Gehrmann coached the combined Rockhampton, Mackay, Gladstone under-18s men’s side at the Queensland State Championships and their goal was simple – make the grand final.

The team dropped two games during the titles, both to champions Logan City-Redlands, at Toowoomba’s Kearneys Spring sports complex.

“I’m really proud of what we achieved,” Gehrmann said.

“Our goal was always to make the grand final.

“With players from Rockhampton, Mackay, Gladstone and Cairns, we had very little time to prepare together as a team, and we had to hit the ground running.

“We made it the grand final and we were beaten by a very strong team – a Queensland level team in my opinion.”

Despite their lack of time of time together as a squad, Gehrmann attributed his team’s success to their unity.

“There was a lot of belief,” he said.

“Belief in themselves, each other and what we wanted to do as a team.

“We stuck together like glue and that was the key, that’s what got us to the grand final.”

In the women’s final, Redcliffe edged out Redlands 5-3 in a passionate encounter that went down to the wire.

“It was a good weekend for us,” Redcliffe coach Shane Morgan said.

“We have few girls pushing for Queensland selection, so this is a great result.

“The combination between our pitcher, catcher and shortstop really helped us defensively, and overall I think the girls really applied themselves well.”

Originally published as STATE SOFTBALL: Young stars battle for championships