1sts vs Geelong Wednesday Night - WON 2-1
The 1sts have struck back into the W column with a hard fought win over Geelong 2 - 1 last Wednesday night at Melbourne Ballpark.
Daryn Cassidy was outstanding on the mound for MCC going 8 innings, striking out 10 and giving up one earned run. He threw 75 strikes and 39 balls in the complete game win. The losing pitcher for Geelong was their starter Matthew Ryan who went 4 innings, striking out 7 and giving up one earned run.
Coach Andrew Fennell had the team up for this one and they continued their midweek form. Aust rep Brad Harman had two singles and drove in a run. Singles also to Will Keys and Chris Cassidy.
Next game is Sunday versus Geelong again at Geelong.
1sts vs Geelong Sunday Afternoon - WON 6-5
MCC Baseball defeated Geelong 6 - 5 at Geelong yesterday to bring out the straw broom for the week. The wWinning pitcher was MCC coach Andrew Fennell who turned in a match winning performance on the mound. Coming on in relief at the start of the 2nd innings with the score line 5 - nil Geelong's way he then proceeded to mesmerize the Geelong batters with his off speed pitches and breaking balls. He went 8 innngs on 3 hits for no runs, an outstanding performance for one battling injury, at a time when the team needed it most..
Losing pitcher for Geelong was lefty Dean Barker over 5 2/3 innings on 7 hits for 3 earned runs. Brad Harman starred defensively at short, particularly late in the game when the pressure was really on. The defense was the highlight of the game for Melbourne. During the top of the bottom of the second, Melbourne were down 5-0, so after that it was a 6-0 turnaround, something that has been sadly lacking of recent times.
Melbourne chipped away at the 5-0 Geelong lead, taking 2 in the 4th, 3 in the 5th and a final run in the 6th. The game was tight throughout but Melbourne were able to hold on to take the second win in a week..
Hits went to Brad Harman ( Double & 2 singles 2 rbis ) Nathan Jones ( 3 singles 2 rbis ) Sean Edwards ( 2 singles 1 rbi ) and singles to Chris Cassidy ( 1 rbi ) Matty Houlden and Robbie Hondo.
Next game Thursday vs Waverley at Waverley where the 1sts will be hoping to continue their climb off the bottom of the ladder.
Women's Division 2 - No Game
2nds vs Geelong - Lost 1-13
If you write off the first innings, the score for the game ended up a 3-1 loss. However 10 runs in a 45 minute first inning for Geelong set the tone for the remainder of the match. There were 2 highlights for the game:
Campbell Wiggins swung the bat hard and notched up 2 doubles and 1 RBI.
Jono Wiggins made his return to the mound and threw 2 innings in relief which stopped Geelong from scoring.
3rds vs Geelong - Lost 3-4
The eleventh of November is Remembrance Day. For the Melbourne thirds players who ventured down to Geelong on this day in 2007 there would be very little worthy of remembrance as they were inflicted a 28 to nil beating. Fast forward nine rounds and Geelong came to Surrey Park no doubt eager for a second helping – score lines like that one are rarely forgotten regardless of which side of the equation you are on. Melbourne had other ideas…
Whilst five of the round six starters remained the team was bolstered by the inclusion of Jamie Hough, Alex Hondo, Brad Dicker, Nick Dundon and Hsien Tran. More importantly Tristan Field and the under sixteen bats had done the team a big favour by ensuring Alex Hondo was, for the second week in a row, available to take the hill for the threes.
Geelong jumped out of the box early with three consecutive hits resulting in two runs but then Alex settled in and got out of the innings with no further damage. In fact Alex did a little more than that as he got through the next three innings with only one additional run off a single hit. Meanwhile Melbourne was making life tough for the Geelong pitcher plating two runs off three hits in the second to make in 3-2 through 4.
Alex’s solid outing was a hard act to follow and the task of keeping Melbourne close was handed to Ryan Davine. Ryan was equally outstanding getting through the 5th and 6th in a total of eight hitters. In the Melbourne 5th Jamie reached first on wild throw to lead things off and promptly stole second. Alex Hondo hit a ball right side that got Jamie into a run-down but he was able to avoid the tag long enough for Alex to get round to second himself. Up stepped Brad Dicker swinging as hot a bat as anyone right now and drove a shot to left that was enough to score Alex and tie the game. And that’s where the score was going into the seventh at 10 minutes to 3.
The top half of the seventh saw Geelong get two singles to have first and second and one out. A soft ball hit to short was always going to be a tough ask on the turn and when the throw to first got away from Shaun Mead the third out turned into Geelong’s fourth run. In the bottom half it Jamie Hough worked a quality walk and Ryan Davine backed it up with a single to left to give Melbourne 1st and 2nd with one out. Alex Hondo came to the plate, with Brad Dicker on deck bunting was a real option but Alex carries the kind of bat you want swinging in this situation. Baseball is a game of inches and in this occurrence the ball went the right way for the Geelong second base man to turn an easy double and the game was done.
Whilst the last play didn’t go the way Melbourne wanted it to it was a fantastic effort from the Melbourne thirds who showed that despite having only one win for the season they do belong. A special mention is required for Jack Rintoul who caught complete games in both the under sixteens and the thirds – with no other credible option in the catchers position Jack ensured the Melbourne thirds could field a defensive line-up that could best back up the strong pitching of Alex and Ryan.
Finally and without wanting to sound like a broken record, many thanks to Gavin Mann who stepped in again to umpire both the thirds and the fourths in the absence of a league umpire. Gavin willingness to contribute to our club in whatever capacity is required sets a benchmark that the rest of us should applaud.
4ths vs Geelong - Won 10-7
Masters vs Essendon - WON 7-5
Under 18s vs Fitzroy - Lost 3-12
Fitzroy: 120 020 7 = 12
Melb/Donc: 101 001 0 = 3
Once again we played a game without the full nine. Three injuries and an unavailability saw us take the field with only 7 players. Be that as it may, the lads acquitted themselves admirably and it wasn't until the last dig that Fitzroy were able to break the shackles. After 6 the score was 3 to 5, and considering the 3rd, 5th and 7th digs all commenced with two outs due the blanks the guys had stuck at it and didn't give the Lions any scope to flex their muscle.
Josh Bevis took to the mound again for 5 strong digs. Liam Davine relieved in the 6th with 3 up / 3 down, but the strength of Fitzroy's lineup came to the fore in the 7th. One interesting play was in the 3rd; Josh led off with two out, strike three got away from the catcher and Josh headed for first. The catcher threw high and the defence couldn't get around to back up. As the throw disappeared into deep right field Josh kept peddling and eventually slid into home as the ball was relayed to the plate.
Play of the day: Smashing 'comebacca' to Josh on the mound, a reflex catch and a simple throw to first for a double play.
Coach's quip: Hung in there - good stuff.
Hits: 1 ea to Josh Bevis, Rhys Aldenhoven & Tony Clapp
RBI's: 1 ea to Aldenhoven & Clapp
Next Week: Upwey Ferntree Gully at Upwey - Kings Park, Willow Road
Upper FTG.
Under 16 State vs Newport / Williamstown - ?
Under 16 Metro vs Moorabbin/Bonbeach - Won 18-10
Under 14 vs Moorabbin - Lost 5-14
One of our first Batchat contributions coincides with our first loss. We can trot out the usual cliches - 'it's better now than in the finals' and 'a lot can be learned', but in the final analysis, we just didn't show up to play. Our batting didn't reach the level of previous weeks, racking up a staggering number of K's against a pitcher who put it in the hitting zone with regular monotony. In the field, our pitching lacked its customary zip. The performance in the field also failed to reach previous standards. All in all, 'a game best forgotten' or 'one to put behind us', to revert back to the usual cliches!
There is plenty to work to do on the training track in the next few games to continue the more historical form.
Little League vs Waverley Cougars - Drew 20-20
An incredible cicket score there!
Little League Domestic
Teeball
Teeballers hit out! Friday, February 1, 2008.
OUR teeballers showed great style with the bat this week, with some huge hits into the outfield. On a lovely sunny night they were joined by two newcomers, brother and sister Rachel and Hugh, who were both keen as mustard. Hugh, 5, couldn’t wait to bat and did a brilliant job. Rachel, 6, also tried hard and by the end of the night was hitting the ball really well.
Adam started the session with a jog and some throwing and catching. The younger children are still working on their catching, but everyone is showing signs of improvement. The kids then broke into two groups; one hitting with Jamie’s dad James and the other fielding and catching with Adam. Harry, Joel, Nathan and Harrison all slogged some huge hits, and Jess, Jamie, Rachel and Hugh also hit the ball as hard as they could.
Adam finished up with a mini-game, and Joel, Hugh, Jamie and Nathan all hit home runs. The others also made it around the bases thanks to some great running. It was a fantastic session and no-one seemed rusty after the Christmas break. Well done guys!
*A special thank you to James for his continued help throughout the sessions and his encouragement of all the players.
New children are still welcome; anyone interested should contact Stuart Rintoul, srintoul@bigpond.com.
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