A trend of victories continues for Team South East, with two early victories on the baseball diamond. After a slow start in the first inning, and a few close calls in which there were ties, Team South East pulled away for a convincing 11-4 victory against Team Lakeland, at Cactus Park’s Boundary Diamond, on July 25.
The first thee innings were a slower game for Team South East, with Team Lakeland scoring one run after both teams had some difficulty getting hits. Team Lakeland held their lead until the third inning.
“Our bats weren’t right on and a couple of balls didn’t drop at first, and that made a difference,” explained coach Blaine Kovach. “The guys looked a little sluggish. It was tough getting into it, maybe their heads weren’t ready to play again at first, maybe it was a bit hot. Could be anything. It wasn’t there for us, right away.”
In the bottom of the third inning,Team South East picked up momentum, scoring twice in the frame to carry a lead of 2-1 into the fourth inning.
In the top of the fourth, Lakeland got another run, creating a tie, which was broken by South East, with a pair of two-out runs in the stanza.
“Our hitters did the job today, and all the balls we got in play were the routine things, with the guys just doing their job, which is what we needed,” said Kovach. “The hits we got were hitting the gaps, and we hit a couple of bleeders, and that really changed the game, right there.”
From then on, the game became close as Lakeland scored twice in the top of the fifth to tie the game, only for Team South East to score four times and take an 8-4 lead through five innings.
“Aiden Krafchuk got a good chunk of runs, so he did well,” said Kovach. “Burke Lyons came in, and he shut the door today. He pitched great, and he only threw, maybe 20 pitches in two innings. It was awesome.”
In the sixth inning, Team South East added three more runs to finish the scoring.
“We played well together. We picked up in the end,” said Tyren Dorrance of Alameda. “I think what helped us was our determination, not giving up and not stopping. We got hits at the right times, and that pumped up the team, and led us to get more hits at the right times.”
Earlier in the day, the South East entry defeated the Saskatoon Giants 12-2. Dylan Hull of Alameda pitched a complete game for the win.
