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NECBL New England Collegiate Baseball League

Newport's Cardines Field Advances to Championship Round in National Summer Ballpark Competition

July 14, 2022 - New England Collegiate Baseball League (NECBL) News Release


‚¬â€¹ ‚¬â€¹After winning their Final Four matchup, the NECBL's Newport Gulls (Cardines Field) have moved on to the Championship Round in the 2022 Summer Collegiate Best of the Ballparks fan vote. The competition, run by Ballpark Digest, began with one hundred and fifteen stadiums that house summer collegiate baseball teams. After narrowing the field to sixty-four contenders, ballparks were randomly drawn against each other, with fans deciding the winner of each matchup. Since Round 1, Newport has survived four additional rounds to reach the finals.

Fan voting is now open for the Final Four! Vote here to select Cardines Field to win the championship!. Voting ends on July 18 at midnight. Fans can vote once per day until the window closes.

Newport's journey to the Championship Round started with a slim win over the Forest City Owls (McNair Field) in Round 1, where the Gulls had just 51% of the vote. In Round 2, the Gulls downed the Batavia Muckdogs (Dwyer Stadium) with 66% of the vote. Newport advanced through Round 3 and to the Elite Eight after garnering 54% of the vote against the Waterloo Bucks (Riverfront Stadium). The Gulls reached the Final Four after a close 51% win over the Florence Flamingos (Carolina Bank Field) in the Elite Eight. Newport just edged the O'Fallon Hoots (CarShield Field) with another 51% victory to advance to the finals. The Gulls are currently up against the Springfield Lucky Horseshoes (Robin Roberts Stadium) of the United States Prospect League in the Championship Round.

Springfield reached the finals after bulldozing through the first five rounds. The Lucky Horseshoes downed the Nashua Silver Knights (Holman Stadium) in Round 1 with 69% of the vote. Springfield won its Round 2 matchup with a 59% victory over the Lafayette Aviators (Loeb Stadium). The Horshoes crushed the Macon Bacon (Luther Williams Field) in Round 3 with 67% of the vote and beat the NECBL's Keene Swamp Bats with a 57% win (Alumni Field) in the Elite Eight. In the Final Four, Springfield edged the Mankato Moondogs (ISG Field) in a 55% win.

Newport's Cardines Field is considered one of the oldest ballparks in the country. The stadium hosted Negro League teams in its early days and has been the home of the Gulls since 2001. Springfield's home, Robin Roberts Stadium, has played host to Triple-A and Low-A baseball teams in the past. The venue opened in 1925 and the Lucky Horseshoes moved in after their founding in 2008.

Other New England League ballparks were a part of the competition as well. The North Shore Navigators (Fraser Field) and Bristol Blues (Muzzy Field) were eliminated in Round 1. The Ocean State Waves (Old Mountain Field) reached the second round before their eventual exit. The Keene Swamp Bats made it all the way to the Elite Eight before falling to the Springfield Lucky Horseshoes (Robin Roberts Stadium), Newport's current opponent. Despite their loss, the Swamp Bats were one of the top four vote getting teams in the Elite Eight.

Stadiums were chosen by Ballpark Digest through various sets of criteria. These include their personal opinion of the ballpark, the stadium's history, performance in previous fan votes and league/geological balance. Fans are allowed to vote multiple times, but only once per day. The matchups are decided based on a running tally of votes, meaning the fans do not have to fill out a full ballot to make their votes count.



New England Collegiate Baseball League Stories from July 14, 2022


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