Rarely has a Dana Sr. Softball team been so dominate as the X-MEN were this season. From the very start of the season all the way through, they proved to be the preeminent team on the field. Winning both the league title as well as the season ending Tourney, has secured the X-MEN as one of the truly elite in Dana Senior Softball. While scoring 293 runs was assuredly remarkable, their defense only allowing 13 runs per game is unequaled in Dana Softball history (fact check pending). They only had to bat 3 times to win most games.

Little is known as to why the X-MEN perform so well. Is it the superior coaching and managing by Joe Mackey and Norm Young? Such leadership is truly lacking in our era. Or is it the wizardry of the Cardinal jersey that transforms these seemingly mediocre players, at draft time, into a team of super heroes on the softball field?

Coach Mackey (who obviously penned this article) is self-quoted as saying,” first CIF Champs, now Dana Champs, is this the Year of Joe or what? I ‘m going to Disneyland.

Purple Haze won its second-in-a-row season ending playoff champiosnhip, defeating the Red Diehards in a close game.  Final score was 18-15 with Red scoring five in the last inning to close the gap.  In the semi-final games, Purple outlasted the Royal Blue Dodgers 17-13 and Red held on against Gray, winning by one run.  The final out was recorded as Gray had the tying run on 3rd.  In the earlier game, which was extremely close, Purple and Royal Blue were tied after the 4th, 6th, and 7th innings.  Purple scored four in the 8th while the Dodgers got but one.   Purple got two more in the open inning but the Dodgers could only add one more to close out the game.   This makes three seasons in a row where the team that finished 3rd in the regular season ended up winning the playoffs!