Two Oxford High School graduates shined brightly during a slowpitch softball tournament in Florida Sept. 24-27.
Nicole Mouch, a 1993 grad, and Dana Nowacki, a 2001 grad, helped the BMV Doctors/Line Drive Slowpitch softball team win the United States Speciality Sports Association Woman’s Slowpitch Class C World Tournament at Disney’s Wide World of Sports Complex in Orlando, FL.
The tournament featured 49 of the top teams from the United States and Canada. According to Mouch, teams had to win certain state and national qualifying tournaments just to be able to get into the field.
The tournament format was set up in a double elimination style, where if a team loses one game they drop into the losers bracket until they complete the loser’s bracket or get eliminated if they lose again.
‘We played two (games) a day,? said Mouch. ‘We usually played one in the morning or early afternoon and one later at night.?
The first game couldn’t have been any easier. ‘The first game we were supposed to play the team hadn’t gotten off the plane yet, so it was a forfeit,? said Nowacki. After that, they took the next seven games to go undefeated and win the title.
In addition to winning the title, the team also had six players claim a spot on the all-tournament team, one of them being Nowacki.
‘I was super excited…it was exciting to get to play and exciting to do good enough to get nominated for that,? Nowacki said.
According to Nowacki, the women playing ranged from the age of 20 to 40. She was even surprised that some of the women in their 40’s played better than the girls half their age.
‘I was excited to see what kind of players were coming…every team was going to be a great team,? Nowacki said. ‘There was an insane amount of competition and talent down there.?
It was a special time for Mouch and Nowacki because they were not on the team originally. It wasn’t until BMV Doctors/Line Drive saw the girls play they were asked to compete with the team.
‘It was pretty awesome and a once in a lifetime chance to go down and do it,? said Mouch.
When the tournament was completed, the girls got to pick their championship ring, which will be presented to them at a Hall of Fame banquet in February at the Livonia .