The National Pro Fastpitch League announced today that the world’s largest amateur sports association has finalized their purchase of an NPF franchise.
National Professional Fastpitch (NPF) softball recently held its annual owners meeting in Nashville, Tenn., with Sara Thompson, Softball Manager for Little League International and Nick Caringi, Little League International’s Senior Director of Operations and Education, presenting a report highlighting NPF’s partnership with the Little League Softball program.
The National Pro Fastpitch League Office announced today the establishment of the position of Director of Special Events and the appointment of Steve Leasure in that position.
National Pro Fastpitch announces the addition of two new staff members in the positions of Vice President of Development and Director of Operations. Further, the NPF League office is relocating from Denver, CO to Nashville, TN.
The USSSA Pride and Rockford Thunder met in Game 1 of the NPF Championship Finals at Firestone Stadium on Saturday night, and the Pride grabbed the game one victory 4-0 behind a strong pitching performance by Sarah Pauly and timely hitting throughout the Pride lineup.
The Rockford Thunder and Akron Racers met for game 3 of the first round of the NPF playoffs and the Thunder took control early and never looked back defeating Akron 7-2.
With the Akron Racers holding a 1-0 lead in the first round of the NPF Championships, Cat Osterman and Angela Tincher faced off in what started as a great pitching match up. Tincher carried a perfect game through the first three innings, while Osterman surrendered only one walk in the same time frame.
The Akron Racers capitalized on a pair of Thunder errors, relied on solid defense and impressive pitching to defeat the Rockford Thunder, 1-0 at Firestone Stadium this afternoon.
Stacy May and the Chicago Bandits capitalized late against the USSSA Pride for a 1-0 win in the first game of the 2009 NPF Championships at Firestone Stadium.
The stage was set for the NPF to display some of the best softball in the world Thursday night in Akron, Ohio with their Championship Series. Unfortunately, the league's top four teams were beat by Mother Nature.
The 2009 Battle of the Bats finalists collided at Firestone Stadium this evening during FanFest to outslug one another for a $1,000 prize and title of 2009 Battle of the Bat Champion.
For the second consecutive season, the Chicago Bandits finished the year as regular season champions and clinched the #1 seed heading into playoffs with a league-best 27-12 record.
After a heated “Battle” throughout the season, the 2009 Battle of the Bats finalists have been announced and are set to compete in the BATTLE OF THE BATS finals on TONIGHT...
On the heels of last week’s announcement from the IOC regarding their recommendation to not include softball on the 2016 slate, the National Pro Fastpitch League suddenly becomes a more important focus for the fastpitch softball community.
Bandits third baseman Stacy May wasted no time making a statement against Rockford’s undefeated pitcher Cat Osterman, blasting just the third pitch of the game from Osterman deep to centerfield for the solo homerun to give the Bandits a 1-0 lead with no outs in the bottom of the first.
Coming off a 15 hit night on Thursday, the Chicago Bandits (25-12) bats picked up right where they left off with both Tammy Williams and Amber Patton reaching base on swinging bunts to kick off the bottom of the first inning. Rachel Folden followed them up with a walk to load the bases for Bandits’ first baseman Samantha Findlay.
With one down and Bandits right fielder Amber Patton on second, Rachel Folden blasted the 1-1 pitch deep to right centerfield, bringing Patton around to score for the early 1-0 lead over the Thunder (19-18).
In the top of the seventh, Bandits catcher Rachel Folden finally broke through against Rockford’s Cat Osterman, getting the first hit of the game off Osterman (11-0) for a single through the left side. Bandits’ first baseman Samantha Findlay followed Folden up with her own single to put two on.
Costly errors foiled the Bandits for the second day in a row as the Akron Racers (26-14) were able to take down the Bandits (23-11) by a score of 4-0 in the Sunday afternoon battle.
Kissimmee, FL- After scoring only one run in their last three games the Pride’s bats came to life in game three of the series. Facing former UCF Knight Allison Kime (3-10) the Pride were able to drive her from the ball game in the bottom of the fourth inning.
A costly error – the final out of the top of the ninth inning was dropped in left field by Bandits’ centerfielder Nicole Trimboli – would end Chicago’s night when the very next batter Jenny Topping slammed the go ahead run to give the Racers (25-14) the 2-0 lead.
Kissimmee, Fl – With US Olympian Cat Osterman inside the circle the Rockford Thunder gave her the lead by the time she stepped in the circle for the first time in the ball game.
Bandits pitcher Jennie Finch (fresh off a stint in Japanwith team USA) came back with a vengeance, helping her own cause in the circle by blasting the first pitch of the bottom half of the fourth inning deep to left field for the solo home run, tying the score at 4-4 with the Akron Racers. With the score at 4-4 and with Amber Patton on first, Bandits (23-9) catcher Rachel Folden blasted a 2-1 pitch deep to centerfield and off the wall, bringing Patton around to score from first for the game ending run and a 5-4 Bandits victory over Akron (24-14).
Kissimmee, Fl – It was a classic NPF pitcher’s duel in game two of the series between the Rockford Thunder (16-16) and the USSSA Pride (12-20). The Thunder threw US Olympian Cat Osterman (9-0) in the circle vs. Desiree Serrano (2-9).
The Akron Racers are set to host the 2009 National Pro Fastpitch Championship Series at Firestone Stadium from August 19-23rd. Fans can call the Akron Racers Box Office at 330-376-8188 or purchase them online by visiting ticketreturn.com.
The USSSA Pride spoiled the Akron Racers 2009 home finale by picking up their first win of the series 6-2. The Pride (11-19) mixed a combination of good pitching, hitting and an ability to capitalize on Racer (22-13) miscues to come away with the victory.
The Akron Racers continued to roll along as they greeted the USSSA Pride at Firestone Stadium Friday night by defeating the Pride 10-1. The Racers were powered offensively by Kate Robinson who went 1-3 with her one hit being a three run home run. Robinson added a total of five RBIs to her evening with a sacrifice fly and an RBI ground out in addition to the homer.
The Racers (20-12) relied heavily upon pitcher Lisa Norris and the rookie came through for her team earning victories in both games of Thursday's double header. Norris started the evening by throwing a complete game shutout in the first game. The former Tar Heel then came in with runners on first and second with nobody out in the top of the sixth inning of game two, Norris finished the inning, and then the next two, allowing only an inherited run to score on an error.
Nearly 3,500 fans poured into Firestone Stadium to watch the Akron Racers final home game of the 2009 regular season against the Chicago Bandits, and they were all treated to a classic back and forth game that followed the pattern of the entire series between the two teams.
AKRON, Ohio - *In a back and forth game that saw four lead changes and plenty of offense, the Chicago Bandits defeated the Akron Racers with one big swing in the top of the seventh inning off the bat of center fielder Caitlin Lever. With the game tied 6-6, one out and the bases loaded Lever launched a ball deep into the night sky that sailed over the center field fence. The 10-6 lead for the Bandits was enough to put the game out of reach for Akron.
The Chicago Bandits rallied from their slow offensive start against the Akron Racers to pour four runs in the top of the fifth inning (17-11) to win the game, 5-1. Chicago (21-6) managed the big inning with five infield singles, two Racer errors and only a sacrifice fly leaving the infield.
Philadelphia (6-19) and USSSA (7-14) came into this series in a battle for the final spot in the Championship Series in Akron. It was the Force that was able to make the first blow in game one.
The Akron Racers went toe to toe with the first place Chicago Bandits (20-5) in front of nearly 1,500 fans at Firestone Stadium, and at the end of the rainy Wednesday night, it was the Racers (16-10) that stood victorious 2-1.
The Rockford Thunder looked like a last place team in Saturday night’s 10-5 loss to the visiting Philadelphia Force as they committed a season-high four errors.
Recently acquired Kia Fennell (1-0) made her first start of the NPF season at USSSA Pride Park and helped lead the Pride (6-12) to back-to-back wins for the first time this season.
The Philadelphia Force got a first inning home run from Megan Gibson and three more runs in the second inning to coast to a 6-1 victory over Rockford at Thunder Park on Friday night.
For the second consecutive night the Thunder found a way to win a game in walk-off fashion, this time knocking off the Force by a final score of 6-5 in eight innings.
The Thunder and the Force each needed a win to snap long losing streaks, but it was the Thunder coming through on Wednesday night, as they defeated Philadelphia by a final score of 1-0.
When you’re rolling as the Chicago Bandits are there it will take a lot to slow them down, and the Thunder was not able to do so on Thursday night as they lost to Chicago by a final score of 6-2.
On a beautiful afternoon at Firestone Stadium, the Akron Racers closed out their series with the Philadelphia Force (3-11) in impressive fashion with a 7-3 victory. The Racers (8-7) utilized home runs by Lisa Modglin and Kristen Butler to fuel their outburst.
The Philadelphia Force slugged their way to a victory in game one of a double header at Firestone Stadium 8-4 and the Akron Racers (7-7) drew even on the day in game two winning 5-3.
Lisa Norris stepped into the pitching circle and outdueled the Force's Jessica Sallinger with a fine performance, leading the Racers to a 2-1 win. Norris kept the Force (2-9) hitters off balance for most of the night by mixing pitches and locations effectively. Norris only surrendered three singles spread out through the seven innings and none of the hits led to Philadelphia scoring.
With Jennie Finch and Kristie Fox on base in the top of the second, Bandits outfielder Nicole Trimboli stepped up to bat against USSSA Pride pitcher Monica Abbott. Trimboli got the better of Abbott, blasting a 3-run home run over the left field fence to give the Bandits a 4-0 lead.
The Akron Racers started off their series against the Philadeindelphia Force with a dramatic walk-off victory Wednesday night.
With the Racers (5-6) down 3-2 entering the bottom of the seventh, the Force (2-8) turned to Kristen Erb to try and pick up the save. Erb (0-3) plunked Akron's leadoff hitter, Lisa Modglin to start the inning.
Celebrating its 10th consecutive year of providing professional opportunities for post-graduate softball student-athletes throughout the United States, the National Pro Fastpitch (NPF) League’s profile continues to grow as many of the country’s best players choose to call the League home.
The Thunder had an up and down day on Saturday as they split a day-night doubleheader with the visiting USSSA Pride. The Pride took game one behind a strong pitching effort from Monica Abbott by a final of 6-2, while the Thunder won the nightcap 1-0 behind another Osterman shutout.
Cat Osterman continued her hot start in the circle on Thursday night as she allowed just one hit to the USSSA Pride en route to a 2-0 win for the Thunder.
The differences between game one and game two of the Akron Racer's double header vs the Rockford Thunder were truly like night and day. Game one saw the Racers (4-5) utilize two big innings to win a battle of who can strike last offensively, 11-6. In the night cap, Cat Osterman baffled Racer batters on her way to delivering a no hit performance in a pitcher's duel that put the former Olympian head to head with Akron's perfect game thrower Lisa Norris. A battle that Rockford (5-4) won 5-0.
With two on and two down in the bottom of the seventh Tammy Williams blasted the 1-1 pitch deep to right field. The ball drilled the base of the right field fence as Williams hustled around the bases, making it home for the third run, inside the park homerun, bringing the Bandits to within one of the USSSA Pride, 6-5.
It was a day of homeruns for the Bandits as four different batters took three different Force (1-4) pitchers deep en route to a 9-4 victory over the Philadelphia Force.
Rockford led the entire game until back-to-back homeruns by Crystl Bustos and Lisa Modglin in the top of the seventh tied the game at 4-4. Jamie Davison didn’t keep it tied for long as she blasted a walk-off home run deep to left field to propel the Thunder to a 5-4 win.
The National Pro Fastpitch League (NPF) and MLB.com, the official Web site of Major League Baseball, announced today a multi-year agreement in which they will partner to stream a schedule of 60 NPF games live online exclusively from the League’s official Web site at www.ProFastPitch.com.
The most publicized change for the Bandits will be the return of superstar pitcher Jennie Finch, who along with infielder Vicky Galindo and outfielder Caitlin Lever come back after playing in the Beijing Olympics a year ago.
The Rockford Thunder will begin its third season of play in Northern Illinois on Wednesday when they host the Akron Racers for a five game series to open the season.
The Philadelphia Force is excited to announce the renewal of their partnership with Service Electric TV 2, a leader in sports coverage within the Lehigh Valley.
The Rockford Thunder announced today that veteran second baseman, Lindsay Gardner, has decided to forego the final two years of her contract and retire to pursue a new career opportunity.
The Philadelphia Force have added another arm to their already solid pitching staff by signing free agent Jessica Sallinger, previously of the Chicago Bandits.
On Saturday, June 20, the Philadelphia Force will be hosting the 2008 National Pro Fast pitch (NPF) Champion Chicago Bandits at Hoffman Stadium in York, PA.
