Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 1997-06-04, Page 10PAGE 10. THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, JUNE 4, Belgrave/Brussels Bantam Boys play He’s in there! The Bulldogs runner beat the throw as Tiger Doug Shaw tries to make the out in this hometown contest in Brussels on Friday night. The Tigers came up short, adding another point in the loss column of what has been a disappointing season start. The Belgrave/Brussels Bantam Boys have been gearing up for the season with exhibition games against Ethel and Bly th. May 21, the team travelled to Ethel for a friendly contest against neighbours. Lead-off batter Ryan Fear got things started with a walk and a stolen base, before being cashed in on a single by Terry Nichol. A base hit put Joshua Gropp on for Tom Pfeiffer who cashed in both runners on a single. Kevin Hopf sacrificed to score Pfeiffer. With two out Matt Cameron looped a double, but was left stranded when the inning ended. After shutting out Ethel, in the home half, Belgrave/Brussels failed to add any more in the top of the second. Ethel got their first runner on a base hit by Marc Fischer, who was put out later on the bases. Craig Gillis tripled then scored off a Chad Nivens single. Nivens was later thrown out at third. The next batter was Jason Arm­ strong who singled, but was left stranded. Belgrave/Brussels came alive again in the third when Nichol sin­ gled then stole a base, enabling him to score off a Gropp single. Gropp stole two before Hopf brought him home with his single. A Cameron triple scored Hopf and Mark Kroll, who had singled. In the bottom, Joe Pearson walked, then stole before being taken out at third. John Mertz sin­ gled, then later scored off a hit by Tony Carral. After a scoreless fourth inning. Gropp drew a walk to lead off the fifth, then stole to put himself into scoring position for Hopfs double. Hopf later crossed the plate when Cameron singled. The visitors managed to hold the Ethel offensive back, allowing only one runner J. Pearson on base. In Brussels, May 24, Belgrave/Brussels faced Blyth in their second practise run for the regular season. Blyth came on strong early with their three first batters each crossing the plate. Jamie Black, Tyler Stewart and Nathan Hubbard scored, after each reached base on walks. Drew Corneil and Darrell McDougall cashed in the RBIs. In the home half, Fear walked, then did some heads-up base run­ ning to move up two on a steal and an error. Nathan Garland ham­ mered a triple to left centre to score Fear. He was brought home by a Hopf single. Pfeiffer brought him home before getting caught at third. Belgrave/Brussels moved ahead in the second after Black was stranded at the top of the inning and the home team notched one. Craig Marks scored, while Jon Cucksey and Nichol made it on base. The tides turned in the third when Blyth tagged three runs, then shutout Belgrave/Brussels. Walks were the downfall for the home team as Corneil, McDougall, Stew­ art, Derrick Doerr and Derek Cook all reached base on walks. The visitors were shut out in the fourth, but Belgrave/Brussels only managed one, when Fear was walked then worked more of his base stealing magic to put himself in scoring position for Garland, who smashed one down the first base line. Walks again became a problem in the fifth when three of the Blyth batters, Black, Hubbard and Corneil, walked then scored. A grand slam by John Kochis brought the Blyth scoring to five that inning before two fly outs to centre field ended it. Belgrave/Brussels gave it a good run, coming back with three of their own. The first three batters, Pfeiffer, Kroll and Marks scored. Cucksey got on with a perfect drop­ down bunt, then Fear slammed a double. The rally came to a quick end, however, when a hard line­ drive to the pitcher was snagged, catching Fear halfway up the third base line at full tilt. The first regular season game was set for Monday night in Blyth, with a 9 p.m. game in Belgrave on Wednesday. Wingham edges Belgrave Bulldogs beat Tigers The Brussels Bulldogs began their 1997 season in the Huron County Fastball League against the Zurich Rangers. The Rangers had a two run lead by the fifth inning. The Bulldogs' Brian McArter hit a triple in the bottom the fifth to score Shawn Thompson. In the sixth the Rangers scored one run. Then Mike Watson got on with a triple and was hit home by Bruce Johnston. In the seventh, the Rangers scored two more to extend their lead to 5 - 2. The Bulldogs came back with Andy McAskill and Dean Rutledge getting on base, then scoring on Greg Mulvey's homerun. Mike Watson then hit a single­ run homer to win the game. Both Mulvey and Watson went three for four at the plate. Dave Smith, Andrew McCutcheon and Watson shared the pitching duties. The Tigers and the Bulldogs started their hometown rivalry Friday night. The Brussels Tigers continue to struggle early in the season, as they saw their record fall to one win and Auburn PeeWees win 10-3 Despite the cold weather May 29, the Auburn Pee Wee boys had hot bats and very hot pitching in their game against Seaforth in Aubum. The team lost a player in pre­ game warmup with a nose injury but still had an outstanding game. Daren Armstrong struck out nine batters in four innings and Jeff Carter added two more in the fifth. four losses with a 3-2 defeat to the Bulldogs. Sean Conley and McCutcheon started for their respective teams. The Bulldogs used consecutive hits in the bottom of the third inning by Brian McArter, Greg Mulvey and Dean Rutledge to plate three runs and grab a 3-0 lead. The Tigers came back in the fourth with the help of Bulldog errors. Ron Strome singled with one out, then was driven home by Doug Conley. Doug Shaw then singled, followed by a Brian Neill single that scored Conley. Smith relieved McCutcheon in the fifth. Mulvey turned a double play in the sixth to keep the Tigers off the score sheet. Tigers’ Brian Neill was two for three as was Ken Higgins. Shawn Conley went the distance fofr the Tigers striking out 11 Bulldogs. Sean went the distance for the Tigers. Home games for the Bulldogs and the Tigers are Friday night. This Friday, Walton will be in town to play both the Tigers, at 7:30 p.m. and the Bulldogs at 9 p.m. The boys all baited well against three different Seaforth pitchers. The final score was 1’0-3 for Aubum. Coach Rick Archambault was really pleased with the team's efforts and the players' offensive and defensive plays as a team unit. The next games are: June 5 against Brussels and June 9 against Belgrave. It was a high-scoring duel when Wingham and Belgrave Squirt Girls met up on May 27 in Wing­ ham. The home team narrowly edged the visitors 21-19. The first inning was Belgrave's as they had three runners cross the plate and finished it with a two-run lead over Wingham. Unfortunately, the home squad took control of the second inning with seven runs to Mite Boys battle to 15-14 finish Belgrave Mite Boys just missed the win when they breezed into Wingham last week. It was anyone's game as the action kept fans on the edge of their seats until the 15-14 finish. It looked good early for Belgrave when they scored two in the first then held off the Wingham offen­ sive in the bottom half. The second inning was again all Belgrave's as they tagged on six more, while Wingham only managed one. It was turnaround time in the third when, for the first time, Wing­ ham produced more runs than the visitors. Two Belgrave players crossed the plate while four from Wingham came home. The trend continued in the fourth with Wingham scoring seven to Belgrave's four. The home club managed to wring out the win shut­ ting down the visitors at the top, then adding three more during their at bat. Swatting homeruns for Belgrave were Kyle Procter in the third and Andrew Procter in the fourth. Pitching duties were shared by K. Procter, Darcey Cook and Trevor Hopf. Belgrave's two. Wingham kept the power on in the third, with five runs, while Bel­ grave again managed two. It looked like the tide was about to turn in the fourth, when. Belgrave had seven runs cross the plate, while holding the home team to .two, but a close fifth inning with six for Wingham and five for Bel­ grave cemented the home team's PRINTING IS OUR BUSINESS Colour Printing Posters Letterheads Envelopes Business Cards WE CAN DO IT ALL! A COMPLETE PRINTING. SERVICE I BLYTH PRINTING INC BLYTH 523-9211 victory. Sharing the pitching duties were Jenni Hopf, Charlene Bromley and Nicole Procter for Belgrave, while Jenny Skinn and Crystal Bailey took turns on the mound for Wing- ham. Belgrave Coach Mary Sanders was pleased with the girls' effort. "They played well for the first game of the season." Business Forms Brochures Flyers Carbonless Forms Labels