One Stop Sparkplugs win adult softball championship

Another thrilling season of Hot Springs County Recreation District adult softball came to an end Wednesday, July 15 when One Stop Sparkplugs were crowned champions.

After a grueling regular season, One Stop Sparkplugs entered the playoffs with a first round bye directly to the semis, but the OEB had to fight their way through to meet them. The extra game proved helpful as a warm-up, and OEB won. One Stop Sparkplugs fell to the losers' bracket, hoping to make their way back up.

One Stop Sparkplugs cruised to a huge victory over No. 3 Robin Batsman (a lot of players on the DL), setting up their chance for revenge.

It was back and forth between the top two teams all season. One Stop Sparkplugs came away with the better record to snatch the first seed, dropping only a single game to end 5-1 on the season. That one loss came to OEB on June 18. They met three times during the regular season, and One Stop Sparkplugs walked away with two of wins.

It was a double elimination tournament so One Stop Sparkplugs had to win twice to take the championship.

They got the job done in the first game beating OEB 8-2 and came back even stronger in the second game and topped OEB 28-7.

It was a challenging year for team members due to what was termed as "Rona Rules."

Specific rules and regulations were implemented by HSCRD officials because of COVID-19 restrictions.

Dugouts could not be used, plus umpires, batters, base runners, first basemen and catchers all had to wear masks while on the field.

All players had to adhere to 6-foot social distancing when entering the ball fields.

Spectators and fans were allowed to watch from their vehicles but had to remain in their vehicle for the duration of the games.

Despite the added rules and regulations, team members had a good time and are glad they got to play this year.