31 May 2025
2025 Intermediate League Day 4 | Finals Updates, Recaps & Photos from rain affected Saturday
Recaps by Eric Balnar. Photos from Dan Cohen. Have something interesting to share? Email me at eric.balnar@baseball.com.au.
Significant rainfall in Gold Coast and scattered showers in Lismore played a significant role in today’s play.
In the morning, at the fresh hour of 7:15AM, we learned that Surfers Paradise Baseball Club would be closed for the day, that all consolation games for Saturday would be cancelled, and Finals would move to Lismore.
There was certainly a lot happening for everyone in a tournament where the winner advances to represent Australia at the Intermediate League World Series.
In this story you will find a summary of results and the recaps of the two games we played with some great photos from Dan Cohen.
SATURDAY RESULTS / SCHEDULE
Follow the games live on GameChanger. Click here or search ‘Australian Junior League National Championships 2025’.
Finals – Lismore, Diamond 4
– Qualifying Final: Hills 19 def Melbourne Athletics 3
– Elimination Final: Central Firebirds 10 def Cronulla 5
– Preliminary Final: Postponed until Sunday
Winner of Qualifying Final advances to Gold Medal Game, loser to Preliminary Final. Winner of Elimination Final advances to Preliminary Final
Consolation Games
– Saturday Cancellation Games cancelled due to rain
SUNDAY 1 JUNE SCHEDULE
Update 7:30PM – A schedule has been determined for the final day of play.
Finals – Lismore
– 9:00AM – Preliminary Final: Melbourne Athletics vs Central Firebirds
– 11:15AM – Gold Medal Game: Hills vs Winner of Preliminary Final
Listen to a radio call on Baseball+ / Follow on GameChanger
Consolation Games
– TBD, depending on Diamond 2 availability.
Tournament Hub and Archived Scores: www.baseball.com.au/intermediateleague
RECAPS
QUALIFYING FINAL: HILLS 19 def MELBOURNE ATHLETICS 3: Hills pour on the runs in the pouring rain to advance to Intermediate League Gold Medal Game
It was raining runs for Hills in the Intermediate League Qualifying Final. They’re off to Sundays’ Gold Medal game for a chance to represent Australia at the World Series.
The game started 90 minutes later than schedule due to heavy overnight rain. Teams endured a two hour rain-delay mid-game.
But rain couldn’t…erm…rain…on the Hills’ hitting parade.
The offensive numbers are quite astounding.
Hills combined for 30 base runners in six innings. All twelve players reached base. Eleven players reached base two times or more. Ten players had hits.
We listed the players performance below.
Sayre Howick led the team with a 4-for-4 performance.
Emma Gainsford (below) hit a home run.
Justin Jang and Anton Jacovides each had three-hit games. Hudson Dobb and Talen Lachmund-Davis (below) cashed in three runs each.
Total. Team. Effort.
Hills scored four in the first inning. The Gainsford home run pushed the lead out to 8-0 in the fourth.
The Athletics did fight back.
A solo homer by Nixon Dikranis and a two-RBI single from Haydn Dogonay put three on the board for the Athletics in the fifth, cutting the deficit to 8-3.
Justin Jang helped cash in another run in the fifth, leaving us at 9-3 as the tarps are pulled.
After the rain delay, the bats went crazy for Hills. They scored three in the fifth and eight in the sixth to runaway to victory.
Sayre Howick (below) also threw 2.1 innings, allowing one hit, no walks & no runs with one strikeout.
Anton Jacovides threw 1.0 innings, giving up two hits and three runs. Hudson Dobb and Lachmund-Davis closed the game out.
The Athletics tournament is not over. They will now play in the Preliminary Final against the winner of Central Firebirds & Cronulla. The winner of the Preliminary Final will meet Hills in the Gold Medal Game.
Hills Stats
Hits: Anton Jacovides (3), Harry Hobbs, Justin Jang (3), Sayre Howick (4), Hudson Dobb (2), Spencer Dobb, Fletcher Dobb, Ethan Cross, Talen Lachmund-Davis (2), Emma Gainsford (2)
HR: Emma Gainsford
RBI: H. Dobb (3), Lachmund-Davis Howick (2), Jang (2), Jacovides, Hobbs, Gainsford, F. Dobb
Athletics Stats
Hits (5): Jackson Berg, Haydn Dogonay, Leo Moulton, Alex Knell, Nixon Dikranis
RBI: Dikranis, Dogonay (2)
ELIMINATION FINAL: Big third inning propels Central Firebirds to Preliminary Final
An eight run third inning proved to be the difference for the Central Firebirds.
The Western Australian outfit built up a 9-0 lead after three and withstood a furious Cronulla comeback attempt.
The Firebirds advance to play the Melbourne Athletics on Sunday in the Preliminary Final at a time to be determined. The winner of that game moves on to play Hills for Gold and a place in the Intermediate League World Series.
Taj Humble (below) played a key role in today’s Firebirds victory. He threw 6.1 innings with three strikeouts, allowing six hits, four earned runs, two walks.
He also went 2-for-3 with the bat, driving in three runs including a bases clearing double in the second.
Phoenix Morgan (below) was important, too. His three-run homer was the cherry in the eight-spot planted in the famous third.
Summer Hiscock went 2-for-2 with two RBI. She had an RBI in the third, too.
Cronulla started their chargeback in the fourth inning when Franklin Pyke catupulted a three-run homer over the fence.
Hudson Shorey added another homer for Cronulla in the fifth to cut the deficit to 9-4.
It’s as close as Cronulla would come.
Teams traded late runs.
Unfortunately, Cronulla’s tournament comes to a close. It was a great run for the group, who went through Pool Play undefeated.
Stay tuned for schedule updates.
STATS
Central Firebirds
Hits (9): Haruki Yamamoto, Taj Humble (2), Summer Hiscock (2), Sebastian Buckley, Phoenix Morgan, Jaxon Gloriod, Oliver Tackenberg
HR: Phoenix Morgan
RBI: Humble (3), Morgan (3), Hiscock (2), Jackson Howarth (1)
Cronulla
Hits (6): Leo Vigil, Franklin Pyke, Hudson Shorey (2), Zack Fordyce, Fenic Cutajar
HR: Pyke, Shorey
RBI: Pyke (3), Shorey (1)
