Field 1: 1st Diner Holds Off Ingram Financial, 20–18
Four teams, two fields, and two games at once. That’s twice the work for “the girl,” whose pay remains exactly the same: zero. At least the Little League field gave her a good game to write about.
Ingram Financial, managed by Ouding, came out swinging, with its first five batters crossing the plate. Hill’s 1st Diner team nearly matched them, scoring four in the bottom of the first. Ingram added one run in the second, while 1st Diner brought home four more.
Then 1st Diner’s defense stepped up, holding Ingram Financial scoreless from the third through the fifth. The home team managed one more run in the fourth, but Ingram’s bats woke up later and brought five runs across to keep the game close. At the top of the seventh, the score was 11–9.
1st Diner wasn’t finished. Ernesto led off with a triple and scored on Hill’s sacrifice fly. Sensebaugh doubled, Turchetta blasted a home run to right, and Castilleja, Ayers, Gilbert, and Bioto kept the hits coming. Five runs crossed the plate.
Late in the game, 1st Diner led 20–15, but Ingram Financial made one last push. Amy, whose bat was hot all day at 4-for-5, singled. Zelazny singled, Constantine reached base, and three runs came home. 1st Diner held on for the 20–18 win.
That’s Field 1 in the books. “The girl” will now turn to Field 2, just as soon as her unpaid lunch break is approved.
Field 2: Kincaid Electrical Wins a Slugfest, 23–21
Over on Field 2, Kincaid Electrical’s Team Davis and Ingraham Financial’s Team DeLoach combined for 44 runs.
Team Davis opened with five runs in the first, and Team DeLoach answered with two. Both teams went scoreless in the second. Davis added two in the third, but DeLoach responded with five. In the fourth, Davis was held scoreless while DeLoach added one.
By the top of the fifth, Team DeLoach led 11–10. Both teams scored three runs in the fifth, and neither showed much interest in letting the other pull away.
Team Davis brought home five runs in the seventh, with Team DeLoach answering with two. Davis added four more in the eighth; DeLoach scored two. Davis tacked on another run in the ninth, leaving DeLoach one last chance. They brought three runs across, but the comeback fell just short. Team Davis won 23–21.
And then there’s JD’s hit. Rumor has it he launched a ball into another hemisphere. I can’t confirm where it landed, but people were still talking about it after the game. If someone finds it, please return it to Field 2.