Day 3 of the South African National Baseball Championships 2026 delivered another important round of action in Boksburg, with the Senior Men’s division tightening up behind a dominant Cape Town A side, while the Senior Women’s round robin came to a close and set the stage for finals day.
In the Senior Men’s competition, Cape Town A continued to stamp their authority on the tournament with two more convincing wins. They beat Gauteng A 11-2 before following up with a 14-2 victory over SWG to complete Day 3 unbeaten and move to 6 wins from 6 games. With 84 runs scored and only 11 conceded, Cape Town A have built a commanding lead at the top of the standings and go forward as the form side in the division.
The chasing pack remains tightly grouped. Gauteng A, Cape Town B and Gauteng B all ended the day on 8 log points, with Gauteng A holding second place on points difference. Gauteng A recovered well from their loss to Cape Town A by beating Cape Town B 13-8 in one of the key clashes of the day. Gauteng B also kept themselves firmly in the mix with an 11-7 win over Cape Town C and a 16-3 victory over Limpopo. Cape Town B had earlier picked up a solid 9-4 win over Mandela Bay, but their later loss to Gauteng A means they remain locked in that battle near the top.
Elsewhere, Cape Town C recorded a 12-4 win over KZN, while SWG responded from their heavy defeat to Cape Town A by beating KZN 6-2. Mandela Bay produced one of the day’s strongest batting displays in a 25-13 victory over Limpopo, giving them their first win of the campaign. Limpopo, despite their effort, remain without a win after six matches.
In the Senior Women’s competition, Day 3 brought the round robin phase to an end and confirmed the playoff picture for the final day. Gauteng A finished top of the standings after another impressive day on the field. They first shut out Cape Town A 3-0 and then put together a powerful offensive display to beat Gauteng B 26-4. That left Gauteng A with 5 wins from 6 matches, 10 log points, 78 runs scored and just 24 conceded, underlining their status as the team to beat.
Coach Hayley Scott-Maree reflected on the performance by saying, “Today we played an awesome game, 7 innings in less than 2hrs, awesome pitching from current SA women players for a win to take Gauteng A to the final while CTBF play off against Gauteng U23-B side for the spot in the final.”
Gauteng B and Cape Town A both closed the round robin on 4 log points, but Gauteng B finished second on points difference, with Cape Town A in third. That means Gauteng A advance through to the final, while Cape Town A and Gauteng B will meet in the playoff for the remaining place in the title game.
The Senior Women finals programme for tomorrow now moves into knockout mode, with the playoff game set to decide who will join Gauteng A in the championship decider later in the day. Gauteng A’s consistency, strong pitching and disciplined all-round play have made them deserved finalists, but with one more place still up for grabs, finals day promises another competitive finish in the women’s division.
So while the Senior Men’s division remains wide open behind Cape Town A, the Senior Women’s tournament has now reached its final stage. After three days of strong performances, key results and important movement on the logs, finals day promises an exciting finish as the women play for the title and the men continue their push toward the business end of the championships.
