And then the rains came.
Before Sunday's championship round of the 36th annual Seattle Invitational was rained out, Larry H. Miller Toyota's fastpitch softball team had won three straight games, including Saturday night's late contest - a 6-0 victory over Prince George, B.C.The downpour left four teams, including three foreign teams - Victoria, B. C., Sorrey Ravens, and the New Zealand National Team - and one American team, Miller Toyota - unbeaten in the tournament.
"I hated to see it get rained out," said Miller Toyota coach Brad Burrup. "We were starting to get our rhythm back. Our bats were coming alive, and Dewey (Dwayne Dyck) and Billy (Hillhouse) picked us up with their pitching performances.
"When you see your team put it together like that, you want to play more games. You don't want to lose that edge."
The Salt Lake-based team, which had defeated three Canadian teams - Grand Prairie, South Hill of Vancouver, and the Prince George Lumber Kings - with the tournament with a 37-11 record.
In the late game Saturday night, Dyck, 19-6, with a 2.47 ERA, hurled a four-hit shutout. He struckout 12 hitters, and didn't allow a walk against Prince George, B. C.
Miller Toyota's bats came alive in Dyck's support. Gary Daniels blasted a three-run home run, which went over the 292-foot rightfield fence, in the fourth inning.
First baseman Pete Turner had five hits, including a grand slam against South Hill, in his last eight at bats.
Mitch Munthe also has five hits in his last eight plate appearances. He went two-for-three against Prince George, which included an RBI.