2026 Northeast Champs Honors Chuck Sharkey

Aug. 1, 2026

Dan Kelley (left) being inducted into the National Senior Softball Hall of Fame by Gayle Collins, SSUSA tournament director at the 2026 Northeast Championships.

By Donna McGuire
Softball News Report

Teams from six states and Canada won championships in a highly competitive SSUSA Northeast Championships in early July.

Six of the 14 divisions needed two championship games to determine winners during the July 7-12 event played at two parks in the Syracuse, N.Y., area. Three times, teams coming out of the elimination bracket double-dipped a previously unbeaten bracket team.

“We had close games in every division this year,” Tournament Director Gayle Collins said. “We also had great weather.”

Tournament director, Gayle Collins (left) presents Jeff Mickle, with an appreciation award for Visit Syracuse for their sponsorship of SSUSA's Northeast Championships.

Triple-digit temperatures moved out of Syracuse shortly before the tournament started, replaced by highs in the 80s that made games much more delightful for the 50 participating teams. Entrants came from 11 states and Canada.

Fourteen teams earned berths to the 2027 Tournament of Champions in Polk County, Fla.

Organizers had hoped to be playing this year on two turf fields at Hopkins Road Park in Liverpool, but the fields did not get finished in time. They will be ready for next year’s event, Collins said.

The 2026 Northeast Championships also featured the planting of a memorial tree for SSUSA New York State Director Chuck Sharkey, who died in December at age 76. A plaque erected in his honor called him, “A champion on the field, a mentor in life, and a friend to all.”

 
Long-time SSUSA director of New York, Chuck Sharkey, was honored by the Syracuse softball community by planting a tree in his name at the Hopkins Road Park in Liverpool.

Results:

Men's 40+ Gold: The 40+ Major team PDW/SAVORY/APC/The Hose of Pennsylvania (photo lower left) needed two championship games to tame Wild Horse of New York (photo lower right). Wild Horse won the first title game 21-20 before PDW secured the second one by the same score. Just DA Fellas of New York finished third in the three-team division.

Men's 50+ Major Plus: Playing a best-of-three format, Deluxe Bakery of New Jersey (photo below) swept CSD of New York 16-12 and 24-9. Deluxe finished 4-1 overall.

Men's 50+ Major: Third-seeded Steve's Sports of Connecticut lost its first bracket game by one run before barreling back through the elimination bracket with four consecutive victories, including 25-17 and 16-12 triumphs over second-seeded HRS/OSS Apparel/Fat Chops of Rhode Island in the title games. Top-seeded MVP Inc of Pennsylvania finished third in the four-team division.

Men's 50+ AAA: Second-seeded Stud Softball of Pennsylvania lost the first championship game 25-22 to the top-seeded Mississauga Wolverines of Ontario, Canada, but rebounded to claim the if-needed game 22-10. Fourth-seeded F.W. Dennis of New York finished third in the five-team division.

Men's 55+ Major: After all six teams went 1-1 in seeding play, this bracket looked up for grabs. Third-seeded Magic Softball of Massachusetts (photo below) did the grabbing, winning its bracket games 21-18, 28-20, 20-16 and 19-16 to claim the championship. Runner up Buell Fuel/WSG of New York won three elimination games to reach the finals. Fifth-seeded Phoenix Tube-Gas House of Pennsylvania took third.

Men's 55/60+ Gold: After a 0-2 start in seeding games, the sixth-seeded Major team Regeee's Rams 60 of Ontario, Canada (photo below), went 4-0 in bracket play, including a 19-17 championship victory over fourth-seeded Bond124 of Connecticut. Second-seeded Phoenix Tube/Bob Johnson of New York finished third in the six-team division.

Men's 60+ AAA: Playing a best-of-three format, Cadence Wealth Management of New York swept the Diamond Dawgs of Massachusetts 18-9 and 19-16 for the crown. Cadence finished 4-1 overall.

Men's 60+ AA: Also playing a best-of-three bracket, New York Capitals overcame a 21-19 opening loss by defeating Pelley Stix of Ontario, Canada, 19-17 and 18-8 in the next two games. The Capitals finished 4-2 overall.

Men's 65+ Platinum: Olympian Athletics, a 65+ Major team from Pennsylvania (photo below), stumbled only once in six games. That happened during the best-of-three bracket, when The Bank of Delaware won the first contest 22-11. The Athletics rallied for 22-10 and 28-20 victories to claim the title.

Men's 65+ AAA: Top-seeded Team Riporti of New Jersey (photo below) swept away all competition, ending with a 17-7 championship victory over third-seeded Fat Nancy 65 of New York in the title game. Team Riporti finished 6-0, with four of the victories coming by double digits. Second-seeded Old Iron Trucking of New York captured third in the four-team division.

Men's 70+ Major: This five-team division ended with two championship games, both won by fifth-seeded Promotion/Phoenix Tube 70 of New Jersey (photo lower left) over second-seeded Talaga Construction 70 of Connecticut (photo lower right). Promotion notched 19-10 and 16-14 victories in those games. The top-seeded Agway Steelers of Ontario, Canada, finished third.

Men's 70+ AAA: The second-seeded Dinos 70s of New Hampshire earned revenge for a 17-15 loss in the first title game by dousing the Syracuse Cyclones 20-11 in the if-needed game. Third-seeded RoadHouse Blues 70s of Pennsylvania took third in the three-team division.

Men's 70+ AA: Playing a best-of-three format, Upstate Xtreme/Boombah 70s of New York ousted Shannon Fence/CPOA of Ohio 20-19 and 20-5.

Men's 75/80+ Silver: This division featured five one-run games, with eventual champion Jersey Masters 75s (photo below) playing in two of them. The third-seeded Masters defeated top-seeded Rochester Knights of New York in the winner’s finale 20-19 before dispatching the second-seeded Long Island Jaguars 17-12 in the championship game. The Rochester Knights finished third in the four-team division.