Kentucky's Jim & Joe’s Ice out dueled ten other teams to win the 2017 SPA 65+ AAA Worlds September 7-10 in Dalton, Georgia.
The Icemen went 4-0 in bracket play beating The Firm (Tenn) 18-9, The Firm 22-17, The Travelers 16-12 and Boyd Metal 18-14. They went 2-1 in pool play with a 9-8 win over Travelers and 18-14 over Tennessee’s Tag. Their only loss in the tournament was 8-17 to Maryland’s Simmons Day All-Stars.
“I think the difference between us and the others was our speed, especially in the outfield,” Jim & Joe’s SPA 65 AAA Manager of the Year John Coffman said. “We also had a full roster so we were able to rest players and have plenty of runners to give guys a chance to rest.”
The four outfielders Coffman praised were Chris Stenger, Mike Howell, Jimmy Nageleisen and Ed Perry.
The Icemen qualified for Dalton by winning Thee 2017 SPA Buckeye Classic. They also won the Heart of Ohio.
“We enjoyed playing the SPA tournaments, they are always among the best in Senior Softball, especially the Dalton Worlds,” Coffman said.
Tournament MVP was Jim & Joe’s Bobby Mefford with Charles Marrero, Dickie Vaughn, Billy Heim, Larry Metcalf and Billy Brown all selected to the All-American team.
Other members of the 2017 SPA 65 AAA champs are: Bill Brutscher Jr, Greg Ellerkamp, Michael Robey, Anthony Steel Sr, Lamon Tucker, Daniel Vogt, Harry Young, Herman Cottrell and Larry Gray.
Finishing behind Jim&Joe’s Ice were: 2. The Firm, 3. Boyd Metals. 4. Simmons Day AllStars, 5. Trvelers, 5. Tag, 7. Dayton Legends, 7. Blue Chips, 9. Ohio Silverado’s, 9. Cavco Sports and 9 Crystal Heat.