The final showdowns are here: farewell to Division 1, welcome to the Division 2 championship finale. The start of the European baseball championship and the final clashes in men’s and women’s Division 1 softball.
Division 2
Finale of this championship with Valenciennes traveling to Béziers. Another North vs. South duel. Both teams have plenty to fuel their revenge. After the first two games, they’ll meet in Valenciennes for three more if necessary on September 30th and October 1st.
François Bonnet, President of Béziers:
We’re approaching this finale with confidence and certainty in our strengths. Our regular season pool was highly competitive and well-prepared us. Valenciennes will be a very tough opponent with past Division 1 experience. Our guys haven’t forgotten the 2018 National 1 final loss, it’ll be an extra motivator.
Marc Williamson, President of Valenciennes:
This will be our second finale in two years after the one played against Clermont in 2022. We know the disappointment of losing a finale and the team is fired up to reverse the trend. We know the quality of the Béziers team. A club that has well-structured itself, especially recently, with a new field and a desire to play at the highest level. We know the team will have to play at its best level, as it did in games 4 and 5 of the semifinals against Clermont, to hope to win. This away game will be crucial for both teams as it will be very complicated to return to Valenciennes with two losses. Both teams have pitching staffs that seem equivalent according to statistics, with a foreign starter and a limited number of pitchers. Béziers’ lineup is more robust, but the batting averages and power stats are similar, with a slight advantage for Béziers who have more depth. However, Valenciennes has more than twice as many stolen bases. In short, a beautiful finale in prospect that will be interesting and a pleasure to face this team we played in 2018 again.
French National Team European Championship
The French national team, led by Keino Perez, will try to match the performance of the 23U team that returned with the bronze medal. In Group C, they will face the Netherlands, Croatia, and Ukraine. First match this Sunday at 5:30 PM live from the Czech Republic.
To watch these matches, you need to connect to the WBSC Europe channel. The broadcast is paid (24€), discount code FRANCE10.
First match at 5:30 PM Sunday against the Netherlands. here
Division 1 Men’s Softball Playoffs
First playoff round-robin clashes between the top three teams in the B standings: Clapiers-Jacou, Montpellier, and Toulouse.
Division 1 Women’s Softball: 10th Round
Final round of the championship with playoffs starting in early October. The Comanches face the Grizzlys, Paris takes on Nice, and the Rabbits challenge the Pharaohs.
