The Mitchell Grizzlies entered the 2012 Slo-Pitch season with high expectations, and once all the ball was done for the year the Grizzlies had claimed a 2nd place finish in the Mitchell Slo-Pitch League.
The season began with a hectic schedule in May where 8 of 9 scheduled games were completed. Only 1 game postponed due to rain was lucky considering the amount of rain received during the spring. A record of 4 and 4 was admirable to start the season as the team worked through the off season rust.
The heart of the season, June and July, was where the Grizzlies proved they were a top tier team and showed the league that they would be a difficult team to beat. A grizzly tradition, the Grizzly Annual Golf Tournament, kicked off June under perfectly sunny skies. This team bonding event catapulted the Grizzlies to an 8 and 4 record during this period, pushing the Grizzlies near the top of the standings.
August, the Grizzlies’ busiest month of the season, had the team compile a 4 and 2 record, good enough for a 4th place finish in the league after regular season play. The team took a brief 1 week hiatus for the 34th Annual Cornfest Tournament before rolling into the year end tourney with an A Championship in sight. (Please see the Cornfest Recap page for all your 2011 Cornfest news)
Going into the year end tournament the Grizzlies were full of confidence and ready to compete with the best teams in the league. With the league split into two groups for round robin play, the Grizzlies finished as a 2nd seed in a very competetive and close group that included the White Sox, Steelers, Coyotes and Anchormen. On Sunday morning the Grizzlies were able to knock off the Padres in the 2vs2 game. The team now faced the loser of the earlier 1vs1 game (White Sox) in the A semi-final. After losing to the Sox in round robin play, the Grizzlies felt they had something to prove and were able to come away with a victory. In the A Championship final the Grizzlies ran out of steam and came up short against a confident Athletics team.
The Mitchell Grizzlies are proud to finish the 2011 season as A Finalists, and with off season training set to begin in October, the Grizzlies are looking forward to a victorious 2012 year.