I enjoyed a well played state playoff double header with Mount de Sales playing Prince Avenue and they ended up splitting.
Splitting these two games was a blessing for De Sales. Both were very close with the finals in both games 3-1, but for most of the night I felt like Prince Avenue had the momentum.
The Cavs however found a way.
Jack Lipson pitched his normal strong game, but gave up a cheapy in the first and then two more in the fifth and De Sales didn't hit a lick. After seeing them score 2 runs in the last 12 inning and then not score for the first four innings of the second game I felt fairly sure they were done.
But Bubba Pool has a team that just wont quit and they scratched out one run in the fourth and two in the fifth and got excellent pitching from Adam Leverett and all of a sudden they are still alive in the three game series.
Let me talk about Leverett. The kid is just a winner, who unfortunately hasn't won much. He was the best player on a basketball team that barely won at all and he and Lipson have been aces on the baseball field their entire career, and they won a little, but never much.
This year is different as they notched win number 20 tonight. Winning this series would finally give them a win in something big.
Leverett struggled in the first and could not find his groove at the beginning, but once Desales scored he became a man on a mission. I asked him if he was getting frustrated by the lack of runs he was getting behind him and he basically said. "Yes I was frustrated, but I am the leadoff hitter and I didn't do anything with the bat, so how could I bee too upset. I just had to focus on getting outs.
Yep that's the kind of kid he is.
Now can they win the third game with both of their aces for the most part done. Well yeah I think they can. They will start with Zack Tong, who has pitched all of about 13 innings this year, can go to Lipson for maybe two innings with 30 pitches left, and then Bubba hinted that he was not scared to go with freshmen after that . He is very high on two freshmen pitcher and the way Bubba talked, he would not hesitate to go to either one. I hope I get to see it but the rain will have to cooperate tomorrow because my daughter graduates from college on Friday. Sorry Bubba I cant miss that .
Im saying it here, Go Cavs.
I ran into a couple of local coaches tonight and got to talk to Denny Bryant from FPD and Tyler Brown from Stratford and I filled them in on all the rumors. They got a kick out of them and denied all of em. They insisted that they did not know anything about a coach throwing bats on to the field after a game and they insisted that they are friends . Well I guess at least one of those rumors can be over because I think they are friends. But the bat episode, well that is still out on the rumor mill. I had friends promise me that a coach was chunking bats, helmets, players, whatever he could find on the field after a game was over..
I got a great chance, as I do everytime I see him , about Tyler brushing me off a few years ago when I asked him about letting a kid throw 141 pitches in a game. Tyler denied it, and said he just answered the question. Tyler I wont say anymore but you still owe me something and you still hold a rare distinction with me that I wont print.
Coaches have to have thick skin obviously and it is great to see them away from the pressures of winning games once in awhile.
Although it was a long night, I must admit, it was a good night. Macon is blessed to have these great coaches and parents, well you just need to be quiet once in awhile.
Have a great rest of the week
No comments:
Post a Comment