Softball NSW teed off their 2022 National Championships campaign in imperious fashion, defeating ACT 9-0 to claim the Open Men's title. Hosted by defending champions ACT at the Hawker International Softball Centre, the four-day event was narrowed down to three, with wet weather leading to the cancellation of Day 1 and a large part of Day 2. 

The road to the Grand Final

NSW got off to a winning start, def QLD 7-0 on Friday, featuring 20-year old Jack Besgrove's perfect game in his debut game for his side. This was followed by a defeat to ACT the next day - the only loss the Blue Bloods ended up recording in their Championship. The rest of NSW's Day 2 featured convincing wins against Victoria, South Australia and ACT. 

A Dominating Win At The Grand Final 

Facing NSW in the Grand Final were ACT, who made an outstanding comeback in the tournament after losing three games in a row on Saturday. The hosts however were met with another incredible performance by the Blue Bloods - Jack Besgrove pitched another amazing game for his side, recording 11 strikeouts and giving up just 1 hit in five innings. James Darby's home run in the 4th inning was pivotal, with his side registering 6 runs in the inning. 

Watch the full highlights of the Grand Final here. 

Cleaning up the Individual Awards

Unsurprisingly, three out of the five individual awards in the Championship were claimed by Blue Bloods-

• Best Batter – James Todhunter (NSW)
• Rookie of the Year – Jack Besgrove (NSW)
• Player of the Grand Final – Jack Besgrove (NSW)

Softball NSW would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge and thank Softball Australia as well as Softball ACT for their incredible efforts in successfully hosting the Championship.