Tara Murray
Premiership glory which has been four seasons in the making is being enjoyed by the North Western Titans.
Four seasons after first fielding a women’s side, the Titans won the Baseball Victoria division 3 west premiership on Saturday.
The underdogs heading into the grand final against the minor premiers, the Sunshine Eagles, the Titans put together a perfect game to come away with a 28-15 win.
Titans president and women’s co-coach Ryan Tompkins said the group was just thrilled to have finally won a premiership.
“It was a great game,” he said. “It’s been four seasons in the making, the last two seasons we had missed the grand final by a game.
“We’ve worked extra hard and it’s helped having two sides this season.”
Tompkins said they took plenty of confidence into the grand final, having won their last six games. Their last loss though, had been against the Eagles, in a game where they didn’t play well.
On Saturday, it would be the perfect game for the Titans.
“We had to put it all together on the day,” he said. “Our bats worried us, but we knew we were the better defensive side.
“It was the best I’ve seen them play and they went to another level. We scored 13 runs in the first innings and they scored six.
“Then we scored six in the second innings, so everyone settled and we felt like we were in control. We shut out their first two pitchers, then it was about finishing it off.
“We knew that we had it [the win] but we had to play out the game.
We wanted them to play out the whole two hours and they did that.”
Tompkins said all 15 girls who played on Saturday contributed, with everyone able to have a hit and make it to a base.
For four players the win was extra special, having been part of the club’s original women’s side four seasons ago.
“It’s good to finally show what we have been working towards since day one,” he said.
“The girls were amazing on the day. They played a complete game, which was what the side needed.”
The win caps off a strong season for the club overall, which celebrated its 10th anniversary.
The men’s team made the semi finals, losing in extra time the previous week, after a grand final appearance 12 months ago. The club also fielded two women’s sides for the first time.
With the premiership team being promoted, they will have a side in division 2 and one in division 3.
The biggest thing is the growth of the junior program, with 40 children alone in the club’s tee-ball program.
“There’s a lot of young kids coming through and we’re excited for the next chapter, the next three or four years,” Tompkins said.
“The men’s and women’s program keeps growing.”
