Griffons win tourney, first to earn NBC World Series berth

Pat Chambers (right) presents plaque and $1,000 check to Nevada Griffons' head coach Daryl Byrd after Griffons' claimed the championship at the NBC World Series qualifying tournament, the Tournament of Champions, at Lyons Stadium on Saturday. The Nevada Griffons exploded for 12 runs late in the contest to blow past the Springfield Generals, 16-5, and capture the inaugural Tournament of Champions at Lyons Stadium on Saturday. The Tournament of Champions, under the sponsorship of Champion Diamonds of Nevada, is a National Baseball Congress (NBC) World Series Open Qualifier. With the win, the Griffons (22-9) assured themselves of a slot in the 64-team NBC World Series at Wichita, Kan. on Aug. 2-16. They became the first team to qualify. In 2002, the Griffons finished third behind perennial Alaska powerhouses, the champion Fairbanks Goldpanners and runner-up Anchorage Glacier Pilots. The Generals, the Griffons' opponent in the finale, took the hard road to the championship game. The lightly-regarded Generals, with a 7-51 record and a short roster of only 14 players, advanced through the losers' bracket and upset the second-seed Oklahoma Braves in a Saturday morning contest before facing the Griffons at 1 p.m. In a see-saw affair early, Nevada opened a 1-0 lead after one inning, but the Generals clawed back for a 2-1 advantage in the second. The Griffons retook the lead with three in the third to go up 4-2. But, again, the stubborn Generals bounced back with two to tie, then added a single run in the fifth to take a 5-4 lead. Then, Nevada, with the aid of two crucial Springfield errors, scored five runs after two were out in their half of the fifth to salt the game away. Springfield committed seven errors. The Griffons added seven in the sixth to complete the blowout and post a 4-0 record in the tournament. Mark Culp (2-0) got the win. He went five innings, gave up nine hits and five runs, four earned. Kyle Pomeroy and Eric Horstman pitched one scoreless inning apiece to nail down the victory. Leading the Griffons' offense was Greg Kish with three hits in four trips and Brian Bugg and Tim Law with two hits each. Kevin Bills, Kirk McConnell and Clay Goodwin knocked in two runs apiece. Five Griffons were selected to the all-tournament team, including Nevada's slick-fielding Zach Hawks as a utility player. Other Griffons chosen were pitcher John Findley, outfielder Kirk McConnell, infielder Eric Horstman and infielder Tim Law. The Nevada Athletics, an 18-and-under team, also placed two players on the squad. Danny Penn, Nevada High School all-stater, made the team as an infielder and Alvin Metcalf, Fort Scott High School standout, was voted on as an outfielder. The Griffons were on the road at Chillicothe in a non-league game last night. Results were unavailable at press time. They return home for a doubleheader against Jayhawk League foe El Dorado, Kan. tonight.