Trinity and the New Life Kings took the field Friday evening for what promised to be an exciting matchup. The teams entered the contest even in record (8-2), with first place on the line.
Trinity started with two quick hits, and scored first with one-out RBI singles from Dan B and Spencer. New Life pitcher Brandy was able to settle in and retire two batters, and the Kings took their cuts down 2-0.
Hits by Schyler, Stoney, and Anthony brought home a run to cut the lead in half, but Trinity pitcher Andy induced a flyout to strand two runners before further damage was done.
Trinity threatened again with two outs in the second, but a flyout to right-center – the second of six on the evening – stranded another two baserunners.
New Life hit stride in the second inning. Heads-up baserunning on Bret’s single put Zach on third, and scored the tying run on a sacrifice fly Dan hit to left field. Luke, Schyler, and Stoney added hits (Schyler’s a 2-run triple), and New Life exited the second inning with a 5-2 lead.
Trinity chipped back with one run in the third, but stranded two runners on three hits. After stranding another two runners in the fourth, Trinity wouldn’t find many more scoring opportunities.
After the Kings were set down in order in the bottom of the third, they returned by scratching out a run in each of the fourth and fifth innings to extend the lead to 7-3. In the field, Brandy would face only 10 hitters in the final three frames, helped by a game-ending double play.
Trinity’s offense was led by Spencer, who recorded two hits and 2 RBI. Dan B knocked in the other Trinity run, while Andy, Tim, and Jason all had two hits.
Schyler paced the Kings, going 4-4 with 3 RBI and scoring two runs. Tim, Anthony, Zach, and Dan each added one RBI. Tim had three hits of his own, and two-hit performances were posted by Anthony, Zach, and Luke.
Up Next:
To wrap up their regular season, Trinity (8-3) will face Glenside Bible (5-5) in a makeup game on Wednesday, 6/27. New Life (9-2) follows up on Friday 6/29, also against Glenside Bible.
Either a New Life victory or a Trinity loss keeps New Life in first. If Trinity wins AND New Life loses, Trinity takes first by the tiebreaker rules. (With each team having won a game against the other with a four-run lead, the playoff tiebreaker moves to total run margin throughout the season. Trinity holds that tiebreaker comfortably.)