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The Quad City Firebirds USA (03) are The Indiana Great Lakes Nationals 16A Champions.
The Firebirds started the week on Wednesday with a pool-play game against the Illiana Kaos. The offense started off a little sluggish, plating 3 runs on just 4 hits, but the pitching and defense held the Kaos to a no-hitter. The second pool game of the day came against a tough Northern Illinois Thunder team. The Thunder scored first in the 2nd inning, but the Firebirds scored 4 in the 3rd and added 2 more in the 4th for a 6-1 win. The final pool game on Thursday morning saw the Firebirds bats answer the alarm, plating 8 runs on 10 hits in a 10-1 win over the Bluff City 16U.
Bracket play kicked off on Friday with a first-round bye and a second round game against the Midwest USSSA Pride 16U – Dralle. The bats were hot, plating 7 runs on 11 hits in the contest. But the pitching and defense were even stronger, putting up a second no-hitter in a 7-1 win.
The third-round game pitted the Firebirds against a tough Derby City Crush team. The Firebirds offense plated 1 run in the 2nd inning and added 1 more in the 4rd. Strong pitching and defense helped the Firebirds to finish off a 5-0 win.
The semi-finals put the Otters in the path of the Firebirds. The Otters scored a run in the top of the first, and both teams played solid defense for the next five innings. The Firebirds plated a run with 2 outs in the bottom of the 6th inning to tie the score, but couldn’t get the winning run in. The Firebirds pitching and defense were strong enough to keep the Otters from scoring in the international tie-breaker, but the Firebirds were able to get the go-ahead run on a looping shot to right field, winning the game 2-1 and sending the Firebirds to the championship game.
The championship game saw the Derby City Crush play their way back through the loser’s bracket to face a hot Firebirds team. The Crush drew first blood when they scored a run in the 2nd inning. They held the Firebirds until the bottom of the 4th, when the Firebirds were able to get 2 runs in, taking a 201 advantage. The Crush had a chance to tie or even go ahead in the top of the 6th as they had bases loaded with two outs, but once again the strong pitching and defensive play of the Firebirds held tight for the win.
The Firebirds finished the week with a 7-0 record, scoring 33 runs on 57 hits. The offense racked up a .383 batting average with 9 extra-base hits including a homerun. The defense and pitching were as strong as ever, allowing only 4 runs by the opposing teams. Our pitchers threw 36 innings, allowed only 18 hits and struck out 67. They combined for an ERA of .583 and a WHIP of .722.
The QC Firebirds USA (03) finished the 2018/2019 season with a record of 48-6-3. The team had a combined batting average of .350 and an on-base percentage of .414. They racked up 236 runs on 412 hits, 113 for extra bases including 12 homeruns. The pitching staff threw 283.2 innings, striking out 479, walking 89, and allowing only 96 runs. They combined for an ERA of 1.851 and a WHIP of .987. The team took six First-Place Finishes and two Third-Place in tournaments this season.
