North Harbour pitcher Pita Rona snared 17 strikeouts in a win over the Czech Republic at the 2018 National Fastpitch Championship softball tournament, (file photo).

 

ORIGINAL STORY by Tony Smith

Pita Rona produced the pitching statement of the tournament to topple the unbeaten Czech Republic softball team at the National Fastpitch Championships.

The tall North Harbour utility - who plays in the infield when he's not hurling bullets on the mound - struck out 17 Czech batters in Harbour's 3-0 shutout win on their Rosedale Park home diamond on Friday.

Rona - son of four-time Black Sox world champion Brad Rona - backed up with 10 strikeouts against Wellington, but that wasn't enough to prevent Harbour sliding to a 5-3 loss.

Dave Mackay / Phototek.nz

Pita Rona has hit four home runs on the first two days of the NFC series at his Rosedale Park home diamond.

 

Rona, who was third on the batting averages and second on the pitching and RBI (runs batted in) charts on day one, slugged his tournament-leading fourth home run in the Wellington clash.

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Tyson Byrne and Callum Ryan also homered for Harbour, who out-batted Wellington seven hits to four. But Harbour made two errors to Wellington's none and the capital combination benefited from home run blasts by Joel Harris and Horowai Puketapu.

Harbour have been turning it on for their home fans at the plate  -  Black Sox aspirant Hohepa Monk hit two homeruns in a 9-8 win over Hutt Valley on Thursday night and Rona also snared one.

Auckland - with just the one loss, to the Czechs on Thursday - comfortably beat Counties Manukau-Waikato (CMW) 6-1 with the highlight a home run by infielder Rhys Evans. Bradley Bennett tripled for Auckland and young pitcher Liam Twigden got a good win, taking seven strikeouts.

Canterbury, who were thumped 11-2 by Auckland on Thursday night, picked up two good wins on Friday on the back of some power hitting by young clean-up batter Jackson Watt.

The Black Sox trialist impressed with two hits, including  a three-bagger in a 5-1 victory over CMW and smashed his second home run of the tournament in a 10-1 derby win over the Southern Pride.

Wellington, who struggled for traction on the first day, opened day two with three victories after accounting for Southern Pride 4-0, thanks to two home runs by Black Sox veteran Wayne Laulu.

Laulu's young team backed up by edging the Junior Black Sox (JBSX) 2-0 in a pitcher-dominated games where only three hits were conceded.

Catcher Campbell Ngarimu slammed his second three-run homer in successive games in Hutt Valley's 7-5 win over the Juniors . Hutt veteran Craig Wallace and JBSX pitcher Reilly Makea also hit the ball over the fence.

Black Sox star Joel Evans showed he hadn't any of his home running hitting lustre by grabbing a dinger as Hutt Valley swept aside the winless Southern Pride.

Women

Counties Manukau-Waikato (CMW) coach Jamie Brear must have felt like a Lotto lucky dip winner when White Sox pitcher and catcher combo Rita Hokianga and Mel Gettins' names came up in the NFC women's draft.

The Hawke's Bay-based pair were CMW's first draft picks and they repaid the compliment on Thursday in the tightest game of the tournament.

Hokianga hurled nine innings for nine strikeouts and three hits as CMW ended Hutt Valley's unbeaten record in a tense tiebreaker. 

Gettins batted in the game's only run in the top of the ninth, scoring automatic runner Sina Hunkin.

Hutt pitcher Shivaun Landeros also went the distance, taking five strikeouts for five hits.

CMW opened day two with a 6-1 win over the Canterbury Red Hawks, who paid the price for five defensive errors. Gettins and Charm Atkins-Haddon had two baggers for CMW.

Titleholders Auckland pipped Canterbury 4-3, thanks to a three-run scoring spree in the third inning.  Beth Stavert - an Aucklander guesting for Canterbury - had two hits from three and Red Hawks first base Lucy McIntyre cracked a triple.

American import Amber Schisler went three from three at the plate, with a triple and three RBIs in Auckland's 10-0 four innings romp over the Southern Pride.

White Sox representatives Stef Smith and Katrina Nukunuku had two hits and Krysta Hoani claimed a three-bagger.

That was the only real blowout of the day, however, with Wellington shading the Southern Pride 1-0 with Aroha Hibbert picking up two hits, including a triple.

Canterbury, who have had many a tight tussle with Wellington down the years, finished on the right side of the ledger this time, beating their capital city rivals, 4-3, when pitcher Paige Crawford scored in the bottom of the sixth inning after leading off with a triple.

AT A GLANCE

NATIONAL FASTPITCH CHAMPIONSHIPS SOFTBALL

Results

Men:  Thursday night:  Czech Republic 9 Counties Manukau-Waikato (CMW) 1, Auckland 11 Canterbury 2, North Harbour 9 Hutt Valley 8. Friday: Wellington 4 Southern Pride 0, Canterbury 5 Counties Manukau-Waikato (CMW) 1, Hutt Valley 7 Junior Black Sox 6, Auckland 7 CMW 1, Wellington 2 Junior Black Sox 0, Canterbury 10 Southern Pride 1, North Harbour 3 Czech Republic 0, Hutt Valley 9 Southern Pride 2, Wellington 5 North Harbour 3, 

Women: Thursday night: Canterbury 4 Southern Pride 2, Counties Manukau-Waikato  (CMW) 3 Wellington 2, Hutt Valley 7 Auckland 6. Friday: CMW 6 Canterbury 1, Wellington 1 Southern Pride 0, Auckland 4 Canterbury 3, CMW 1 Hutt Valley 0 (9 innings), Auckland 10 Southern Pride 0 (4 innings), Canterbury 4 Wellington 3.

 

 

 - Stuff