Party Hardy (Tucson, AZ) 14-1 before an 18-9 victory against Seguin Softball Club (Seguin, TX) advanced them in the winner’s bracket. A 22-7 romp of Christianson Brothers Construction (Willmar, MN) and a 9-1 triumph over in-state rival NorCal/Golden State California (Concord, CA) pushed 3N2’s record to 4-0.

Entering the quarterfinals having outscored opponents 63-16, 3N2 captured a 14-7 win against Rally Time (Phoenix, AZ) before cruising into the winner’s bracket final with a 5-2 victory over Team Santa Cruz (Santa Cruz, CA).

A battle of the undefeaten, it was time for 3N2 to be tested when the 6-0 Solberg’s (Cedar Rapids, IA) squad reached the semifinal game. An intense clash saw 3N2 squeeze by with an 11-10 victory.

Solberg’s, who dropped into the loser’s bracket with the loss to 3N2 quickly responded when they defeated Don’t Hate (San Marcos, TX) 9-2 to earn a rematch with 3N2. Solberg’s posted double-digit runs but it wasn’t enough as eventual champions 3N2 preserved its perfect record with a 20-15 win to take home the tournament title.

Outscoring its eight opponents 113-52, 3N2 averaged 14.1 runs per game. Six 3N2 players were selected to the ASA First-Team all-tournament squad including Joseph Barrigan (1B), Chester Kingery (2B), Tom Olivera (3B), Eliseo Aguillar (OF), Mario Elizarrarz (OF) and Preston Pearson (P).

In a tournament that saw nine teams finish with records of 5-2 or better, some of the standout performances seen were posted by Western State teams such as BFC (Sparks, NV) and Team Santa Cruz (Santa Cruz, CA). BFC placed two players on the second team all tourney team; Billy Doyle and Chris Baker were honored for their outstanding tournament play. Team Santa Cruz had Don Owens selected to the first team all tournament team and Jeff McKee, Dean Freeman, Rande Olds and Santos Gutierrez all awarded second team selection.

Other Western entries to finish with at least a 3-2 record or better were Gashouse Gorilla (San Diego, CA), Rally Time (Phoenix, AZ), NorCal/Golden State (Concord, CA), G Squad/Mud Skillz (Glendale, AZ), Bordiers/Easton (Anaheim, CA) and Turn 2 (Chino Hills, CA).