Winter Haven Senior Softball

Tuesday, March 3rd

What George Vanderhyde has told me for 2 years certainly was true today. He always says in senior softball, defense and the bottom of the batting order will win ball games. While both defenses could not prove that today because of a quite LUMPY infield accounting for many bad hop base hits. But the bottom of the order came thru for Fabian's Flyers against Straits Braves. 

The Braves were playing catch up the whole game down 19-14 after 6 innings. They tied it up at 19 in the top of the 8th and held the Flyers scoreless in the bottom. 19-19 after 8 innings. Don Lamay got 1 of the 2 hits from the bottom of their order with 1 out. Jerry Witter stepped to the plate and promptly lined a smash to Joann at first base and she beat pinch runner George Knox to the 1st base bag for a double play. 

Bottom of the 9th and bottom of the Flyers order. Chuck McColgan who already had 2 hits was barely thrown out at first. 89 year old Jimmy McPartlin steps to the plate and hits a roller up the middle that pinch runner Hite beats out at first. Fabian steps in and gets a patented single over the second baseman head moving Hite into scoring position. Lead off hitter Curt Essenmacher steps up and plates Hite for the winning run.   Bingo, bottom of the Flyers order was 9-15.

There was a fantastic sliding catch made in left field by the Braves but I couldn't decipher from the score sheet who was playing left then. Either Burtner,LeToureno or Reed. Fantastic catch. 

Strait's hitters. Burner 3-5. LeToureno 3-5. Reed 4-5. Knox 5-5. Levesque 4-5. McLellan 3-5. Lopiccolo 3-5. Remington 4-5. 

Fabian's hitters. Essenmacher 4-6. Joann 3-5. Coffman 3-5. Vanderhyde 4-5. Kallister 2-5. Hite 5-5. Seguin 2-5. D'Herin 3-5. McColgan 3-5. McPartlin 2-5. Fabian 4-5. 

Bottom of the order was 9-15. 

Very well played game. 

See y'all Friday. 

Write up by Loren Fabian.