West Coast Invasion in the East Coast Championship

DEA Connection, 172 Combo & Desert Connection Rep the West. Connecticut Strikes Gold again and earns a PROMOTION to Majors!

East Coast Championship Recap

Nashville, Tn.  June 10-11, 2027

This marked the 2nd year this tournament has been played in Nashville after bouncing around the past few years in Ohio.  Keep in mind, the National Police Championship had been played in Dayton, Ohio for over 40 years so this long-standing tournament has returned to the splendor of years past.  It is now the 2nd biggest attended tournament in the PS circuit as this year featured 27 teams from California to New York. 

Players who arrived early met on Tuesday night in downtown Nashville at the Redneck Riveria for a player party.  Our group took over the entire 2nd floor as it was standing room only for most of the evening. 

We dodged some serious rainfall just prior to the start of the tournament, but the fields at Cane Ridge Park (mostly turf) held up well and although it was VERY humid, we did not encounter any rain on either day of the tournament. 

Every field was stocked with provided bats courtesy of Brett Helmer & Marucci Sports and although the bats were very hot right out of the wrapper, we made it through the entire tournament without a single broken bat.  USSSA Conference player Tyler Marshburn was present to sell our PS star stamped Worth Super Duper balls along with equipment from Rawlings.  Terry Dugan from Lockdown Sports set up his truck to sell his New Balance turfs and he donated a pair to the MVP’s of each division.  And finally, 2025 Sponsor of the Year Josh Hudson and his Optimize U company kept the players hydrated with water, energy drinks and I.V. hydration bags that were much appreciated based on the extreme humid conditions.  A special thank you is in order for Brett Helmer (Marucci), Tyler Marshburn & Jason Kendrick (Rawlings), Terry Dugan (Lockdown Sports) and Josh Hudson (Optimize U).  Sponsor like this are hard to come by, but much valued and appreciated. 

This was a great litmus test for teams because it was a “roster” tournament and had the exact same requirements and rules as the World Series.  So, teams could really gauge how the matched up against other real teams (not pick ups) and they should now have an idea of where they are strong and what they need to work on before Worlds. 

This was the point of the TRIPLE CROWN series crown with the West Coast Championship coming next.  There was some chatter that it would be nearly impossible for any team to win the TRIPLE CROWN series in the same season (ECC, WCC, and WS).  One big hurdle is that most teams do not play in all 3 events, so it would take a team that plays in all of them AND wins all 3 of them.  As you will read on, every team has been eliminated from winning all 3 of these events except ONE.  After the first tournament, only one team remains standing in the quest for the TRIPLE CROWN.

In the GOLD DIVISION, we cannot pull any punches.  The Connecticut Lawmen were downright dominant and went undefeated with several run rule victories.  They even beat an established Majors team Miami 5.O. in the round robin and they have now won this event two years in a row.  This is on the heels of them barnstorming through Florida doing more of the same:  beating majors teams and throttling Gold teams.  Although Hall of Fame Manager Tommy Eldridge made a compelling argument to remain in Gold for the remainer of the year, every other team whether in attendance or not believed they are a Majors team playing down.  The final blow to Tommy’s plea to remain in Gold came from HIS OWN PLAYERS.  Across the board they publicly proclaimed they wanted to promote to the heavyweight division.  Based on PS.COM management observations, the past 2 seasons of results and the desire of the players to be allowed to compete in Majors, THE CONNECTICUT LAWMEN have been promoted to the Majors division. 

It wasn’t all a cake walk for Connecticut as they faced some stiff competition from the New York Express (another team on the verge of promotion) and a very strong Maryland’s Finest. 

In Silver, the Desert Connection shook off a quick exit from the Gold playoffs to bounce back and beat a very solid PAPD Twins squad to win that division. 

Gold

1.Connecticut Lawmen

2.New York Express

3.Maryland’s Finest

4.Chicago Metro

T5.Garden State

T5.Bluegrass Lawmen

T7.MDF-Dayton

T7.Utah Metro

T9.Norsemen PSC

T9.NY Boldest

T9.PAPD Twins

T9.Desert Connection

T13.NYPD’s Finest

T13.PA Enforcers

MVP :  Eddy Arajuo CT Lawmen

All Tournament:  Brian Discordia, Mike Aquilino, Luke Leonardi CT Lawmen

All Tournament:  Tony Vano, Nick Cappiello, Steve Gutierrez New York Express

Silver

1.Desert Connection

2.PAPD Twins

T3.NYPD’s Finest

T3.Norsemen PSC

T5.PA Enforcers

T5.NY Boldest

MVP: Charlie Hernandez-Desert Connection

All Tournament :  Anthony Baca, Cryce Butler-Desert Connection

All Tournament: Brandon Bush- PAPD Twins

The MAJOR Division was a dogfight but after round robin, New York Empire looked utterly dominant with two huge run rule wins to secure the top seed.  Miami 5.O. upset Great Lakes and were in a position to get a bye, but then dropped a game to Connecticut Lawmen.  In doing so, the other 3 teams that got byes were: TBL Outlaws, Kentucky Blue (masters) and the new combo team of the DEA Combo and The Connection.  The team playing under the name DEA Connection for the first time did not look sharp early as they barely won their 2 round robin games.  DEA Connection nipped NorCal Reloaded to secure the final bye but once the playoffs started they caught fire.

In the playoffs the two hottest teams were New York Empire and DEA Connection and everyone in attendance knew the championship would have to come through one of these teams.  DEA Connection defeated the Empire in the “kings seat” game and would need to be double dipped.  Undeterred, the Empire dropped into the loser bracket and proceeded to drop 38 runs on an exhausted Kentucky Blue in the first 2 innings.  KY Blue had exactly 10 players including both coaches and one injured player (Chris Jones) playing every inning.  Somehow they made an epic run through the loser bracket before gassing out vs. a completely dialed in New York Empire.  The stage was set for a rematch between DEA Connection and The Empire and in an excited championship game, the DEA Connection prevailed capping a perfect 6-0 weekend and earning their first tournament championship.  They also established themselves as being the first team to win point on the TRIPLE CROWN series.  Can they win the WCC?  And if so, they would have to be odds on favorites for the World Series.

In Mid Majors, there were high hopes for the Swami’s sleeper team 172 Combo, and although it did not play out in Majors they handled business in Mid Majors.  172 Combo finished with 2 impressive victories over NorCal Reloaded and the Minnesota Lawmen to claim Mid Majors supremacy.

Majors:

1.DEA Connection

2.New York Empire

3.Kentucky Blue

4.Center Mass

T5.Suffolk Lawmen

T5.TBL Outlaws

T7.Great Lakes

T7.Miami 5-O

T9.NorCal Reloaded

T9.Minnesota Lawmen

T9.Angel Armor

T9.172 Combo

MVP:  Tanner Cook- DEA Connection

All Tournament:  Steve Abina, Kevin Mort, Rob Mason-DEA Connection

All Tournament: Warren Rivell, Kyle Greene, Billy Crowe-New York Empire

Mid Majors

1.172 Combo

2.Minnesota Lawmen

T3.Angel Armor

T3.NorCal Reloaded

MVP:  Juan Garcia- 172 Combo

All Tournament:  Darrin Takade, Michael Ryan, Rey Lopez-172 Combo

We want to keep the event “as is” so next year we are inviting all 27 teams back and capping the limit to 32 teams.  By keeping a hard cap on the number of teams, we can create a better experience for all those in attendance as this year was seamless.  The umpire crew under the direction of Justin Camper got rave reviews, the fields were pristine, the equipment was perfect and we intend to recreate that experience for all those who attended next year.  Our dates have been locked in for May 20-21  (Thu/Fri) 2027 at Cane Ride park.  We recognize that mid week is tough for players to get off from work so by pushing it back to Thu/Fri (instead of Wed/Thu) AND keeping it to 2 days will give players a bit more leverage to get time off.  See you all in Nashville for the ECC in 2027! 

On behalf of tournament director Justin Camper and co-directors Jeff Blair and Justin Witt of PoliceSoftball.Com we would like to thank all of you who attended and win or lose, we hope we helped to create some memorable moments for you and your teammates.