Advertisement

Cheboygan Chaos Clash crowns four softball division champions

jared greenleaf, cheboygan daily tribune
·3 min read
Cheboygan's Amelia Johnson fires a pitch during a Cheboygan Chaos Clash 16U pool play game against Krush 15U at the Cheboygan High School softball field on Saturday, July 30.
Cheboygan's Amelia Johnson fires a pitch during a Cheboygan Chaos Clash 16U pool play game against Krush 15U at the Cheboygan High School softball field on Saturday, July 30.

CHEBOYGAN – Tons of games, fantastic weather, and championship winners at the end of all of it.

This past weekend, the Cheboygan Chaos Clash held its biggest-ever softball tournament, which featured a whopping 36 teams from all over the state of Michigan.

On Sunday evening, it all came to a close for the 4th Annual Chaos Clash, which crowned tournament champions in 10-Under, 12-Under, 14-Under and 16-Under divisions.

Taking home the 16U title was Michigan X-Factor, who claimed a 5-1 victory over Northern Michigan Cyclones in a championship contest held at the Cheboygan High School softball field.

Earning a semifinal berth in the tournament was the Cheboygan Chaos 16U squad, which captured a 7-3 victory over Soo Legacies in a morning bracket play matchup on Sunday. However, the Chaos lost their 2-0 lead and suffered a 6-2 defeat to Northern Michigan Legends in the semifinals. Cheboygan finished the weekend with a 3-2 record, including a 3-0 victory over UP Vortex on Friday and a 4-3 win over Krash 15U on Saturday morning.

In the 12U bracket round, the Cheboygan Chaos were unable to reach the semifinals of their tournament after losing a narrow 10-8 contest to a solid Soo Legacies team. In pool play, Cheboygan rolled to a 15-1 victory over Presque Isle Panthers-Muckle in its opener on Friday, suffered a 5-2 loss to eventual tournament champion ICE Fastpitch on Saturday afternoon, and then rebounded with a 12-0 win over Northern Michigan Legends-Cosier on Saturday evening.

Cheboygan's Abby Schulz (99) was all smiles after scoring a run early on during a 12U matchup against Soo Legacies at the Cheboygan River Field on Sunday, July 31.
Cheboygan's Abby Schulz (99) was all smiles after scoring a run early on during a 12U matchup against Soo Legacies at the Cheboygan River Field on Sunday, July 31.

ICE Fastpitch took down Lapeer Lightning in a 7-3 victory in Sunday evening’s championship game at the Cheboygan River Field.

In the 10U Division, the Cheboygan Chaos opened their tournament with a 5-2 victory over Soo Legacies in a Friday matchup at the Cheboygan men’s fastpitch field. However, the Chaos would suffer Saturday pool play losses to Northern Michigan Legends (11-2) and Alpena Thundercats (9-8) at the K of C field. Cheboygan’s tournament came to a close after an 8-3 loss to Northern Michigan Legends at the men’s fastpitch field on Sunday afternoon.

Cheboygan shortstop Adele Schulz makes a throw to first base during a 10U game against Northern Michigan Legends at the Cheboygan men's fastpitch softball field on Sunday, July 31.
Cheboygan shortstop Adele Schulz makes a throw to first base during a 10U game against Northern Michigan Legends at the Cheboygan men's fastpitch softball field on Sunday, July 31.

Going on to win the 10U tournament was Northern Michigan Legends, who captured an 8-3 triumph over Midland Lady Explorers in the final at the men’s fastpitch field.

The only division not to feature a Cheboygan softball team was the 14U, which did include the Northern Michigan Cyclones (Indian River), who made their Chaos Clash tournament debut.

It was a solid showing from the Cyclones, who finished 3-2 overall and earned a semifinal appearance in games played at the Cheboygan recreational softball field. The Cyclones opened their tournament with a 12-4 victory over Presque Isle Panthers-George on Friday afternoon. Even after an 8-2 defeat to Fenton Fastpitch in their first game on Saturday, the Cyclones bounced back with a 17-2 rout over Soo Legacies later in the day. The Cyclones booked their spot to the 14U semifinals with a 9-2 victory over Soo Legacies on Sunday morning. Unfortunately for the Cyclones, they weren’t able to reach the final after suffering a 6-2 loss to Chain O’Lakes Fanatics in an afternoon semifinal on Sunday.

Lexi Kovtun was a member of the Northern Michigan Cyclones, a team based out of Indian River who was making their debut in the Cheboygan Chaos Clash. The Cyclones faced off against Presque Isle Panthers-George on Friday, July 29.
Lexi Kovtun was a member of the Northern Michigan Cyclones, a team based out of Indian River who was making their debut in the Cheboygan Chaos Clash. The Cyclones faced off against Presque Isle Panthers-George on Friday, July 29.

After opening their tournament with a loss to the Cyclones on Friday, Presque Isle Panthers-George responded emphatically with an 11-5 victory over Fenton Fastpitch and a 15-7 win over Soo Legacies in Saturday pool play games, setting up an early-Sunday morning rematch with Fenton Fastpitch. This time, however, Fenton Fastpitch got their revenge, edging out the Panthers in a 4-3 victory and earning a spot in the semifinals.

Pitcher Charlotte Box of Presque Isle Panthers-George deals during a 14U clash against the Northern Michigan Cyclones at the Cheboygan rec softball field on Friday, July 29.
Pitcher Charlotte Box of Presque Isle Panthers-George deals during a 14U clash against the Northern Michigan Cyclones at the Cheboygan rec softball field on Friday, July 29.

Fenton Fastpitch couldn’t reach the final after a 6-1 defeat to Alpena Thundercats, who cruised to a 10-0 victory over Chain O’Lakes Fanatics in the 14U final at the rec field on Sunday evening.

Also being held in Cheboygan on Saturday and Sunday was a 12U baseball tournament, which featured a Cheboygan Chaos team. The Chaos recorded a 1-5 clip in the tournament, which finished on Sunday afternoon.

This article originally appeared on Cheboygan Daily Tribune: Cheboygan Chaos Clash crowns four softball division champions