高校野球 (Kokoyakyu)

Chuugoku's Super-Regionals start this Friday.  Brackets are as follows:

Left Side

• Izumo Nishi (Shimane 2) vs. Okayama Ridai Fuzoku (Okayama 4)
• Soushi Gakuen (Okayama 1) vs. Takagawa Gakuen (Yamaguchi 2)
• Tottori Jyouhoku (Tottori 1) vs. Kouryou (Hiroshima 3)
• Iwami (Tottori 3) vs. Hiroshima Shinjyou (Hiroshima 1)

Right Side

• Iwakuni (Yamaguchi 1) vs. Tottori Shougyou (Tottori 2)
• Soutoku (Hiroshima 2) vs. Ube Shougyou (Yamaguchi 3)
• Daitou (Shimane 3) vs. Kurashiki Shougyou (Okayama 2)
• Okayama-ken Kyouei (Okayama 3) vs. Taisha (Shimane 1)

There are not many A level teams here in the Super-Regionals, and those that are mostly seem to be playing each other!  Should make things interesting.

Chuugoku Super-Regional
Shimane is the host this year, and so qualifies 4 teams while all other prefectures send 1:

• Okayama - Okayama Ridaifuzoku
• Hiroshima - Setouchi
• Tottori - Yonago Kita
• Yamaguchi - Takagawa Gakuen
• Shimane - Kaisei, Risshoudai Shounan, Izumo Nishi, Oki

Okayama's spring taikai was in 2 stages, with 24 teams qualifying for the 2nd stage.  Perhaps the favorite, Kanzei, reached the quarterfinals before giving up the lead to Okayama Jyoutou, falling 5-3.  Kurashiki Shougyou reached the semifinals before falling flat to eventual champions Okayama Ridaifuzoku.  They weren't necessarily dominant in their title run though - including coming back to defeat Okayama-ken Kyousei 7-6 so the prefecture probably remains open to all especially since Kanzei didn't look good at Senbatsu.

Hiroshima's taikai had 43 teams, including the prefectural stalwarts Jyosuikan and Kouryou.  But both would be upstaged by the same team - the champions Setouchi.  They defeated Kouryou first 5-2 in the quarterfinals, then blanked Jyosuikan 3-0 (striking out 14!) in the semifinals.  Both probably behind the ace Yamaoka Taisuke (山岡 泰輔), who apparently has a twitter account.  Anyways, in the final, he scattered 10 hits to Hiroshima Shinjyou en route to a 3-1 win.

What is interesting is that in those final 3 games he struck out 15, 14 and 15 batters. That's right, he struck out 15 Kouryou and 14 Jyosuikan batters!  This while having a fastball that apparently can tough 140 kph.

Tottori Jyouhoku led the field of seeded teams, but couldn't get past their first game, losing to Yazu 11-5.  Yazu isn't really a pushover so it's not that bad of a loss.  That win helped propel the team forward, where they faced another seeded team in Yonago Kita.  But the duo of Endou and Ukeshima held the Yazu squad to just 1 run, allowing their team to come back with 2 in the 6th for the 2-1 victory.

Yamaguchi is also a 2-stage spring taikai.  But from there teams such as Nanyou Kougyou, Ube Shougyou and Iwakuni all failed to advance to the Final 8.  Nanyou Kougyou coughed up a lead to Karyou, Ube Shougyou couldn't make a lead last to Ube, and Iwakuni lost to Yanai Gakuen 4-3 in 12 in their first game.

There were some familiar representatives including Ube Koujyou, the aforementioned Karyou, and Hayatomo.

Hayatomo would have one disastrous inning against Suo-Oshima giving up 7 runs in a 7-2 loss. Ube Koujyou would go through 2 close games - first a 5-4 win over Karyou, then using a 3-run Lucky 7 to get past the aforementioned Suo-Oshima 3-2 to reach the final.  Their opponent would be Takagawa Gakuen, who had no problems with Nagato and Hikari.

Surprisingly, Takagawa Gakuen's ace Hamamoto Shou (浜本 翔) limited Ube Koujyou to just 2 hits while striking out 5 and walking 1 in a 3-0 shutout!

Shimane also had a 2-stage taikai, with 15 groups and fall champ Masuda Shouyou getting a free pass to the 2nd stage.  Risshoudai Shounan and Kaisei also advanced, and both actually in workmanlike fashion got to the finals.  But Kaisei's ace Oda would somehow yield just 2 hits, but walked 8 and still managed to give up just 1 run for a 6-1 win.  Izumo Nishi would bid sayonara to the island school of Oki for 3rd place (though both advanced so Oki really didn't say "goodbye").

So with 8 teams and 4 from Shimane, they obviously would be broken up with the remaining prefectures drawing a spot against each of the teams:

• Kaisei (Shimane 1) vs. Okayama Ridai Fuzoku (Okayama 1)
• Oki (Shimane 4) vs. Takagawa Gakuen (Yamaguchi 1)
• Risshoudai Shounan (Shimane 2) vs. Yonago Kita (Tottori 1)
• Izumo Nishi (Shimane 3) vs. Setouchi (Hiroshima 1)

Not surprisingly, Shimane's 3/4 teams didn't get past the first game.  What was surprising though was that both gave their opponents a tough game.

Oki actually led Takigawa Gakuen before giving up the lead in the 8th.  They actually tied the game in the top of the 9th before losing it in sayonara fashion.  Again.  Setouchi actually led Izumo Nishi comfortably 8-3, but Izumo scored 3 in the 8th to make things interesting.

Kaisei actually blew their 8-3 lead in the 8th inning to Okayama Ridai Fuzoku, but won in the bottom of the 10th.  Only Risshoudai Shounan had an easy go with a 6 inning shutout the Tottori champs.

The good times did not roll for the hometown teams though.  Both were mercy ruled in 7 in the semifinals!!  Setouchi defeated Risshoudai Shounan 9-2, and somehow Takagawa Gakuen scored 7 runs on 4 hits (and 6 walks) to shutout Kaisei 7-0!

In the final, Takagawa Gakuen took a 3-0 lead in the 2nd on Setouchi and managed to stay one step ahead of Setouchi's rallies to win 6-5 for their first spring title!

Chuugoku Super-Regional
Each team qualified 2 for the Super-Regional so it's reach the finals and move on.

• Kagawa - Jinsei Gakuen, Kotohira
• Tokushima - Naruto, Seikou Gakuen
• Ehime - Imabari Nishi, Saibi
• Kochi - Kochi, Kochi Shougyou

With the exception of a 5-4 win over Ootemae Takamatsu and a 4-2 win over fellow seeded team Takamatsu Minami, Jinsei Gakuen had little problem winning Kagawa.  Kotohira came out of relatively nowhere to defeat Samukawa and Marugame in back-to-back games during a 4-game stretch where they won 1-run games before falling to Jinsei Gakuen.

In Tokushima the format was a little different.  Naruto got a free pass, and it would just be the winner of the prefectural tournament that would advance along with them to the Super-Regional.  The 4 seeded teams, Seikou Gakuen, Ikeda, Tokushima Shougyou and Kawashima all advanced to the quarterfinals with relative ease though the former 2 had to survive a 1-run game in the quarterfinals (and in Ikeda's case a 12-inning affair).

For Ikeda, the enchousen matchup proved to be costly as they went into extra innings again against Seikou Gakuen.  They cried uncle in the 14th, losing 3-2.  Meanwhile Kawashima waited until the bottom of the 9th to tie the game at 1-1 before finally winning in 12.

With both teams having played extra inning affairs, it would undoubtedly have an effect on the pitching staffs.  Yet it was Kawashima's pitching that would suffer a critical failure.  Seikou Gakuin would score in the final 5 innings for a 10-3 win.  But with 10 days off to rest the arms, perhaps they lost the momentum of the tournament as Naruto had an easy 8-3 win in the position round.

Ehime is a 2-stage taikai, and with Saibi participating at Senbatsu, they too would only qualify the winner (along with Saibi) for the Super-Regionals.

There were quite a few casualties in the 1st stage.  Saijyou was eliminated by Imabari Nishi in their first game.  Uwajima Higashi lost to Uwajima Minami in the block final.

There would be no stopping Imabari Nishi through the prefecturals, including a 4-1 over Matsuyama Seiryou in the final and an easy 6-4 win over Saibi in the position round.

And finally in Kochi, with 2 teams making it to Senbatsu, it would be a 2-stage affair.  The winner of the prefectural taikai would face the winner of Kochi and Tosa (the two Senbatsu participants) for seeding.

With those teams out of the way, Kochi Shougyou and Meitoku Gijyuku had relatively little trouble advancing through the bracket.  But Kochi Shougyou, despite eking out a 5-4 win over Okou, defeated Meitoku Gijyuku 7-5 to advance for seeding.

In the Senbatsu game, Tosa actually took an early 3-0 lead, but a pair of 2-run innings would give favorite Kochi the lead.  Tosa wouldn't give up easy though tying the game in the top of the 9th sending it to enchousen.  Alas, Kochi's experience would prevail in the 11th.  So it would be Kochi and Kochi Shougyou once again.  And despite playing in an extra inning game the day before, Kochi once again bests Kochi Shougyou 3-1 to take 1st in the prefecture.

Onto the Super-Regionals and almost all top seeds advanced.  The only casualty oddly enough was Kochi who let a 3-0 lead slip with 4 in the 8th losing 4-3.  In other games, Jinsei Gakuen survived a 9th inning rally from Seikou Gakuen to win 3-2, Kotohira was no match for Imabari Nishi, and Naruto had to scramble after giving up a pair in the bottom of the 8th to Kochi Shougyou, managed to tie the game at 2, then close it out with a 3-spot in the 10th.

Naruto and Jinsei Gakuen then had no issues in the semifinals setting up the title game.

Naruto took the early 1-0 and 3-1 lead.  But with just 3 outs to go for the title, they give up 3 runs to Jinsei Gakuen who proceeded to shut the door for just their 3rd title and 1st in 15 years.

Kyushu Super-Regionals
Like Shikoku, Senbatsu participants get a free pass.  Unlike Shikoku, they get a free pass to the Super-Regionals instead of the seeding game within their prefecture.  For this spring Super-Regional, Fukuoka qualifies 3, Kagoshima qualifies 2, host Miyazaki qualifies 4, and all other prefectures 1.

• Fukuoka - Toukai Dai-go, Kashii, Kurume Shougyou
• Kagoshima - Shoushikan, Kanoya Chuo, Kagoshima Jyouhou
• Nagasaki - Souseikan, Sasebo Jitsugyou
• Kumamoto - Seiseikou, Buntoku
• Okinawa - Okinawa Shougaku, Hokuzan
• Saga - Saga Kougyou
• Oita - Kitsuki
• Miyazaki - Nisshou Gakuen, Miyazaki Nichidai, Houshou, Miyakonojyou Higashi

Fukuoka had two regionals, each separated into 4 blocks.  Interestingly only one seeded team qualified out of block play.  Kurume Shougyou though needed to survive a one run game against Itoshima.  Yes, Moji Gakuen, Kyushu Kokusaidai Fuzoku, Iidzuka, Higashi-Fukuoka, and Chikuyou Gakuen failed to advance to the Best 8.  The only other well-known teams to advance were Jiyuugaoka and Toukai Dai-go.

The teams from the Hokubu/Nanbu regionals were redrawn for the quarterfinals.  Kurume Shougyou thought to have an easy game, but had to survive another 1-run affair against Yuusei.  Toukai Dai-go and Jiyuugaoka wound up drawing each other, and the game did not disappoint.  The lead changed 3 times in the span of 3 half-innings before the game would be tied up at 4-4.  Toukai Dai-go scored 2 in the top of the 11th, and then held off a rally from Jiyuugaoka to win 6-5.  In other games, Kashii shutout Fukushima 2-0, Seirin blanked Ikutokukan 8-0.

And with the way the bracket was drawn, once again the mainstays faced off, but it was Toukai Dai-go who dominated the game, mercy-ruling Kurume Shougyou in the minimum 5 innings!  They'd face Kashii, who had no trouble with Seirin.

Interestingly, Kashii made a game out of the final, only holding Toukai Dai-go to just 2 runs in a 2-0 loss.  Kurume Shougyou easily made mince meat of Seirin to lock down the last spot for the Super-Regionals.

Kanoya Chuo and Kagoshima Jyouhou both struggled a bit out of the blocks, but pretty much ran over the prefectural taikai after that.  It also helped that teams like Kagoshima Jyousai and more importantly Kamimura Gakuen were eliminated in earlier stages, while Shounan lost to Kagoshima Jitsugyou (who then lost to Kanoya Chuo).

Nagasaki was pretty much scratch as 5 of the 7 seeded teams (plus one team who occupied what would have been the 8th seeded team in Oomura Kougyou) advanced to the Best 8.  In the quarterfinals, Sasebo Jitsugyou had no problems with no-seed Nagasaki Nishi while sadly (for me anyways) Seihou was blanked by Kaisei 5-0.  Interestingly, Nagasaki Nichidai and Hasami both advanced by the unconvincing score of 1-0.

Those games did wind up being a bellweather of sorts as both of those teams would lose in the semifinals, but in close affairs.  Kaisei got by Nagasaki Nichidai 5-3, and Hasami narrowly lost to Sasebo Jitsugyou 4-3.  In the final, Sasebo Jitsugyou led wire-to-wire 4-1 to advance to the Super-Regional.

Kumamoto's taikai looked a bit weird.  Weird in that the "seeded teams" were not really well-known to me except for Kumamoto Kougyou and perhaps Kumamoto Kokufu and Jyouhoku.   Yashiro, Chinzei, Kumamoto Kita, and Yashiro Higashi all were seeded teams as well.  With so many well-known teams relegated to the ranks of the ordinary, the haru taikai was pretty much thrown into disarray.

Yet 5 of the 7 seeded teams did make it to the semifinals.  Kumamoto Kougyou and Kumamoto Kokufu amongst the regulars and Chinzei, Kumamoto Kita and Yashiro Higashi out of the unknowns.  But of those, only Kumamoto Kougyou and Yashiro Higashi advanced out of the quarterfinals.  Kumamoto Kita was blanked by the aforementioned Yashiro Higashi, Kumamoto Kokufu tapped out in the 15th losing 4-3 to Toukaidai Seishou and Chinzei lost to Buntoku 5-1.

Yashiro Higashi's run would end surprisingly at the hands of Buntoku despite a late game rally.  Kumamoto Kougyou on the other hand would successfully make a rally with 3 in the 7th to defeat Toukaidai Seishou 7-6.  In the final surprisingly it was Buntoku who dominated the game defeating Kumamoto Kougyou soundly 5-2 to take the title.

Okinawa, without Okinawa Shougaku still had major teams left to duke it out for the spot in the super-regionals.  Above-average teams such as Miyako and Ginowan were seeded, as well as perhaps the best known school - Kounan.

Kounan though would not make it past the quarterfinals, losing to a name we haven't really heard in a while - Yaeyama Shoukou.  Miyako and Ginowan couldn't even get past their first game, so things really were in flux (with perhaps the exception of the aforementioned Yaeyama Shoukou).

Itoman tried their best, but despite flipping between their two pitchers, they lost 1-0 to Hokuzan.  Mawashi and Yaeyama would be the other two teams advancing to the semifinals. The surprising bit is that Yaeyama Shoukou would actually lose to Hokuzan 4-1 in the semis.  Mawashi would tie the game in the 9th and then win in 11 against Yaeyama.

In the final, Hokuzan ace Taira Kentarou (平良 拳太郎) would strike out 15 in a 2-hitter against Mawashi for the 2-1 win.

Saga prefecture seems to not have a front-runner as of the 4 seeded teams - Saga Kita, Tosu Shougyou, Kanzaki Seimei and Kashima - only Kashima advanced to the quarterfinals.  And even then, they lost in their next game 6-1 to Saga Kougyou.  The only other recently successful team to advance into the semifinals was Saga Shougyou who took the lead late against Saga Gakuen to advance.  The remaining semifinalists were Koushien participants back in the day - Ryuukoku and Shiota Kougyou.

The semifinals were low-scoring affairs as both Saga Kougyou and Ryuukoku won by the narrow margin of 1-0 and in the final, Saga Kougyou would lead wire-to-wire rebuffing repeated rallies (including one in the bottom of the 9th) by Ryuukoku to win 5-4.

Oita's prefecturals went pretty much scratch to the semifinals, with the only exception being interestingly Jyouhou Kagaku (which translated is Computer Science!) who were mercy ruled in 7 by Kitsuki.  Meihou completely swept the floor with their opponents, Youshikan did much the same (though not double digits), and Oita was the weakest of the bunch surviving 2 1-run games.

Both semifinal games would head to enchousen.  While I have been unable to pull details, Oita broke a scoreless draw against Youshikan to win 1-0 in 10, and Kitsuki is making perhaps another case to make it's 2nd straight Natsu Koushien by upsetting Meihou 3-2 in 12 innings.  Kitsuki would dominate the final, defeating Oita 5-0.

Finally, with 4 bids and home-field advantage at stake in Miyazaki, this would be the year the average team would have the best chance of reaching the Super-Regional.

And it showed.  Each of the seeded teams got their opponent's best shot.  Takanabe made it just though one round before losing to Miyakonojyou Higashi.  Nobeoka Gakuen had to play Nichinan Gakuen in their first game, but would lose in the quarterfinals to Houshou.

The two that made it were Nisshou Gakuen (who had an opening game scare against Miyazaki Oomiya) and Miyazaki Nichidai who survived 2 straight 1-run games against St. Ursula and Miyakonojyou Izumigaoka.

Miyazaki Nichidai had another heart-stopper as they fell behind 3-0 to Miyakonojyou Higashi, came back to lead 6-4 only to blow the lead in the top of the 9th before finally winning in the 10th inning.  Houshou would give Nisshou Gakuen all they could handle, but it would not be enough falling 3-2.

All that would be left is seeding.  Houshou breezed through Miyakonojyou Higashi 6-2, while Miyazaki Nichidai and Nisshou Gakuen were involved in one heck of a final.  After falling behind 1-0 in the 1st, Miyazaki Nichidai would score 5 unanswered runs to take a dominating lead.  That is, until the final 3 innings.  Several pitchers would be called, but none could answer as Nisshou Gakuen scored 5 unanswered runs, the final one in the bottom of the 9th for the sayonara win.

The draw for the super-regional made sure that all top seeds and the Senbatsu participants did not have to play the extra game.  Two 2-seeds would also get the benefit of not playing an extra game:

• Kitsuki (Oita 1) vs. Winner of Kurume Shougyou (Fukuoka 3)-Miyakonojyou Higahi (Miyazaki 4)
• Souseikan (Nagasaki Senbatsu) vs. Hokuzan (Okayama 1)
• Kanoya Chuo (Kagoshima 1) vs. Seiseikou (Kumamoto Senbatsu)
• Toukai Dai-go (Fukuoka 1) vs. Nisshou Gakuen (Miyazaki 1)
• Kashii (Fukuoka 2) vs. Buntoku (Kumamoto 1)
• Miyazaki Nichidai (Miyazaki 2) vs. Shoushikan (Kagoshima Senbatsu)
• Saga Kougyou (Saga 1) vs. Sasebo Jitsugyou (Nagasaki 1)
• Okinawa Shougaku (Okinawa Senbatsu) vs. Winner of Kagoshima Jyouhou (Kagoshima 2)-Houshou (Miyazaki 3)

Not surprisingly, Kurume Shougyou has no trouble in the opening game.  Houshou give Kagoshima Jyouhou a hard time, but is unable to reach home losing 1-0.

Kurume Shougyou continued to benefit for a relatively easy draw as they handle Kitsuki 7-2.  They would not face Souseikan though.  Instead Hokuzan's 2-run 7th inning was all they needed to advance.  Seiseikou would face Toukai Dai-go (who needed runs in the 8th and 9th to pull off the victory) in the other quarterfinal in their half.

On the opposite side, Buntoku would outlast Kashii in 10 setting up a game with Miyazaki Nichidai who surprisingly had no trouble against Kagoshima's Senbatsu representative.  And finally, Sasebo Jitsugyou would easily advance to face an Okinawa Shougaku squad who did not look impressive once again in a 2-0 win over Kagoshima Jyouhou.

Now, at the time, I didn't know if this was more an indictment of Sasebo Jitsugyou than Okishou being mediocre, but they had to scramble against Okinawa Shougaku to send it into extras and win in 12.  But it wound up being the former as after Buntoku edged out Miyazaki Nichidai 1-0, they took care of Sasebo Jitsugyou to reach the finals.

Back to the other half and both Kurume Shougyou and Seiseikou shutout their opponents setting up what looked like a great semifinal.  And it was.  Kurume Shougyou took a 2-0 lead in the middle innings and held off a Seiseikou charge late to win 2-1 to reach the finals.

Surprsingly Kurume Shougyou, the 3 seed out of Fukuoka, would actually take a 4-0 lead over Buntoku early.  But Buntoku would chip away at the lead pulling within 1 and then tying it in the bottom of the 9th.  It would remain tied at 5 until the 13th when Seki would pull through for Kurume Shougyou with the go-ahead hit.  Imamura, who started the game, closed it our for Kurume Shougyou giving them their first ever spring title.

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Well, that's it for the spring tournaments.  But don't look now, natsu taikais are out for Kita and Minami Hokkaido, Kanagawa, Kumamoto and Okinawa.

Surprisingly, despite being a x5 year (95th), the field isn't expanding.  That seems odd, but guess we'll have to go with it.  Stay tuned!

All Super-Regionals are now complete, and there are a couple of surprises mixed in with some of the usual suspects:

Tokyo (1 bid + 1 floating with Kanto)

• Champion - Yasuda Gakuen - Sumida-ku (First title!)
• Floating Bid - Waseda Jitsugyou

 As expected, the Yasuda Gakuen-Nittai Ebara game was an all-out war.

Nittai Ebara fired the opening salvo in the bottom of the 1st as Tomosato hit a 2-run HR to left.  Back-to-back RBI hits by the battery of Kasahara and Minami no less made it a 4-1 game.  And then ace Kasahara in his next AB would hit a home run of his own making it 5-1!

But after back-to-back walks by Kasahara, Motohashi-kantoku would replace him with Furukawa.  Much to his dismay, Furukawa would hit cleanup batter Takami Shunsuke (深見 俊介) and then give an oshidashi walk to Koyama Shinjirou (小山 新次郎).  He'd get out of the inning, but not after yielding another run to make it 5-3.

Things only got worse for Nittai Ebara as the pitching fell apart the very next inning as Yasuda would put a 5-spot on the board taking an 8-6 lead.

Nittai Ebara would mount a rally in the bottom of the 9th.  PH Seki would walk, and Tanaka would hit a double to put the tying run in scoring position with just one down.  Minami (now pitching) would hit a sac fly to make it a 1-run game.

That brought up Tomosato, who was 4-4 on the day.  But Oogane Shintarou (大金真太郎) would finally retire him with a grounder to 2nd to end the game and give his team a chance at Senbatsu!

In the other semifinal Souka ace Uchino collapsed in the 5th inning, giving up 6 runs to Soujitsu.  Those 6 runs would wind up being the final margin as they won 11-5.

So Soujitsu would be a likely candidate for the floating bid should they lose (as long as they had a good showing), while Yasuda Gakuen would in all likelihood need to win to get in.

In the 2nd inning of the final, Yasuda gets the benefit of good luck.  Takami would reach 2nd on an error by Soujitsu's LF Suzuki.  After a bunt and walk, Motomiya Keita (本宮 佳汰) would lay down a successful safety squeeze to give them the first run.  They'd continue to press the initiative as Koyama Takuya (小山 拓哉) would try to steal 3rd.  But the throw from Toshimitsu Kensaku (利光健作) would actually hit Takuya on the helmet and deflect into left, allowing him to score making it 2-0.

Toshimitsu would get a run back with a HR in the 5th, but that would be all the scoring they could muster as Oogane would shut Soujitsu down to earn Yasuda Gakuen's first ever title!


Kanto ex Tokyo (4 bids + 1 floating with Tokyo)

• Champion - Urawa Gakuin - Saitama-shi, Saitama (3rd consecutive title!, 4th overall)
• Runner-Up - Hanasaki Tokuharu - Kazo-shi, Saitama
• Semifinalist - Jyousou Gakuin - Tsuchiura-shi, Ibaraki
• Semifinalist - Utsunomiya Shougyou - Utsunomiya-shi, Tochigi

*No other teams probable to be considered

So when the draw came out, the 4 brackets were as follows (A & B, C & D)

• A - Jyousou Gakuin (Ibaraki 1) vs. Takasaki Kenkoudai Fukushi (Gunma 2)
• A - Sano Nichidai (Tochigi 1) vs. Toukaidai Koufu (Kofu 1)
• B - Narashino (Chiba 1) vs. Kiryuu Dai-ichi (Gunma 3)
• B - Hanasaki Tokuharu (Saitama 1) vs. Yokohama Hayato (Kanagawa 2)
• C - Toukaidai Sagami (Kanagawa 1) vs. Kasumigaura (Ibaraki 2)
• C - Hikawa (Yamanashi 1) vs. Utsunomiya Shougyou (Tochigi 2)
• D - Urawa Gakuin (Saitama 2) vs. Choushi Shougyou (Chiba 2)
• D - Maebashi Ikuei (Gunma 1) - Bye

Right off the bat there were a couple of surprises.  Kendai had a relative poor showing against Jyousou Gakuin, losing 5-2.  Yokohama Hayato stumbled out of the blocks immediately going down 6-0.  They'd rally, but lose 7-5.

The biggest upset was in block C where Kasumigaura (while not a slouch by any means) never trailed and defeated Toukaidai Sagami 5-3!

The quarterfinals went more scratch.  Narashino, who barely got by Kiryuu Dai-ichi, suffered the same problems Yokohama Hayato faced, but were unable to rally at all, getting mercy ruled 12-0 in 6 innings! (awww....)

Sano Nichidai, down 5-0 to Jyousou Gakuin gets all of the runs back in the lucky 7 to send the game into enchousen.  However, outside of that one inning outburst, they couldn't muster any other offense and lost 6-5 in 12.  Kasumigaura tried to continue their cinderella run as it were, but after taking the 4-2 lead in the bottom of the 6th, relinquished it right back in the lucky 7 to Utusunomiya Shougyou, losing 5-4.

The games (final score-wise) were much closer, but were not competitive.  Both Saitama schools advanced wire-to-wire, setting up a rematch of the prefectural final.  In that final, a 4-run first gave Hanasaki Tokuharu all the cushion it needed.

This time around they did not get such a cushion, but did lead 2-0 going into the latter innings.  But without the cushion, Urawa Gakuin's rally allowed them to tie the game in the 8th and send it into enchousen.  One inning later, Urawa's SS Kigure Naito (木暮騎士) would hit a 2-out double to put runners at 2nd and 3rd.  After an intentional walk, C Nishikawa Genki (西川元気) would deliver the sayonara hit to give Urawa Gakuin their 3rd straight Kanto Fall title!!

With 4 bids, it seems apparent that the Best 4 participants will get the bids.  Kasumigaura, the strongest team of the quarterfinalists will probably not get in because (a) the team they would replace would probably be Utsunomiya Shougyou who defeated them and (b) even if they wanted to make Kasumigaura the 4th team that would put 2 teams from Saitama and from Ibaraki into Senbatsu, which is highly doubtful.

And with Soujitsu losing in the finals to Yasuda Gakuen, the committee will certainly pick them as the floating bid.  Had they won, the floating bid may have come back to Kanto.

As it stands, for Kasumigaura to get to Koushien, Yasuda Gakuen or Urawa Gakuin have to win the Meiji Jingu Fall Tournament (If Yasuda Gakuen wins, Soujitsu earns the Meiji Jingu bid and the floating bid shifts back to Kanto.  If Urawa Gakuin wins, Kasumigaura earns the Meiji Jingu bid outright).  But as you will see later, that will be difficult.

Tokai (3 bids)

• Champion - Kenritsu Gifu Shougyou - Gifu-shi, Gifu (4th title, 1st in 51 years)
• Runner-up - Komono - Komono-machi, Mie
• 3rd Bid - Tokoha Kikugawa - Kikugawa-shi, Shizuoka

The issue of the all-Gifu Shougyou final was averted in the first game when Komono placed an 8-spot in the 4th to mercy-rule Shiritsu Gifu Shougyou 10-2 in 7 innings.

And in fact, there was a possibility that neither team would make it as Tokoha Kikugawa had tied the game at 1 in the 8th.  Kenritsu Gifu Shougyou though would guarantee that at least one team would make it, making a Tokoha-style finish in the bottom of the 9th to win 2-1.

Komono had done well to make it to the finals, but were boat-raced by Kengifushou falling quickly behind 6-0 and losing 9-3.

This normally would put Komono in a bad situation.  As the runner-up, they are first in line to receive the 2nd bid.  However, the poor showing would have given the selection committee pause.  But with 3 teams advancing, they should be safe.


Kinki (6 bids)

• Champion - Kyoto Shouei - Uji-shi, Kyoto (First title!)
• Runner-up - Houtoku Gakuen - Nishinomiya-shi, Hyogo
• Semi-finalist -Ryuukokudai Heian - Shimogyo-ku, Kyoto-shi, Kyoto
• Semi-finalist - Osaka Touin - Daitou-shi, Osaka
• 5/6 selection - Riseisha - Toyonaka-shi, Osaka
• 5/6 selection - Yamato Kouryou - Kouryou-machi, Kita-katsuragi-gun, Nara
• Other considerations - Tenri - Tenri-shi, Nara

So Tenri and Osaka Touin finished up the 1st round with wins, though Tenri only defeated Kouyasan 2-0.  That was foretelling of the upcoming matchup between the two, won handily by Osaka Touin 8-1 in 7 innings.

In other games, Yamato Kouryou played Ryuukokudai Heian close, but couldn't get a run on the board losing 2-0.  Osaka Shoudai Sakai lasted only 5 innings against Houtoku Gakuen losing 13-0.  And finally, Riseisha was fighting for their lives against surging Kyoto Shouei down 1-0 late before tying the game in the 8th.  The game would go into enchousen when reliever Sakamoto would finally fail, giving Kyoto Shouei the 3-1 win in 12!

That setup an all-Kyoto final on one side, and a powerhouse matchup on the other.

Kyoto Shouei and Ryuukokudai Heian were up first.  Kyoto Shouei didn't have to face Heian in the prefecturals as Heian was paired with Fukuchiyama Seibi.  Early on, the teams traded runs with Kyoto Shouei emerging with a 3-2 lead.  It stayed that way until the 7th where Heian would get to Enomoto (who came in in relief) for a pair of runs to lead 4-3.  However, their reliever Minami fell apart in the next half-inning.  He hit back-to-back batters sending in a run, and then ace Enomoto would redeem himself, blasting a manrui home run to blow the game wide open.

Kyoto Shouei seemed to be in full control up 9-4, but Enomoto seemed to be out of sorts coming in relief.  He struggled with his control as Heian came back to within 1 with a 4-run 8th!  He'd somehow get in together just in time, closing the game out in the 9th to win 9-8!

In the other semi, it was a shocker in that Osaka Touin was not competitive at all against Houtoku Gakuen.  In fact they were blanked 8-0 in 7 innings!

So Houtoku Gakuen and ace Inui Youhei (乾 陽平) were the final obstacle in Kyoto Shouei and Enomoto Kazuki (榎本 和輝) bid for their first ever fall title.

There were opportunities for both teams throughout the game as Inui yielded base hits almost every inning, while Enomoto's control issues persisted as he issued free passes.  Yet the score was at 1-1 after regulation.  Eventually it would become a matter of who would make the first mistake.

And that finally was made by Inui as he yielded 2 runs in the 13th.  They still had the bottom half of the inning, and Enomoto was approaching his limit too.  He would give up one run, but again found a way to shut the door, win 3-2, and claim Kyoto Shouei's first title!!

Looking at the field for the selection of the half-dozen bids, it almost winds up being as listed above by default.  Kyoto Shouei is definitely in, as well as Houtoku Gakuen.  While Heian is in the same prefecture as Kyoto Shouei, they didn't play each other in the prefecturals and held their own in the semifinals - so they're in.  Those are the definites.

Osaka Touin was uncharacteristically blown out by Houtoku Gakuen.  And their wins prior against Kousen and Tenri do not inspire confidence.

But then you look down at the quarterfinalists.  Tenri was blown out by Osaka Touin.  Daishoudai Sakai too was annihilated.  That leaves Riseisha who played Kyoto Shouei close as well and should get in, and Yamato Kouryou who had a nondescript win over Shiga Gakuen before being shutout 2-0 to Heian.

So Osaka Touin now appears safe, as does Riseisha.  The question becomes the last bid.

And that boils down to Yamato Kouryou and Tenri.

Tenri in name had the harder opponent in Osaka Touin, but Heian can easily be considered a quality opponent for Yamato Kouryou.

If the committee wants to go by name, then Tenri will go.  But I think if they go by play, it may fall to Yamato Kouryou.

Chuugoku (3 bids)

• Champion - Kanzei - Okayama-shi, Okayama (6th title, 1st in 2 years)
• Runner-up - Kouryou - Hiroshima-shi, Hiroshima
• 3rd Bid - Iwakuni Shougyou - Iwakuni-shi, Yamaguchi

With 5 prefectures and 4 quadrants, the bracket breaks out such that the 1 & 3 seeds of each prefecture wind up in the same quadrant.  For 2 prefectures, they inhabit one quadrant:

• A - Hamada (Shimane 2) vs. Ube Kougyou (Yamaguchi 4)
• A - Iwakuni Shougyou (Yamaguchi 1) vs. Tamashima Shougyou (Okayama 2)
• B - Soutoku (Hiroshima 1) vs. Tottori Jyouhoku (Tottori 3)
• B - Yonago Kita (Tottori 1) vs. Kouryou (Hiroshima 3)
• C - Kanzei (Okayama 1) vs. Jyosuikan (Hiroshima 2)
• C - Yonago Shouin (Tottori 2) vs. Kurashiki Shougyou (Okayama 3)
• D - Hayatomo (Yamaguchi 2) vs. Shimane Chuo (Shimane 3)
• D - Masuda Shouyou (Shimane 1) vs. Iwakuni (Yamaguchi 3)

The side-effect is that prefectures can be shutout after the first round.

It turns out that not just one, but two prefectures would be eliminated!

So, all else being equal, who has the advantage?

Well, the home team.  And that happens to be Yamaguchi-ken.

In fact, all 4 entrants advanced into the second round.  Iwakuni Shougyou, Iwakuni and Ube Koujyou all won via the shutout.  Hayatomo was able to advance, but only after striking back for a pair of runs right after they gave up the lead in the 7th.

With that alone, Shimane was wiped off the board.  Who would be the other prefecture?

In B quadrant, Tottori Jyouhoku started off well against Soutoku, but fell apart in the 2nd half of the game, losing 8-4.  Yonago Kita went just 7 innings before they waved the white flag, losing 9-1.

That left 2nd place Yonago Shouin as the last representative.  But against Kurashiki Shougyou, that was a tough task.  They kept it close, even in fact tying the game at 1-1 in the top of the 5th.  Kurashou struck back with 2 in their part of the frame and held on to the 3-1 win.

A valiant effort, but both Japan Sea prefectures were eliminated.

And what appeared to be a blockbuster matchup in the first round wound up being anything but.  Jyousuikan would give up after 7 innings, losing to Kanzei 10-0!

This created a bizarre quarterfinal setup:

• A - Ube Kougyou (Yamaguchi 4) vs. Iwakuni Shougyou (Yamaguchi 1)
• B - Soutoku (Hiroshima 1) vs. Kouryou (Hiroshima 3)
• C - Kanzei (Okayama 1) Kurashiki Shougyou (Okayama 3)
• D - Hayatomo (Yamaguchi 2) vs. Iwakuni (Yamaguchi 3)

Yes, that's right, all 4 quarterfinals were intraprefectural matchups!  Interestingly though, only the Okayama matchup was a rematch of a prefectural semifinal.

In the Yamaguchi matchups, Iwakuni Shougyou proved that they were the cream of the crop, as they defeated the only Best 4 team they haven't played - Ube Kougyou, in a shutout 5-0.  Iwakuni showed that their 3rd place finish was a product of just being in the wrong half of the bracket.  The struggling Hayatomo was unceremoniously upended in a 10-0 defeat in 5 innings.

Soutoku probably wasn't happy to see Kouryou in their crosshairs.  They managed to avoid them in the prefecturals, but now when it really matters... it was all Kouryou in a 7-1 win.

That leaves the rematch of Kanzei and Kurashiki Shougyou.  Kanzei wouldn't leave anything to chance, scoring 6 runs in the 3rd en route to an 8-4 win.

Another byproduct of the 1st round was that Yamaguchi pretty much guaranteed themselves a team at Senbatsu, especially since due to the 85th tournament, Chuugoku gets an extra bid.

And that would prove key this year as Iwakuni was routed 11-1 by Kanzei, and while Iwakuni Shougyou held with Kouryou, they still lost 2-0.

So we're left with Kouryou and Kanzei in the finals, two teams used to the big game.  The game was a low-scoring affair early, then blown open in the span of 2 half-innings where Kouryou scored 3 in the 6th to lead 4-2, only to give up 5 in the lucky 7 to trail 7-4.  They'd win 8-5 to take the title.

And on the basis of the semifinal matchups, expect Iwakuni Shougyou to receive the 3rd bid.


Shikoku (3 bids)

• Champion - Kochi - Kochi-shi, Kochi (6th title, 1st in 6 years)
• Runner-up - Naruto - Naruto-shi, Tokushima
• 3rd Bid -  Saibi - Matsuyama-shi, Ehime

Shikoku's draw looked like this:

• Kochi (Kochi 1) vs. Imabari Kougyou (Ehime 2)-Marugame (Kagawa 3) winner
• Eimei (Kagawa 1) vs. Tokushima Shougyou (Tokushima 2)-Tosa (Kochi 3) winner
• Naruto (Tokushima 1) vs. Kochi Shougyou (Kochi 2)-Matsuyama Seiryou (Ehime 3) winner
• Saibi (Ehime 1) vs. Takamatsu Shougyou (Kagawa 2)-Ikeda (Tokushima 3) winner

Oddly, only one of the 2 seed teams would advance out of the opening round.  That would be Tokushima Shougyou who finally got to Tosa in the 6th inning with a 3 spot and would win 4-1.

In the other games, Imabari Kougyou had a chance to survive as they were deadlocked 1-1 for a long time.  Marugame though would bid sayonara to the Ehime representative 2-1.   Kochi Shougyou was having a heck of a time in their game, but at 3-3 in the 7th Matsuyama Seiryou scored 6 to pull away.  Kochishou would score 3 in the 9th, but it wasn't enough.  And Ikeda finally made progress, winning 3-1.

With so many 3 seeds advancing, it would be expected that most if not all of the 1 seeds would advance.  And in fact, all did... except for the one team that faced the only #2 seed left.

Nartuo and Kochi had no problems.  Ikeda almost got to the semifinals and rallied late, but lost to Saibi 4-3.  Tokushou was in another close game.  They and Eimei were tied at 2 when Eimei scored a run in the 7th to take the lead.  But in the bottom of the 9th they get to ace Akagawa scoring 2 runs for the gyakuten sayonara victory.

Tokushou would try to extend their run against Kochi, and early on the semifinals they held a 2-run lead, even after swapping 3-run innings.  But Kochi would put up 2 runs in the 6th, 7th and 8th innings to win 11-7.  In the other semifinal, Saibi was in full control, getting 2 insurance runs in the final 2 innings to lead 4-1.  Saibi ace Anraku though didn't get the memo that he and his team needed to close out the game.  Naruto would rally for 4 runs and win 5-4.

To the final where Kochi would try to preempt the deficit by getting ahead early.  Naruto would have none of it and came back to level the score at 6 in the 6th.  Kochi though would score 2 in the 8th giving Naruto no time to stage a rally.

The extra bid will probably go to Saibi, who had Naruto dead to rights, right until the bottom of the 9th.


Kyushu (4 bids)

• Champion - Okinawa Shougaku - Naha-shi, Okinawa (2nd title, 1st in 15 years)
• Runner-up - Seiseikou - Chuo-ku, Kumamoto-shi, Kumamoto
• 3rd Bid - Shoushikan - Shibushi-shi, Kagoshima
• 4th Bid - Souseikan - Isahaya-shi, Nagasaki
• Other Consideration - Kumamoto Kougyou, Kumamoto-shi, Kumamoto

 Early on, the games were rather competitive.  In the two opening round games, Kanzaki Seimei (Sage 2) were shutout by Souseikan (Nagasaki 3) 3-0.  Sasebo Jitsugyou (Nagasaki 2) lost it late against Miyazaki Nichidai (Miyazaki 3), falling 2-1.

Now all 8 top seeds would be in play, but by the end of the first round over half would go home.  But not the half you may have thought.

• Kagoshima Jyouhou probably lacked experience and became Souseikan's 2nd shutout, losing by the slim margin of 1-0. (who by the way is looking to get an invitation this year after being snubbed).
• Miyazaki's Nisshou Gakuen can't be faulted for losing their game, they had to play Okinawa Shougaku.  Down 4-0, they rallied late but still lost 4-2. 
• Saga Kita reached the Super-Regionals again, but Shoushikan picked up the flag for Kagoshima and used a 5-run 5th to advance 7-3.
• Seiseikou wanted to prove that their appearance last year wasn't just a fluke.  To that end they struck early and pulled ahead late, defeating Oita's Youshikan 6-2.
• And Miyazaki Nichidai would pull the upset on Okinawa's Ginoza, shutting them out 5-0!

In fact, almost all top seeds struggled.  Kumamoto Kougyou scored the only run in their game, beating Isahaya 1-0.

Nagasaki Nichidai should have been dead to rights.  Enchousen, tied at 1 in the 10th, Moji Gakuen scores 4 runs and should have the game wrapped up.  Except they don't close it out!  Nagasaki Nichidai scores 4 and extends the game further!  I'd like to see what happened in that 10th inning.  It wouldn't be until the 13th inning where Nagasaki Nichidai would score the sayonara run to win 6-5!

The only non-contested game was surprisingly Kurume Shougyou vs. Meihou.  Kurushou scored 4 in the 1st inning and cruised to a 5-2 win.

The reprieve for the top seeds though wouldn't last.  All 3 remaining would lose in the quarterfinals.  Kurume Shougyou only went 7 against Souseikan losing 9-0.  Kumamoto Kougyou had to face Okinawa Shougaku, and narrowly lost 3-2 in 10 innings.  And Shoushikan used a 4-run 4th to defeat Nagasaki Nichidai 6-2.  The fourth team to advance would indeed be Seiseikou as they shutout the last Nichidai team as Miyazaki would fall 3-0.

That put Souseikan in the crosshairs of Okinawa Shougaku, while Shoushikan and Seiseikou would square off in the other semi.

And neither game was close.

In fact, both would last just 7 innings and both due to a big inning.  For Okishou, it was a 4-run 1st in an 8-1 win.  For Seiseikou, it was a 5-run 6th in an 8-0 win.

So it'd be Okinawa Shougaku and Seiseikou in the finals, and both pretty much guaranteed a spot in Senbatsu.  It would be just a matter now of who would represent Kyushu at the Meiji Jingu Tournament.

And boy was it a pitchers' duel.  Seiseikou's Ootake Koutarou (大竹 耕太郎) versus the tandem of Ura Jyun (宇良 淳) and Higa Kenichirou (比嘉 健一朗).  Okishou certainly had more opportunities throughout the game, but the game remained scoreless through 8.  But in the top of the 9th, it all unraveled for Seiseikou.  Okinawa Shougaku would put up 5 runs in the 9th and claim just their 2nd ever fall title!

Rounding out the projected 4 bids are in all probability the two semifinalists - Souseikan and Shoushikan.  Yes, they still lost badly in the semifinals, but they had shutout their competition beforehand (though the quality of the opposition can be argued).  Shoushikan defeated both Saga Kita and Nagasaki Nichidai and despite their blowout loss, should get in.

The only other team who could make a case would be Kumamoto Kougyou, who was the only team to actually play Okinawa Shougaku close.  And bad news for Souseikan, they would probably be the team on the bubble if there were other considerations.

In the interests of getting my projections out before the invitations are posted I am including them here before they are announced.  (The reviews are finally up.)

Chuugoku with 5 prefectures award an extra bid to the super-regionals to the host prefecure.  This year, that is Hiroshima.  So all Best 4 teams will advance perhaps releasing a bit of the pressure.  Let's start there:

Hiroshima
Hiroshima you wouldn't think would have the history of a rural prefecture such as say Nara, but with a couple of rare few exceptions it's been dominated by two schools - Jyosuikan and Kouryou, whileother schools like Onomichi and last year's senbatsu representative Hiroshima Sougou Gijyutsu look up through the ceiling.

Not a surprise then that all 4 made it out of small pool play into the prefecturals.  It also wasn't a surprise when HSG lost in the 3rd round to Hiroshima Kougyou.

It was a surprise though when Kouryou also lost in the 3rd round to 2000 Natsu representative Setouchi 8-5.

With Jyosuikan's main opponent eliminated, Jyosuikan looked to be the front-runner.  And while they struggled against Hiroshima Shinjyou 8-6 in the quarterfinals, they blew out Hiroshima Kanon 19-1!

On the other side, Onomichi took advantage of the Kouryou upset.  They made it to the finals with a defeat of Hiroshima Shougyou 10-5.  Hiroshou is interesting in that they have a pitcher by the name of Insencio Wilson.  I can't find a whole lot about him though

Doesn't matter though as Hiroshima Shougyou and Hiroshima Kanon would advance to the super-regionals.  For the record though, Wilson gives Hiroshou the 5-3 win in the consolation game.

As for Onomichi and Jyosuikan, the title would once again escape Onomichi as ace Okita would give up 4 in the 3rd which would be more than enough.


Tottori
Tottori has been in a bit of a drought in recent years, having only 1 win in the last 15 years in the Natsu Koushien tournament, and one senbatsu appearance in the last 25!

And in more recent years, the head of the table has been passed around annually it seems.

I suppose if you look at the last couple of winners, you'd be looking at Tottori Shougyou, Yasu (who had that lone win), and last year's fall winner Tottori Ikuei.

The first two were in one quadrant while Tottori Ikuei was on the other quadrant in their half.  Sure enough, the two faced off in the quarterfinals, and Yasu advanced with an 8-3 win.  Next up would be Tottori Ikuei, and they came up with 2 runs in the bottom of the 8th for the 2-1 comeback win!  That would force Yasu into a loser out game.

Meanwhile, Tottori Jyouhoku (2009 Natsu representative) had no trouble at all, yielding all 3 of their runs in the run-up to 1st round opponent Yonago Shouin.  Yonago Tousen would have to fight for their spot in the super-regionals after losing 5-0 in the semis.

Yet against Tottori Ikuei, they stumbled.  After scoring the first run, Tottori Ikuei would score 2 in the bottom of the 1st and 2 more in the 4th.  Tottori would take their 2nd consecutive title (and 2nd overall!) with a 5-1 win!

Yasu would be the prefecture's 3rd representative with an 8-3 win against Yonago Tousen.


Okayama
Kanzei's run this past summer shocked me, not sure it shocked others.  Though they didn't win, I hoped it would be a re-emergence of the school in the prefecture.

And though they advanced out of pool play, they weren't as imposing as before.  Worse yet, they drew Kurashiki Shougyou, the other recent Natsu Koushien representative in the very first round.


Unlike Kanzei's games at Koushien, this was a high scoring affair, one that they would lose 11-7. With their main rival gone, Kurashiki Shougyou became the overwhelming favorite to win the prefecture.  Indeed they easily won their next 2 games to reach the finals.

On the other half, the games were much more tempered.  Konkou Gakuen reaches the semis with just a 2-1 and 1-0 win.  Meanwhile, Tamano Kounan defeats 2007 representative Okayama Ridai Fuzoku 5-2 and Koujyoukan 2-1.

After trading a run in the 1st, a 3-spot for Tamano Kounan would be the winning margin as they advanced to the finals with a 4-1 win.

With such lackluster performances, Kurashiki Shougyou seemed poised to take the title.

Except no one gave Tamano Kounan the memo.  They broke out to an 8-0 lead and never looked back, taking their 3rd ever fall title (1st in 8 years)!  Joining the pair would be Okayama Kyousei who sent Konkou Gakuen home 9-6.


Shimane
With twin giants Shirane and Mori graduating from Kaisei, it would leave a void in the prefecture.  Before Kaisei, it was famed Risshoudai Shounan in 2009, and in the spring Oki back in 2003.  Indeed, Kaisei would lose their very first game 8-6 to Daitou.

Well, some of the better teams in the past included Iwamichisuikan, Taisha and last fall's winner Matsue Shougyou.  All 3 (as well as Risshoudai Shounan) advanced out of regional play, though Matsue Shougyou faced fellow Best 4 from last year Izumo and won 6-5.

In the 2nd stage, Risshoudai Shounan was next to fall, losing to Mitoya in the first round 12-11.  They in turn were blasted by Iwamichisuikan 10-3.  Taisha barely got away against Izumo Nishi 7-6 and advanced to the best 4 with a win over Oota.

Matsue Shougyou would not be joining them as they lost 7-0 to Yasugi in the first round as well.  Instead, Matsue Minami and Hamada would be joining them in the semifinals.

The semifinal draw had the two favorites facing each other, meaning that in all likelihood the winner of the Hamada-Matsue Minami game would be the one advancing.

In that crucial semifinal, Matsue Minami took a 3-0 lead early.  However, they would not be able to hold it.  Just 6 outs away from guaranteeing themselves a bid, they give up 5 unanswered runs.  They managed to scrounge up a run in the 9th, but it would not be enough - essentially sealing their fate.

Taisha would finally have a chance at a title as they ran away with a 5-1 win over Iwamichisuikan.  And they would finally get their first title in 20 years, shutting out Hamada 5-0 for their 6th fall title.  Iwamichisuikan took the 3rd bid with a 10-2 win over Matsue Minami.


Yamaguchi
Surprisingly, despite sharing the same super-regional with prefectures such as Hiroshima and Okayama, Yamaguchi sent 9 representatives to senbatsu in the aughties.  Not a bad track record.

The 2010's though have not proven to be as kind,  not yet anyways.

But despite the good track records in the fall super-regionals, the prefecture really hasn't had any school stand out.  Perhaps Nanyou Kougyou or Shimonoseki Shougyou, but it's hard to really say.

In pool play, Nanyou Kougyou did advance, though not without some tough games against Takagawa Gakuen and Iwakuni.  Shimonoseki Shougyou did not fare as well losing 5-3 in the regional final to Shimonoseki Chuo Kougyou.

Without a clear picture of the prefecture, it was up for grabs.  On one side, it was Hayatomo that clinched one bid shutting out Yamaguchi Koujyou 5-0.  The other guaranteed bid did not go to Nanyou Kougyou, but to Iwakuni Kougyou instead as they scored 2 in the bottom of the 9th for a gyakuten 4-3 win!

So we had two teams that may not have been expecting a title playing for one.  And in the early going, it was a close game, though Hayatomo built a 2-0 lead.  Iwakuni Kougyou scored 2 in the 5th to tie the game.

Sadly, after that, they would fall apart as Hayatomo scored 8 unanswered runs to take their 1st title in 45 years (and 3rd overall) with a 10-3 win!

Nanyou Kougyou had no trouble securing the final bid with a 7-1 win over Yamaguchi Koujyou.


Super-Regionals
Looking at the field as a whole, it seemed rather... lackluster.  Sure, you had teams such as Jyosuikan, Kurashiki Shougyou and perhaps Nanyou Kougyou.  But behind those teams, it felt like there was a severe dropoff.

Worse yet, Kurashiki Shouyou and Jyosuikan drew each other in the first round!  It'd be clear the winner of that game had a route to at least the semifinals.  The only other teams perhaps standing in their way would be either the aforementioned Nanyou Kougyou or perhaps Yasu.

On the other side, you might as well roll dice.  There was no clear favorite.  Maybe you could say Taisha, maybe Onomichi could surprise, but really, you could pull names out of a hat and be just as accurate.

So first we go back to the key matchup - Kurashiki Shougyou-Jyosuikan.  The game swung early as a 3-0 lead for Kurashiki Shougyou evaporated in the 3rd.  Trailing 4-3 in the 9th, they score 4 for a 7-5 gyakuten win.  Coupled with a 4-1 win over Hamada, and they had their Best 4 appearance.

But it wouldn't be against Nanyou Kougyou.  In fact, it would be against unknown Hayatomo!  They not only mercy ruled Yasu 7-0, but then defeated Nanyou Kougyou 3-1!

One bad inning though would derail Hayatomo's run.  Perhaps facing one of the more important games of their school's history, ace Aidzu would give up 5 runs in the 1st inning.  They would fight, but never recover, falling 6-3.

On the other side, teams started shaking themselves out.  Tottori Jyouhoku and Taisha advanced with easy wins, Onomichi shutout Iwamichisuikan, and Iwakuni Kougyou outlasted Okayama Kyousei.  Then in the quarters, Onomichi would be unceremoniously removed with a 9-1 loss to Taisha, while Tottori Jyouhoku just edged out Iwakuni Kougyou 2-1.

Perhaps this would be the time that Taisha, a team who has waited to break through would finally do so.  That would not the be the case though.  Tottori Jyouhoku would mercy rule them in the semifinals 7-0.

That put two eastern teams in the region in the finals.  A regular in Kurashiki Shougyou, and a Tottori Jyouhoku team that made their one and only appearance 3 years ago.

Kurashiki Shougyou's ace Nishi though would give up a 4-spot in the 2nd, and they suddenly were in trouble.  In fact, Tottori Jyouhoku's ace Nishisaka would only give up 1 run in a CG win giving his team their first ever fall title, and their first ever senbatsu apperance!


Automatic Bid - Tottori Jyouhoku (Tottori) - 1st appearance
Projected Bid - Kurashiki Shougyou (Okayama) - 3rd appearance, 1st in 22 years


With 4 prefectures occupying this region, each prefecture sends 3 representatives with the winners needing just 3 games to win the super-regionals.

Kagawa
Kagawa has seen the good times pass it by it seems.  Despite having a winning record in both Haru and Natsu Koushien tournaments, the majority of that happened decades ago.  Recently, they have struggled to advance out of the 1st round.  Eimei has made 2 consecutive runs at it in the summer, but it's possible their time is now up.

Meanwhile, teams such as Takamatsu Shougyou, Akiyama's former team Sangawa, and Kanonji Chuo look to restore respectability to the prefecture.

But perhaps showing that there still is a long way to go, almost all those teams struggled in the tournament.  Takamatsu Shougyou's games to the semis was won by no greater than 3 runs.  Kanonji Chuo had two close games before finally getting an easy win against Takamatsu Sakurai.

Sangawa and Eimei had a bit of an easier time... that is until they faced each other in the quarterfinals.  Sangawa had the better of the matchup, but just, in a 6-5 win.  Rounding out the best 4 was Sanbonmatsu who had survived some close games.

Kanonji Chuo almost seemed to exercise their demons against Takamatsu Shougyou leading 3-1 in the 9th.  However, Takashou would break their hearts yet again, scoring 4 in the 9th for the 5-3 win.  Sanbonmatsu's run would end at Sangawa's hands as they lost 5-1.

In the finals, Takashou's ace Tanigawa would give up just 2 hits (though he walked 9), in a 2-0 shutout of Sangawa giving his team their 25th fall title (last was in 2008).  Kanonji Chuo would take the last spot with a 7-0 win over Sanbonmatsu.


Tokushima
Tokushima also has had a winning record at Koushien.  Of late, the 2 teams who have had the most success are Tokushima Shougyou and Naruto Kougyou.  Famed Ikeda last had success in the early 90's but has faded out of the picture in recent years.

Tokushima Shougyou bowed out in the 2nd round to Kawashima.  Ikeda and Naruto Kougyou were in the same quadrant and wound up facing each other in the quarterfinals.  Ikeda's struggles continued as they were routed 9-1.

Joining those two in the best 4 would be Tokushima Kita - who needed 2 1-run victories, and Naruto - who outscored their opponents 40-8.  However, they didn't really face anyone of note, so it's possible that offense is just a mirage.

They'd have to prove that against Naruto Kougyou though.  As for Kawashima and Tokushima Kita, it appeared that they'd have to win to get in.

The game would be one to remember.  Kawashima's ace Satou would throw a no-hitter against Tokushima Kita.  Irregardless of what happens after, that's a moment they're going to remember.  Better yet, it would give them their 2nd ever super-regional appearance (their 1st was just 2 years ago).

Their opponent in the final would indeed be Naruto.  Scoring 4 in the 3rd, they'd never look back.  Naruto Kougyou would fight back against starter Goutouda, but fall short 7-5.

Riding the wave of the no-hitter, Satou would continue his assault on the Naruto batters, throwing 7 more shutout innings.  But the tank would finally run empty, surrendering 3 in the 8th.  Meanwhile, ace Kobayashi would quiet the Kawashima bats limiting them to just 1 run.  Naruto would win their 11th title, but their 1st in 18 years.  Tokushima Kita couldn't recover from the no-hitter, losing 3-1.


Ehime
Ehime continues the trend of winning prefectures.  They enjoyed success in the early aughites, but in the last several have receded a bit.  Teams such as Saibi, Kawanoe and Matsuyama Shougyou dominated the times.  But perhaps it's Imabari Nishi who has dominated the scene recently, especially in the fall tournaments, that would continue to reign.

Exiting out of pool play, it would be Imabari Nishi, along with Saibi, 2010 Natsu representative Uwajima Higashi, and Komatsu who would get favorable draws.

And yet, they didn't have an easy time.  In fact, Saibi would fall before reaching the semifinals, losing 5-3 to Kawanoishi.  For the remaining teams, only Uwajima Higashi had a margin of victory over 3.

The party crashers also had their sights on Imabari Nishi in the semis.  Scoring 3 against starter Ishigaki, it looked perhaps that they might have a chance.  But Imabari would equalize in the 5th, and score the go-ahead run on ace Yano in the 8th inning.  Kawanoishi would have to qualify in the 3rd place game after the 4-3 loss.

Komatsu and Uwajima Higashi would have their own struggle.  Tied at 1 going into the 9th, Komatsu would score the go-ahead run.  But Uwajima Higashi had their half, and managed to score one of their own, sending it to enchousen.  It would only last 2 innings though, when Komatsu would emphatically stamp their ticket to the finals with 4 runs.

In the finals, Imabari Nishi would fall behind yet again as Komatsu would score 5 unanswered runs.  This time around though, ace Nakano would not give them the opportunity to rally back as he would give up 2 runs giving his team their first ever fall title and first ever super-regional apperance!

And as for Kawanoishi, their party crashing would be over as they lost 10-3 to Uwajima Higashi in the 3rd place game.

Kochi
No one beats Kochi though in terms of success.  They have a 0.615 winning percentage at Koushien.  Furthermore, since 1993 they have failed to send a representative in senbatsu just 3 times.

Most of the time, the representative has been either Kochi, Kochi Shougyou, or Meitoku Gijyuku.  Break though those three, and you've achieved something.

And so we start the Kochi prefecturals.  The aforementioned trio, along with Tosa, were the seeded teams.  Tosa represented Kochi back in the 1993 senbatsu, though they lost to Tohoku.

So it's no surprise that all 4 teams (yes, even Tosa) made the Best 4.  Kochi though, almost got upended in the first round with a 6-5 win over Ootemae.  Even with that, the big 3 gave up 10 runs in their 9 combined games.  Tosa gave up 7 in their 3.

In the semis, Kochi wound up throwing 3 pitchers at Meitoku Gijyuku to no avail.  They'd fall 4-1.

Tosa would have to win their game against Kochi Shougyou.  Losing here means having to win the 3rd place game.  But they would have no such luck.  Kochishou would beat them 7-1.

That would seal Tosa's fate.  Having to face Kochi in the 3rd place game, they folded 9-0 and would have to wait until next summer for another shot.

Kochi Shougyou would then have to face Meitoku Gijyuku for the title and the 1st round bye.  However, Meitoku Gijyuku takes their seat again at the head of the prefecture with their own 7-1 win.  Despite this being their 6th straight super-regional appearance, this was their first title in 4 years (and 15th overall).


Super-Regionals
Each of the winners (Meitoku Gijyuku, Komatsu, Naruto, and Tokushima Shougyou) would earn a bye, while the other teams slugged it out.  Once under way, only Naruto had an easy go of it.  Takamatsu Shougyou had to face Naruto Kougyou and won 1-0.  Meitoku Gijyuku survived 4-3 over Uwajima Higashi.  Komatsu?  Sadly, their run ended against Kochi 6-0.

Kochi would continue their run, exacting revenge on ace Ogata, scoring 3 in the 9th for a 7-4 win and a probable bid to senbatsu.  Naruto would join them as they continued their rampage with a 7-1over Tokushima Shougyou.

The question then would be who would get the automatic bid.  In all likelihood, Kochi's name will give them a bid, and Naruto's high powered offense would be something to see at Koushien.  But it never hurts to guarantee that phone call.

Once again, Naruto would come out firing and getting a 3-1 lead.  And though Kitashiro would tie the game in the 4th, Naruto took the lead back 4-3 in the 5th.  Kochi would just not go away, tying the game in the 9th.  And just when you'd think Naruto would fold, they didn't as Hinoshita would give his team their first super-regional title in 42 years with a bases loaded hit to right.

Automatic Bid - Naruto (Tokushima) - 7th appearance, 1st in 32 years
Projected Bid - Kochi (Kochi) - 16th appearance, 1st in 2 years

In the first round of the Chuugoku Taikai, it was a massacre for almost any team not from Okayama. Well, the teams didn't lose by a wide margin, but they lost nonetheless.

The only Okayama team to not advance was actually Soushi Gakuen. They lost to the Yamaguchi representative Ube Koujyou 1-0. Remember, if you're a low scoring offense highly dependent on your defense, you're bound to have games like this (see Seattle Mariners).

And because Okayama Gakugeikan won the consolation game against Kurashiki Shougyou, there were no rematches in the semis.

So it was that 1st place Sakuyou had to face 4th place Kurashiki Shougyou. While Sakuyou had won the prefecturals, it was Kurashou that had the experience. And boy did it ever show. Kurashou took the reins early and never let go, mercy ruling the boys from Tsuyama 9-0.

Okayama Gakugeikan looked to make it a rematch in the final, but first had to get past the rogue team in the semifinals. But Ube Koujyou was persistent. While Gakugeikan had the 1-0 lead, they continued to fight and eventually broke through, scoring 2 runs in the bottom of the 8th to steal the lead away and send the Okayaman boys home.

In the finals, it would be Ube Koujyou that would strike first with a pair of runs in the 4th. However, they couldn't make that lead stick. Kurashou would score a run in bottom of the inning, then explode for 4 in the next. That would be all they needed as they win just their 2nd title with their first being 2 years ago.

The draws are out, and it really was just a matter of which team would face which Okayama team:

Sakuyou (Okayama 1) vs. Hiroshima Sougou Gijyutsu (Hiroshima) - Boy I really hope Hiroshima wins this one...
Kurashiki Shougyou (Okayama 4) vs. Iwamichisuikan (Shimane) - It's about time the former Gonokawa school got here. Rooting for them too.

and...

Soushi Gakuen (Okayama 2) vs. Ube Koujyou (Yamaguchi) - Go new team!
Okayama Gakugeikan (Okayama 3) vs. Tottori Nishi (Tottori) - I guess this is the only time I'm rooting for an Okayaman team.

So it looks like I'm doing reviews in reverse order of how I normally do it, probably because the Kyushu region is always the first to start.

Anyways, off to the Chuugoku region!

Chuugoku is much like Kyushu in that the location of the Haru Taikai rotates between the prefectures and the host prefecture gets 4 teams while all other prefectures get 1. This year, Okayama will be hosting at Kurashiki Muscat Stadium.

Tottori
It amazes me how few schools are in some rural prefectures. Tottori for instance has only 32 high schools, of which 25 are participating.

4 seeded teams plus 3 other unseeded teams received 1st round byes. The 4 seeds went to Tottori Ikuei, Yonago Higashi, Tottori Shougyou, and Yazu.

With only 25 teams, the tournament advanced quickly. Notable teams advancing out of the first round were Tottori Jyouhoku and Sakae.

When the 2nd round came about, all 4 seeds struggled to advance with all 4 only advancing by no more than 2 runs in low scoring affairs. Sakae was one of those casualties losing 3-1 to Yazu.

In fact, Yazu would be the only seeded team advancing out of the quarterfinals defeating Yonago Nishi 8-4. Tottori Ikuei couldn't stop the offensive train of Tottori Jyouhoku and lost 7-1. Yonago Higashi fell in a tight one 6-5 to Kurayoshi Higashi while Tottori Shougyou lost to Tottori Nishi 4-2.

Moving to the semifinals, Tottori Jyouhoku seemed to have the inside track to the finals, but it was actually Kurayoshi Higashi that displayed the offense in the middle innings building a 6-1 lead. Tottori Jyouhoku would stage a late-inning rally, but would fall short 7-5.

The other semi had Yazu and Tottori Nishi in a pitcher's duel. Tottori Nishi actually held a 1-0 lead late before Yazu leveled the score in the 8th. The game would head to enchousen, but only for 1 inning where Tottori Nishi bid sayonara to the last seeded team left in the field.

So it was Tottori Nishi and Kurayoshi Higashi battling for the prefectural title.

The game was close early, with Tottori Nishi holding a slim 1-0 lead. After Kurayoshi Higashi tied the game in the 5th, Tottori Nishi blew the game open with 5 in the 6th, eventually winning 6-2 giving them their 12th spring title and first in 4 years.

Okayama
Okayama is the only prefecture along with Hiroshima that I can recall using pool play to determine participants in the prefecturals. All other prefectures that do small pools do single-elimination. This year though since they are hosting, all the teams need to do is reach the semifinals and they're in the Chuugoku Taikai.

Seeding for the prefecturals seemed logical enough, newcomer Soushi Gakuen joined Kounan (no not that Kounan - this is why having the kanji helps although with Kounan in particular I think there are two that share the same kanji writing), Kurashiki Kougyou, Okayama Gakugeikan, Kyouei, Sakuyou, Kanzei and Mizushima Kougyou.

All seeded teams received a first round bye, and all advanced to the best 8 save for one team...

And if you know my history with teams, you should know who it was...

Yep, it was Kanzei. But to be fair, they faced an unseeded (!) Kurashiki Shougyou, the same team that has represented Okayama the last 3 Natsu Koushien tournaments.

Now while all the other teams advanced, it was not without some difficulty. Soushi Gakuen, who is a bit offensively challenged, squeaked a 1-0 win over Kasaoka Shougyou. Kounan did the same against a perennial above-average Okayama Ridai Fuzoku. Kyouei was in a barnburner against Tamano, and Mizushima Kougyou edged Okayama Higashi Shougyou.

Soushi Gakuen continued their low-scoring games shutting out Kounan 2-0 for a spot in the semis. Their opponent would be Okayama Gakugeikan who beat a good Kurashiki Kougyou squad 6-3.

On the other side, Kyouei must've spent their energy in their first game, because Sakuyou wound up beating them soundly 7-2. And Kurashiki Shougyou continued to take the snubbing personally by shutting out Mizushima Kougyou 4-0.

In the semis, Soushi Gakuen and Okayama Gakugeikan were deadlocked at 0 until the 7th when the teams got tired of being scoreless and tied, and so decided to exit in the inning tied at 1 instead. Soushi's continued attrition paid off in the top of the 9th as they pushed ahead the winning run to advance to the finals.

Surely their opponent would be Kurashiki Shougyou, as Sakuyou was just another team in the way...

Except that they fought back.

A 4-run 2nd by Kurashiki Shougyou helped put Sakuyou down 5-1 early. Yet they fought back with 3 in the 5th and 1 in the 7th to level the score. And when Kurashiki broke the tie in their half of the lucky 7th, they leveled it again the next half inning.

Then in the 9th, Sakuyou exploded for 5 runs, taking a 11-6 lead! Kurashiki Shougyou would furiously attempt a comeback in the bottom of the 9th, but to no avail. They got only 3 back to fall 11-9.

So it was a Soushi Gakuen-Sakuyou final. While Soushi Gakuen's low-scoring style has proven to be very effective, it also has the drawback of inadvertently keeping opponents in games.

Such was the case in the finals when again the teams were scoreless heading into the middle innings. Sakuyou would be the first to break the deadlock with a run in the bottom of the 5th...

... and that would eventually be the only run scored in the game!

Soushi Gakuen could never get that critical run across against ace Kataoka and the Sakuyou defense, thus giving them their 1st ever spring title!

Shimane
Shimane has 38 teams participating in the spring taikais, and they do an abbreviated regional play with groups of 2 or 3 teams to get down to the draw of 16 teams.

There are no seeded teams in the main draw, so it's possible that the better teams in the prefecture wind up in the same draw.

The most notable team (both good and bad in recent years) Kaisei, had no trouble in their first game of the prefecturals against Goutsu Kougyou, winning 10-0. They then had a bit of trouble against Izumo Nishi, but manage to slide through with a 1-0 win.

They then faced off against the Cinderella team of 2 years ago - Risshoudai Shounan, who had wins over Oota and Masuda Higashi. Risshoudai couldn't recreate that magic as Kaisei scored 3 runs in the middle innings for a 3-1 win.

And on the other side of the bracket, Iwamichisuikan (fka Gonokawa) handled Taishi 7-0 in the quarterfinals and looked to easily reach the finals as they were facing unknown Yakami.

In fact, Yakami struck first in the top of the 1st with 2 runs, then after Iwamichisuikan scored 3 in the 2nd, they came back to tie it in the 3rd. However, Iwamichisuikan would take the lead again in the bottom of the 3rd and interestingly that would be the end of the scoring! Iwamichisuikan would escape with a 4-3 win and face Kaisei.

The finals proved to be a hotly contested affair with flurries of punches being thrown on both sides. Iwamichisuikan took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first, then after going down 2-1 the next half inning, scored 3 to re-take the lead at 4-2. After trading a run in the 4th, Kaisei scored 3 in the 7th to take a 1-run lead going into the late innings.

Iwamichisuikan would then find the equalizer in the 9th inning to send it into extras, and pushed ahead the winning run in the 10th, giving them their 1st title.

Hiroshima
Hiroshima is another prefecture who does pool play to determine their final draw.

The only exception is Hiroshima Sougou Gijyutsu who gets a free pass thanks to their senbatsu appearance.

As expected, the usual suspects advanced out of pool play - Kouryou, Jyousuikan Onomichi, and the lesser known Hiroshima Shougyou.

When the draw came out, the big 3 of Hiroshima Sougou, Kouryou and Jyousuikan all were on the same side, leaving Onomichi and Hiroshima Shougyou an open side of the bracket.

Onomichi's run the last couple of years may have come to an end as evidenced by their 2nd round loss 0-1 to Sanyou. By the way, if you're wondering why I write about Onomichi so much it's because I visited there in 2006 thanks to the anime series Kamichu! and would up liking the place. It's much like my liking of Tenri among other schools.

Sanyou actually came from nowhere on that side on the bracket. But when you slide through against Hiroshima Shinjyou and Hiroshima Kokusai Gakuin, you'd think their run would have to end sometime.

But after outlasting Hiroshima Shougyou 8-3 with 7 runs in the 2nd half, Sanyou found themselves in the finals!

So who would they face?

Well, Hiroshima Sougou Gijyutsu handled their business throughout their games although there was 2-run victories versus Kamo and Onomichi Shougyou.

That left Kouryou and Jyousuikan to battle it out, which they did in the quarterfinals. Kouryou prevailed this time around with a 2-0 shutout to set up a date with Sougyou Gijyutsu in the semi-finals.

And Hiroshima Sougyou Gijyutsu must have something going, because they were in a close affair with Kouryou, and instead of fading in the late innings, they turned it up and defeated Kouryou 5-3!

So it was Hiroshima Sougyou Gijyutsu and Sanyou in the finals.

Sanyou yielded runs in the 1st and 5th to fall behind 2-0 before striking back in the 6th to pull within 1. But an insurance run in the 9th inning proved to be too much despite getting that run back in the bottom of the 9th giving Hiroshima Sougou Gijyutsu their first spring title!

Yamaguchi
Yamaguchi's 59 teams are divided up into 4 regions of 2 pools each to determine the final 8.

Nanyou Kougyou had no trouble advancing out of their particular pool (防徳 - can someone translate that for me?) along with Sakuragaoka who defeated Iwakuni soundly and edged Iwakuni Kougyou.

Karyou too had no trouble in the Ganryuu region with Yanai Gakuen advancing as well.

In the 山宇萩 region, Ube Koujyou and Saikyou advanced. And finally in the Shimonoseki region, Shimonoseki Kougyou was upset in the pool final against Shimonoseki Shougyou 6-5! The other team to advance was Onoda who had 2 close games before shutting out Shimonoseki Chuo Kougyou to advance.

Interestingly, the draw put the upper-tiered teams on separate sides. And yet, all 4 games were for the most part tightly contested. Nanyou Kougyou and Sakuragaoka edged Saikyou and Onoda respectively. Meanwhile Shimonoseki Shougyou couldn't keep up their early success and fell to Yanai Gakuen 4-1.

And perhaps the surprising result of all, Karyou wound up being shutout by Ube Koujyou!

Ube Koujyou followed that up with getting in a shootout against Sakuragaoka. Flurries of scoring both at the beginning and at the end meant the lead changed hands frequently before settling down into a tie after regulation. However, enchousen lasted just one inning as Ube Koujyou continued their run with a 7-6 win. They'd face Nanyo Kougyou as they schooled Yanai Gakuen in a 2-0 shutout.

Come the final though, it was a bit of a shock as it was Ube Koujyou who jumped out to a lead! And then proceeded to extend it out! A single run in the 7th was the only scoring for Nanyo Kougyou as Ube Koujyou earned their 1st ever spring title!

Okay, we start the wheels again and hit the remaining super-regionals.

Kinki
The final day of 1st round games featured a big upset. Shinkou Gakuen, Hyogo's #3 seed jumped on Shiga's champion Oumi 3-0 before Oumi got on the board with a run in the 5th and went on to win 4-1! Meanwhile there was a titanic matchup between Fukuchiyama Seibi and PL Gakuen to conclude 1st round play. Seibi jumped on PL with 2 runs in the first and played hang-on the rest of the way. PL managed to pull within 1 in the 8th, but couldn't push the douten run across.

Sunday would have possibly 2 possible blowouts. First off was Chiben Wakayama against Ritsumeikan Uji. But after taking the lead 1-0 in the 1st, a run in the 2nd and 3rd for Uji meant that Ritsumeikan had the lead! Chiben fires right back with runs in the 4th and 5th and they pulled back in front!

And then it all went wrong. 2 innings later, Uji explodes for 5 runs and takes a commanding 7-3 lead.

That seemed to wake up the Chiben squad though. But there wouldn't be much time left. A run in the 8th would cut the deficit to 3. Then in the 9th, they score 1 run... then 2! Chiben was within 1! But ace Kawabe would be able to record the final out eliminating the formidable powerhouse from the tournament and a place at senbatsu.

The 2nd game was also much closer than expected as well. Osaka Touin faced off against Ikuei (Hyogo 3) and ace Fukumoto shutout the Ikuei squad. However, Ikuei's ace Horita(?) only allowed 2 runs to the powerhouse in the loss. While they won't get an automatic bid, he sure looked good.

(Here's a video of Horita. 3/4 delivery it seems, a bit of control issues in the video)

Now the other quarterfinal games wouldn't be played until the following weekend, and that meant for those teams they would have to play 3 games in 5 days to win the super-regional. They'd get a day off in between each game, but still.

First off was one of my favorite teams Tenri against Kobe Kokusaidai Fuzoku.

While Kobe Kokusaidai had taken the 1-0 lead in the 5th, Tenri asserted itself with 3 in the 6th. But then in the bottom of the 7th Kobe Kokusaidai takes out ace Nishiguchi with 4 runs of their own. Down 5-3 doesn't seem like a lot for Tenri, but they were unable to recover and fall to Okamoto and Kobe Kokusaidai.

Then there was Shinkou Gakuen versus Fukuchiyama Seibi. Shinkou gets the jump again, taking a 2-0 lead in the 2nd inning! But in the 4th, Seibi manages to equalize. And then nothing happens. We head into extras and still nothing from either team. The 13th inning comes and goes and now there's a real possibility that we could have a tie game. But in the end, Shinkou would break through with the sayonara run in the 14th inning to send Fukuchiyama Seibi home and secure a spot at senbatsu!!

Now while the semifinalists are almost assuredly guaranteed a spot in senbatsu, it wouldn't hurt to have a good showing. Unfortunately for Ritsumeikan Uji, ace Kawabe just wasn't on his game, giving up 2 runs in the 1st and 2nd and another 5 in the 5th en route to a 9-1 7-inning loss to Osaka Touin.

And as for Shinkou Gakuen, Kobe Kokusaidai's Okamoto completely shut down their offense. Add sloppy conditions late and an 8-run 8th (and still going) gives the umpires a reason to shut down the game mercifully for Shinkou.

That meant it was down to Osaka Touin and Kobe Kokusaidai Fuzoku. And in a reversal, it was Osaka Touin that was blanked. Okamoto finishes out the run by his team with a 3-0 shutout. In the fall, Okamoto pitched 78.1 innings with an ERA of 1.15 and we'll see a lot more of him come the spring.


Chuugoku
We had a high quality Best 4 field, but things certainly didn't turn out as exciting as perhaps people though. In the first semi, Kanzei wound up having no trouble with Iwamichisuikan shutting them out 5-0. Meanwhile a 5-spot in the 3rd inning helped Kaisei beat Kouryou 5-3.

So it will be Kanzei and Kaisei who will probably get the bids. But there was the final and a spot in the Meiji Jingu tournament to be had.

Itohara for Kaisei opened the scoring in the top of the 1st with a solo homerun. Kanzei would quickly tie it back up in the bottom half of the frame. Then in the 3rd, Itohara gets another timely hit to put them ahead 2-1. And if that wasn't enough, he induces an error while stealing 2nd scoring 2 runs and extending the lead to 4-1.

But Kanzei would take one of those runs back in the bottom of the inning. And in the 5th Yamaguchi gets an inside-the-park homerun for Kanzei pulling within 1. But ace Shirane would not let Kanzei equalize and Kaisei would take the Chuugoku super-regionals with a 4-3 win!


Shikoku
So we hit the semifinals with bids at senbatsu at stake.

Okou certainly was an underdog against Kochi. But they were the ones to open the scoring with a run in the 2nd. However, 6 unanswered runs in the next 3 innings by Kochi pretty much ended the game right then and there.

In the matchup between Ehime teams Saibi also got the jump on the top seeded team Imabari Nishi with a run in the 3rd. Imabari though would tie it up in the 5th and 2 more in the 6th and that would be the end of that.

Kochi and Imabari Nishi will be familiar faces at Koshien, but which one will advance to the national tournament?

Early on, it looked like Kochi would run away with it, building a 3-run lead. However, Imabari Nishi would turn the tables in the 4th, scoring 4 runs. Kochi would equalize in the 5th and it would stay that way, meaning extra innings in the championship game. In the 11th, ace Tsutsui would try to end it right there as his 2-out double put Kochi ahead 5-4.

Imabari Nishi though had other plans. With no out, Tsutsui would hit Nagai. A sac bunt would move him to 2nd, and in a bold move, he steals 3rd! With the tying run only 90 feet away, Sasaki singles to left tying the game! After another sac bunt to put the winning run in scoring position, Aida delivers the sayonara hit to right as Sasaki scores sending the Ehime team to the nationals!


Kyushu
Whoops. I never got around in the other update to cover what had happened to get to the Best 4. Well, now you'll get a recap of everything!

First up are the 3 1st round games that the #3 and #4 seeded teams from Fukuoka and Miyazaki were awarded. And perhaps surprisingly, they held up pretty well. Miyazaki Nichidai (Miyazaki 4) got the lead against Kagoshima Jyousei (Kagoshima 2). But after equalizing in the 6th, Jyousei would put 2 together in the 8th for a late-inning win. The new Imari representative, Imari Shougyou (Saga 2), couldn't keep up with Fukuoka Koudai Jyoutou falling 7-0 in 8 innings. The same went for Oita (Oita 2), who gave up 10 runs in the 4th to Miyazaki Shougyou (Miyzaki 3), and were eliminated one inning later.

With those game completed, it was time for the top seeds to take the field. But instead of showing their dominance they instead muddied up the waters even more.

Jiyuugaoka (Fukuoka 1) had no trouble with Kagoshima Jyousei, shutting them out 4-0. Jyouhoku's (Kumamoto 2) ace Nogata gave up a first inning run to Meihou (Oita 1) and new ace Yamano (who struggled against Hanamaki Higashi) made it stick.

But in the bottom half of this side, things were different. Nichinan Gakuen (Miyazaki 1) had a 1-0 lead on Kadena (Okinawa 2), but Nakazaki would not be able to hold it. He would relinquish the lead in the 6th giving up 2 runs, and his team would never recover. And Sasebo Jitsugyou (Nagasaki 2) would get a jump on Saga Shouygou (Saga 1) scoring 2 in the 3rd and another 2 in the 7th while ace Hirakura would yield only 1 run in a complete game effort.

In the other side of the super-regionals, more 1 seeds would fall. Kyushu Gakuin (Kumamoto 1) would trail from wire-to-wire against Fukuoka Koudai Jyoutou losing 6-2. Kagoshima Jitsugyou (Kagoshima 1) would suffer the same fate against Miyazaki Kougyou (Miyazaki 2) as Hamada would yield 1 run.

As for the last 2 games, Kounan's (Okinawa 1) Shimabukuro would continue to lead his team to Koshien yet again with a 3-1 win over Toukai Dai-go, while in the battle of commericial schools Nagasaki (Nagasaki 1) would slip through with a 1-0 win over Miyazaki.

So heading to the crucial quarterfinals, Saga and Kumamoto were already eliminated.

And the first probable bid would go to Jiyuugaoka as they were able to score 2 runs off of Yamano while their ace Ono made it interesting yielding a run in the 9th, but nothing more. Their opponent in the semis would be Kadena, who held a 5-0 lead against Sasebo Jitsugyou but allowed them to make it close with 4 in the bottom of the 9th.

Things were just as close on the other side as well. Fukuoka Koudai Jyoutou and Miyazaki Kougyou were tied at 2 for most of the game until Miyazaki put up 3 in the 7th to take the lead for good. And Shimabukuro would continue to dominate in a 2-0 win over Nagashou.

This means that we'll see 2 Okinawa teams at Koshien! I know someone who'll like that!

But back to the super-regionals. Kadena continued to impress, this time against Jiyuugaoka. They shut out the Fukuoka squad 4-0 and secure a spot in the finals! Could it be an all-Okinawa final?

Sure looked like it early! Kounan would score 2 quick runs in the top of the 1st, but Miyazaki would come back with a run of their own against not Shimabukuro, but Sunagawa.

The decision to hold back Shimabukuro would prove costly though as Miyazaki would score 2 runs in the 3rd. Shimabukuro would enter the game, but the damage had been done. Miyazaki's ace Hamada would shut down the Kounan offense and advance to the finals with a 3-2 win.

So it would be a (relieved) Kadena facing not Kounan, but Miyazaki Kougyou. But the home field advantage would not be enough for them. Kadena would get 2 runs in the 3rd against Hamada and then extend that lead to 4. And while Ikehara for Kadena would give up 2 runs in the 7th, he cruised to victory giving his team its first ever Kyushu super-regional win!


Well, the majority of our field for the Spring Koshien is set, as well as our participants for the Meiji Jingu tournament. I'll recap that later today.

Chuugoku is in their Best 4 going into the weekend, and what a field it is with Shimane's Iwamichisuikan facing Okayama's Kanzei while another team from Shimane in Kaisei faces Kouryou from Hiroshima. But we'll go back to see how we got here.

Tottori
Yazu certainly gave Kurayoshi Kita a good game, but a 3-run 5th for the team from North Kurayoshi was too much for them as they lost 5-2.

Their brethren to the east were having as just a hard time. Tottori Ikuei had jumped out early to a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the 1st, but Higashi rallied to tie right thereafter. It wouldn't be until the 7th where Higashi broke the tie with a run, then broke it open with 3 in the 8th to advance to the finals.

And in that all Kurayoshi final Higashi would open the scoring in the 3rd with a run, but Kita would level it in the 5th. The score would stay at 1-1 into extras, but Higashi would take it all quickly with a sayonara run in the 10th.

Because Tottori is hosting the super-regionals, they receive the extra bid, so both Yazu and Tottori Ikuei would advance. Yazu would win the consolation game 6-1.


Okayama
When the main draw was completed, Kanzei and Okayama Rikadai Fuzoku found themselves on the same bracket while Kurashiki Kougyou had the other side all to itself.

Of course, Okayama Gakukeikan would oust Kurashiki Kougyou from the list of contenders with a 5-4 win in the opening round.

Kanzei and Okayama Rikadai managed to advance, but only just so with 1-run victories. After that scare, both fared better in the quarterfinals advancing with relative ease meaning they would indeed clash in the semifinals. But what about the other side? Who was going to emerge as the front-runner?

Tamano Kounan appeared to be that candidate, advancing with large margin victories over Okayama Shoudai Fuzoku and Okayama Minami. Okayama Gakukeikan who had defeated Kurashiki Kougyou, couldn't maintain the momentum losing to Okayama Higashi Shougyou 1-0 setting up the other semifinal.

Oddly enough, it was the 2nd semifinal that made for compelling drama. Kanzei put up crooked numbers each inning routing Okayama Rikadai 11-0 in 5 innings. Tamano Kounan jumped on Okayama Higashi Shougyou leading 5-0 after 3 innings and looked in control.

That was until the 5th inning where Higashisho scored 3 to make the game more interesting. One inning later, they would pull even with 2 more runs! Certainly momentum was with them and they indeed completed the comeback scoring 3 more runs in the 7th inning to lead 8-5. Tamano, reeling from the rally couldn't come back and lost 8-6.

If nothing else, it guaranteed that Higashisho would have a place in the super-regionals as Kanzei would not let them win the prefecture. Higashisho would find themselves down 5-0 again but this time couldn't find the rally losing 5-1.

As for Tamano Kounan, the loss certainly deflated them, but they fought hard against Okayama Rikadai. It would fall just short as they would not advance to the super-regionals suffering a 4-3 loss.


Shimane
We were already in the semifinals with some familiar faces.

Iwamichisuikan (fka Gonokawa) facing Izumo Shougyou jumped in front with 2 runs in the top of the 1st. Izumo would take one of those back in the 2nd, but that's as close as they'd get. Meanwhile Hamada just had no shot against Kaisei losing 11-2 setting up a great final.

Or so I thought. Kaisei seemed determined to get back to Koshien and it showed beating Iwamichisuikan 7-1. And poor Hamada was shutout in the consolation game falling to Izumo Shougyou 2-0.


Hiroshima
I mentioned that Kouryou was really the only notable team left in the Best 8. Regardless, you'd think that the games at this point would still be competitive. But they weren't. Outside of Gion Kita edging Hiroshima Kougyou 8-6 in the quarterfinals, the lowest margin of victory was 7 runs:

Quarterfinals

• Kouryou def. Kure 8-1
• Hiroshima Shinjyou def. Kouyou Higashi 7-0
• Soutoku def. Onomichi (darn) 10-0

Semifinals

• Kouryou def. Gion Kita 9-1
• Hiroshima Shinjyou def. Soutoku 11-3 (although Soutoku did have a 3-2 lead after 4 beore Shinjyou scored 8 unanswered in the next 2 innings)

Finals - Kouryou def. Hiroshima Shinjyou 12-2
3rd Place - Soutoku def. Gion Kita 9-0

I don't think I've ever seen so many lopsided games that late in a bracket.

Oh yeah, Kouryou did indeed rout the field to take the top seed.


Yamaguchi
With all the major players eliminated, Yamaguchi's 3 bids were for the taking.

With no real front-runner, it was more of a wait and see to see who emerges. In the quarterfinals, one side of the brackets had blowout games. Houfu dispatched Shimonoseki Chuo Kougyou 10-2 while Yanai Gakuen sent Ube Koujyou packing 11-4. Kumage Minami and Tokuyama advanced on the other side.

Kumage Minami had little trouble with Tokuyama 4-1, and after the blowouts Houfu and Yanai Gakuen found themselves in a low-scoring affair, going into extras still at 0's. It would only go 1 inning though as Houfu scores the sayonara run.

In the final, Houfu would score early on Kumage Minami and while runs would be traded later, Houfu would emerge unscathed with the 8-5 win.

The final bid would go to Yanai Gakuen as they defeated Tokuyama 4-3.


Super-Regionals
When the draws came out for the super-regionals, it was interesting that 2 of Okayama and Yamaguchi's teams were in one quadrant while Hiroshima and Tottori's teams were likewise in another quadrant.

As the 1st round of games began, it was apparent that Yamaguchi's representatives were not up to the task with all 3 teams losing. Only the #1 seed Houfu had a close game, but were still shutout by Okayama's #3 Okayama Rikadai Fuzoku 2-0.

Shockingly, the home field advantage didn't help Tottori at all as all 4 representatives also lost in the first round. #1 Kurayoshi Higashi kept Iwamichisuikan scoreless for 7 innings, but a run in the 8th was all they needed. Hiroshima Shinjyou scored a run in the 1st and 3rd innings to defeat #4 Tottori Ikuei.

The only other team to lose was Shimane's Izumo Shougyou who lost 6-2 to Okayama Higashi Shougyou. So after 1 round, 2 prefectures were already eliminated!

In the quarterfinals, the perennial teams started to hit their stride. Kaisei and Kouryou mercy-ruled their opponents to set up one semifinal while Iwamichisuikan and Kanzei kept their opponent's offenses at bay to advance for the other semi.

Should make for a good weekend of finals to determine the 2 guaranteed bids.