Everything that Rises Must Converge – 6/29 vs. Energy 350

Matt in center, Steven at short, Emily K at third - all played a great game on defense

 The Underhanded Compliments went into last week’s game in a virtual tie for first with Energy 350. Both teams had four wins & no losses; the only thing separating us was the fact we’d surrendered one run less, as runs allowed is a tiebreaker in Underdog softball leagues.

Given that there are some weak teams in the league this summer, it was hard to say what exactly to expect from Energy 350. But in case any of us had any doubts about their ability to score, they put up 5 runs against us in the top of the first, based on both good hitting & some shaky defense on our part. However, a good defensive play cut the inning short, as Matt caught a fly in center & fired a throw into Cameron, who then tagged out a runner who had ventured too far off first base.

Gustav: 3 for 3 plus a walk & 4 runs scored - getting things started from the lead-off spot

The bottom of the first began auspiciously for us: Gustav led off with a double, & Lauren followed with another double to score him. Matt then hit a 2-run home run, & with no one out, we already had answered back with 3 runs. Unfortunately, the next three batters were retired in order, & we went into the second trailing 5-3.

Matt was 3 for 4 with a home run, two doubles, & 3 rbis

With one out, Energy 350 put two runners on base with a walk & a base hit, but the next batter hit a grounder to short, & Steven, who was filling in at shortstop, made a nice play to cut down the lead runner at third on a throw to Emily K. The next Energy 350 batter hit a towering pop fly toward the backstop, & Rob, who was playing catcher, made a nice catch to record the third out.

Rob made a fine play on a tricky foul pop up & went 2 for 4 with 2 rbi base hits

With one out in the bottom of the inning, Mark singled, & Steven also followed with a base hit. A ground ball advanced both runners, but there were two outs with Cameron at the plate. Cameron came through with a clutch single driving in both Mark & Steven. We went into the third with the score tied at five.

Cameron was getting into a groove pitching, & our fielders were back to their usual sure handed play. The top of the third went quickly with only one single by the opposition.

Great game for Lauren: 3 for 4, including a double & 3 rbis

In the bottom of the third, Gustav led off with a walk & Lauren followed with a single. But it looked as though the runners might be stranded as two outs followed. Rob however came through with a clutch 2-out single to send Gustav home, & we took a 6-5 lead.

Once again our defense came to the fore in the top of the fourth. After a lead-off single, the next three batters all flied out to Matt in center. Although two of these were routine plays, the other was a difficult play, as Matt made a fine running catch.

The bottom of the fourth turned out to be our inning. Nicole led things off with a gritty at bat, working the count to 3 & 2 before getting a walk. With one out, Steven doubled, & then Emily H drove Mark in from third with an rbi grounder. Mark, who had reached on a fielder’s choice, showed off some fine running to score on the play.

Emily K had a big 2-out, 2-run double in our 7-run fourth inning

Still, there were already two outs. But as it turned out, our next seven batters all came through with hits. Cameron singled to drive in Steven, Gustav doubled to put runners on second & third, & then Lauren singled to drive in both Cameron & Gustav. Matt followed with a double, then Emily K drove in Lauren & Matt with a double of her own. Rob followed with a single to score Emily K, & we’d put 7 runs on the board, 6 of them coming with two outs. We went into the fifth inning with a 13-5 lead.

Nicole had a great at bat to work a walk leading off the fourth & played a solid game at second

Energy 350 put the lead-off runner on with a single in the top of the fifth, but this runner was cut down at second on a good play by Nicole & Steven. Then the next batter singled to center, & the runner who’d reached on a fielder’s choice decided to try for third—not, as it turned out a wise choice, as Matt made a quick throw to Emily K who made a nice catch & tag to put the runner out just before he could reach the base. The next two batters reached on a walk & single, so our good defensive plays were looming large! The next batter hit a grounder to shortstop & Steven made a nice play to cut down the runner at third.

Cameron not only pitched a solid game, but had a big day at the plate, with two clutch 2-out rbi hits & a big fly

The bottom of the fifth put the exclamation point on our game. Mark led off with a sizzling line drive to right center that got past the fielder & so Mark shifted into high gear & scored on an inside the park homer without a play. Steven then followed with a line shot up on the left field hill for back-to-back home runs. With one out, Cameron then hit a blast that almost reached the top of the left field hill for the third home run in four batters! Gustav followed with a single, & with two outs, Matt hit an rbi double to score Gustav. We were up 17-6.

Energy 350 went down quickly in the top of the sixth. There was a notable play, however, as Steven dived to field a grounder in the hole & then made a perfect throw to Nicole covering second. Steven was named Player of the week for his performance in this game, & it was well deserved. Not only did he play a flawless shortstop, including some difficult plays, but he also went 3 for 3 with two doubles & a homer. Cameron was named player of the game for his own hitting—including clutch two-out rbi hits & the big home run, as well as his solid pitching.

Emily H: big rbi in the fourth inning & a solid game as always in the outfield

We went down 1-2-3 in the bottom of the sixth, the only inning in which we didn’t score, & Energy 350 did manage to rally for two runs in the top of the seventh. Steven made a great play on a ground ball to record the first out, & fittingly, the final out was also a ground ball to short.

We ended the game alone in first place, but there’s still one more regular season game against the Therminators—a tough opponent!


Next Week: final regular season game!