Despite being jacked up in red and black with our axes and bats, SBW came off a well fought but disappointing and close 9-8 loss against one of the best teams in the RA Centre Ottawa softball league, the Lumberjacks.
Ryan and new comer Bree joined the team on a day that was promoting a costume contest; as alas the Lumberjack outfits didn’t help us squeak out the victory. After a slow first two innings of this Ottawa softball game, where both teams were tied 1-1, Brett started the inning with a monster hit, that combined with hits from Eric, Sarah, Sam would lead to 3 runs. After limiting the opponents to only 1 more run in the bottom of the third, Suds would add to their lead in the fourth, with the help of hits from Carlos, Justin, Krystle and 2-run double by Jith to make 8-2 after the top of the fourth. Unfortunately in the bottom of the fourth, where with the help of well placed hits by Lumberjacks and overly aggressive fielding leading to some ill placed throws, lead to the end of the strongest outings by Suds, Buds and Windmills. Very few errors were committed throughout the game, but with Lumberjacks mounting a rally, Suds couldn’t keep their composure, making risky throws that would help advance the opponents’ runners. It’s a lesson to be learned that patience is always key. In a game with a massive lead, it’s always better to hold the throw despite the run coming in, instead of making the throw and risking the runners advancing into scoring positions. The team didn’t play poorly and very few errors were made, so it’s not fair to harp on the inning because it was the only blemish of the game; one catch or one poorly hit ball could have changed the outcome. There is no player of the game for this game because it was a team effort in helping keep the Lumberjacks at bay for most of the game and getting that strong early lead. If we had the one extra inning, maybe Suds might have pulled off their own late rally.
Suds, Buds and Windmills roll into next week with a 2 game losing streak, but they can at least be proud that they were able to hold of Lumberjacks for most of the game. A little patience and more conservative plays might result in fewer errors and getting those games with close scores.
Check back next week for another Ottawa softball postgame.