The Opening Day of the Division 1 women’s softball championship took place on March 19th. 3 venues, 6 matches, 36 innings played, 85 runs scored.
The Grizzlys hosted the Cavigal, the 2022 Challenge winners took both of their matches, winning 13-0 in 4 innings and 12-5 in 5 innings. (Reminder of the mercy rules in softball: 15 runs in the 3rd inning, 10 runs in the 4th, 7 runs from the 5th inning onwards. From the first inning, they hit hard, scoring 7 runs and took advantage of every opportunity and the 4 errors by the Nice players. They just had to stay solid behind their international pitcher Clélia Coste to win this match under the mercy rule. In the 2nd match, it was the Nice players who opened the scoring but their 3 runs in the 2nd inning would not be enough and at the end of the 2nd, the Grenoble players scored 7 runs, once again taking advantage of 4 errors by the southerners. In the 4th inning, 2 new points for Giret and Flayol who did not change anything, Grenoble won in 5 innings.
In Paris, the BCF hosted Evry Courcouronnes. The first match took place on Saturday night at the beautiful Pharaohs’ field. Despite an early run scored by the Evry players in the first inning, it wasn’t until the 6th inning that they unleashed their offense and finished the match 9-0 under the mercy rule. The next day, it was a 9-8 score that saw the Pharaohs come out on top, trailing 8-3 until the 4th inning. They equalized and the teams remained deadlocked until the end of the 7th. The BCF, as often, relied on their experience and made things tense. It was a close call.
In the south, the Comanches hosted the Rabbits. The two teams split their matches, 7-10 for Clapier Jacquou and 9-2 for Saint-Raphaël. The first match was a nail-biter with the first extra inning of the season. Down by 4 runs in the 7th inning with 2 outs, the Rabbits couldn’t contain the Comanches’ offense, who strung together hits and tied the score, probably stung by their pride. The Clapier players scored 3 runs in the 8th inning and the Comanches couldn’t come back. In the 2nd match, a home run by Marina Morelli of the Comanches in the first inning set the tone. They led the entire match and the Rabbits couldn’t find the flaw despite their 7 hits. The match ended in 6 innings under the mercy rule, 9-2.
At the end of this first day, Evry and Grenoble have 2 wins, Saint-Raphaël and Clapier have 1 win and 1 loss, and the BC and Nice have 2 losses. Nothing is certain and the championship has in store for us some great matches and surprises. Next matchday on April 2nd.
