By Sean Talbot
On a day of celebrations for the Blackburn Burners as they celebrated their 60th anniversary, the Upwey Ferntree Gully Tigers were unable to put a dampener on the party as they fell in heartbreaking fashion, coming up on the wrong side of a 5-4 walk-off win for the hosts in front of a raucous home crowd.
Looking to avenge a 5-3 loss to the Burners in round four, the Tigers sent their ace and season workhorse Jarrod Turner to the mound as they looked to lock up another win and maintain their stranglehold on second place on the Premier League ladder. With Blackburn sending their own ace in Michael Cabeza to the hill, the game started in typical miserly fashion as both righties traded a scoreless first inning. The Tigers were first to break through on the scoreboard as they manufactured a run in the top of the second to take an early 1-0 lead. After Staci Rogers led off the inning with a flyout, Randy Senn mashed a swunt to shallow third base before Andy Kane laced a single up the middle to put runners at first and second. Nice Rice was unable to advance the runners and was eventually struck out looking, before veteran Pete Schroeders curled a double into the right field corner and out of play to plate Senn from second.
Answering right back in the bottom of the second, Ben Aslett doubled to right field on a ball that was lost in the sun before Dion Di Battista doubled to left field to score Aslett and level the score at 1-1. Advancing to third on a wild pitch during Koetsu Sakamoto’s at bat, Di Battista came around to score Blackburn’s second run on Mitch Whiting’s two-out single to push the score to 2-1 in favour of the home squad. With both pitchers now firmly settled into their work, Cabeza in particular begun to tighten the screws, not allowing an Upwey hitter to reach base safely until the top of the 7th. Not to be outdone, Turner was able to work out of trouble in the 4th and 6th innings as he escaped a two-on, one-out jam in both innings to keep the score deadlocked as it headed to the 7th inning.
Leading off the top of the 7th, Rogers walked on four pitches before Senn, attempting to lay down a sacrifice bunt to move Rogers to second base, managed to find himself on as well as his bunt found the Blackburn defense out of position and saw Upwey now threatening with two on and none out. The red hot Kane stepped to the plate and lined a ball to centerfield, scoring Rogers and moving Senn to third on a throwing error by Sakamoto to level the scores at 2-2. Harvey Chinn was called upon to pinch hit off the bench, taking some very aggressive swings before eventually grounding out to the pitcher while advancing Kane to second as he looks to come back from an ACL tear during the winter.
With the Upwey line-up flipping over, Schroeders came to bat and successfully laid down a squeeze bunt, scoring Senn and moving Kane to third to put Upwey back in the lead sporting a 3-2 scoreline before Wade McConnon struck out to end the inning. With the top of their lineup due up and the heat starting to become a factor, Blackburn fancied their chances to get back on the board and tie the game up again. Leadoff hitter Taichi Nagano popped out to Schroeders at second base before evergreen Andy Tierney laced a ball to right-centerfield, putting the home side in position to make something happen as their 3-4-5 hitters were due up. Ben Leslie was walked as Turner ensure the hulking first baseman did not get a pitch he could drive, setting up the double play for the Tigers as they looked to find a way to Houdini themselves out of the inning. It was not to be however, as catcher Chase Hodgkinson singled to right field, scoring Tierney, and moving Leslie to third. Aslett grounded into a double play to end the threat, however the score was again deadlocked at 3-3 coming into the 8th inning.
As Blackburn handed the ball to Andrew Jones, Jordan Elliott was hit with a pitch to lead off the inning before stealing second base during Josh Hendricks’ at bat, during which he grounded out to Nagano and was unable to advance Elliott. Donavon Hendricks singled to right field to move Elliott to third where he was held by coach Dan McConnon before Rogers struck out for the second out, however Senn laced a ball that was too hot for Aslett to handle at third and scored Elliott. Kane found infield grass and beat out an infield single to load the bases, however pinch-hitter Flynn Morrison was unable to capitalise, called out on strikes on a call that could be described as dubious as best to end the Tiger threat and keep the score at 4-3.
Wes de Jong took to the mound in the bottom of the 8th and made short work of the Blackburn hitters, working around a one-out walk to Sakamoto to end the inning with minimal fuss and send the game to the 9th with the Tigers holding onto a 4-3 lead. Upwey looked to create some pressure in the top of the 9th as Schroeders reached on a throwing error by Nagano, however he was thrown out at second base after a pickoff move by Jones. McConnon promptly walked and was himself thrown out at second, this time with Hodgkinson credited with the assist. Elliott was unable to create any two-out momentum, grounding out toi Aslett to end the inning and see the home team with their last chance of the day.
Striking out Nagano to lead off the inning, the power hitting parade in Tierney, Leslie, Hodgkinson and Aslett were due up and ensured de Jong was given no ability to relax with the game on the line. Tierney walked on five pitches before Leslie worked a seven-pitch walk, but not before attempting to end the game with a couple of full-blooded hacks that thankfully did not connect. Hodgkinson, now batting right-handed, laced a ball to centerfield to score Tierney and advance Leslie to third to bring Aslett to the plate with the game on the line. Not deterred by the pressure of the situation, Aslett lined a single to rightfield over the leaping J Hendricks to score Leslie and send the Blackburn squad into jubilant celebrations around first base where they mobbed Aslett.
Turner was again outstanding in his efforts, scattering 11 hits and 1 over 7 innings whilst surrendering 3 runs (3 earned) and striking out 5 to take a no decision. Kane was the pick of the hitters for the Tigers, going 3-4 with an RBI while Schroeders had 1 hit and 2 RBI.
The loss sees Upwey slip to fourth place on the Premier League ladder with a 14-8 record after beginning the day in second place, highlighting just how little separates second from fifth as Blackburn, Essendon, Upwey and Sandringham all chase Waverley and look to lock up a finals berth.
Upwey now turn their attention to Waverley in a midweek game which will see them again at Napier Park on Tuesday evening before then heading back out to Greenwich Reserve to take on Williamstown on Sunday as they look to claw back into a top-two position and apply pressure to the ladder leading Wildcats.
In the curtain-raiser, the Reserves were unable to hold a four run lead, surrendering a five spot in the bottom of the 4th before clawing the tying run back in the top of the 6th that saw the game end in a 5-all draw. With Sean Meldrum battling some control issues and a strike zone that could be described as creative as best, the right hander went 4 innings, giving up 8 hits and 5 runs (4 earned) whilst walking none and striking out 4. Veteran Michael Oxworth (2 hits, 1 RBI), Will Richardson (2 hits) and Matt Cameron (2 hits) were the best hitters in an Upwey lineup that took a more aggressive approach to a game that they threatened to run away with in the early innings before a dancing strike zone began to squeeze Meldrum, in turn leading to the Blackburn hitters taking advantage of more pitches over the heart of the plate and putting the ball in play.
Flamethrower Josh Yung took the ball from Meldrum in the 5th inning and firmly applied the brakes to the home side, walking just a single batter whilst surrendering no hits and striking out six in extremely encouraging signs for the Tigers as he looks to anchor the back end of the bullpen coming into finals. Upwey should also be buoyed by the productivity from their lineup as six of the nine starters recorded at least one hit, a whole team effort that has been missing the last few weeks.
The draw moved the Tigers record to 9-5-1 on the year and sees them tied for second place with Sandringham (8-4-3) with both sides just a half game behind Essendon (8-4-1). The Tigers travel to the bay to take on 8th placed Williamstown (3-8-3) this weekend in a game they will be looking to win to ensure they stay well within contention for a top two finish.
Also on the road at Billabong Park due to the Blackburn 60th anniversary celebrations, the 3rds were jumped in the bottom of the 1st inning and surrendered a lead they never were able to recover on their way to an eventual 9-2 loss. The Burners jumped starter Kole Halupecki, as they strung a single, a walk and a hit batter to load the bases with none out. A fielders choice that did not result in an out and three successive singles saw the score quickly balloon to 5-0 before an out had been recorded, however Halupecki struck out the next two hitters before another single plated the sixth run of the inning for Blackburn.
Kept well in check by the Blackburn pitchers, Upwey managed to finally score in the top of the 4th inning as Daniel Williams reached on an error, Sam Griffiths doubled and Mitchell Thorne lifted a sacrifice fly to score Upwey’s first run. Steve Williams followed this up with a single to bring home Griffiths to plate the Tigers second run, however they were still facing an uphill battle as they were on the wrong side of a 6-2 score. Dan Smith, who took over for Halupecki in the 3rd inning, did everything in his power to keep his side in the game as he navigated his way through Blackburn’s potent hitting order and keeping the Burners scoreless until the 6th inning when they strung together base hits and capitalized on some slopping Upwey defense to push the score to 9-2 and ice the game.
Griffiths, Williams and Austin Thorne picked up a one hit each to make up the entire offense for a Tigers team who were caught flatfooted and saw the game run away from them before they could get back into it. The loss sees Blackburn jump into first place on the Premier League Thirds ladder with a 10-3-1 record, whilst Upwey maintains its hold on 3rd with an 8-4-2 record as they prepare to host 6th placed Williamstown (5-10) this weekend at Kings Park.
Playing away and looking to extend their perfect season, the 4ths were unable to peg back a Blackburn side that scored runs in the first, third, fifth and sixth innings on the way to hanging the first loss against the ladder leaders for the season in a game the Tigers must’ve favored their chances in. Firing the opening salvo in the top of the first inning on a Richard Ferguson sacrifice fly, the Tigers would be remiss for thinking this game would be like all others that came before it. The Burners however had other ideas, as they used a walk, a single, a fielders choice and then two doubles to plate three runs and take an early 3-1 lead. A scoreless second inning gave way to the third where Blackburn tacked on their fourth run of the game, this one off of reliever Oscar Monagas who took over pitching duties at the start of the inning.
Finding a way to claw their way back into the game with two runs in the top of the fifth inning to get within one, the Burners immediately answered back with two runs of their own in the bottom of the 5th to push the deficit back to three runs as the scoreboard showed a 6-3 Blackburn lead after five complete. Upwey pushed another two runs across the plate in the top of the 6th inning to again pull within one run, however Blackburn put reliever Russell Ferguson to the sword and scored a further three times to run away with the game and a 9-5 final scoreline.
As mentioned, the result sees the Tigers find themselves outside the winners circle for the first time this season, however they are still clear in first place sporting a 13-1 record after 14 games, moving their attention to the 6th placed Williamstown this weekend which will see the Wolves again travelling to Kings Park.
The Premier League East 5ths hosted second placed Waverley Black and were left hoping they didn’t, finding themselves on a receiving end of a 19-2 belting and left to recover after being bullied by a Waverley team for the second week in a row. The less said about this game the better given the result, however all is not lost as, despite the Wildcat onslaughts the previous two weeks, the Tigers are still in fifth place on the ladder and well within striking distance of the top four coming into finals. Upwey travel to Mulgrave this weekend as they look to regain some lost momentum amid their Waverley stumble.
Similar to their 5ths teammates, the Metro League South 6ths will be looking to quickly move on from their result on Sunday, as Pakenham rolled into town and promptly rolled right over the Tigers, headed back to the east with a 14-1 win under their belts. Quite simply the Tigers were outplayed in every facet of this game and were defeated by a superior team on the day. Now sitting in 6th place on their ladder with a 5-10 record, Upwey will travel to 5th placed Blackburn next week in a must-win game for both sides if either one wishes to have finals aspirations.
Also taking a perfect record into their Saturday clash with Cheltenham, the Lady Tigers were the only Upwey team to register a win (albeit a nail biting one) as they hosted the Rustlers and took full advantage of the home conditions, running out eventual 10-9 victors in a result that was a lot closer than would’ve been expected on paper.
Take the chance to again give regular starter Chelsea Mosbey some rest, the Lady Tigers handed teenage sensation Caitlin Kiel the ball for her first start of the season, however the young righty was left shellshocked after the Rustlers exploded for five runs in the top of the first, taking full advantage of five free passes and pairing them with three hits and an error to ensure their baserunners were moving at all times and kept the pressure on the home team. Not to be outdone, Upwey responded with four runs in the bottom of the 1st courtesy of a leadoff walk to Billie McCulloch, base hits to Jess McDonald, Clare Williams, Sally Light, Zienna McCulloch and Elinor Jack whilst keeping on the move around the bases due to a series of wild pitches from Cheltenham’s starter.
Doing their best to ensure this was a game to see who had the best offense, the Rustlers ensure the inexperienced Kiel was made to work for her outs as the first six hitters of the innings all reached base via a walk to plate two before a hit batter and a single scored two more. Not to be outdone, Upwey exploded for six of their own runs in the bottom of the second as Mosbey lead off with a single before stealing second and third and scoring on Eloise Holdens groundball. The offense got started again as Hayley Mather singled, B McCulloch walked, McDonald singled, Williams singled, Z McCulloch singled and then scored on a catchers error.
A scoreless third inning saw the score remained at 10-9 and left Cheltenham with one last roll of the dice as time had nearly run out for a late rally, however Billie McCulloch was more than up to the task at hand, navigating her way around two walks and an error to leave the tying run on third and nail down the win for Upwey. The win ensures the Lady Tigers maintain top billing on the Women’s Metro South ladder with a 14-0 record, however they face an acid test this weekend as they travel to Chelsea to take on the Dolphins in a top of the ladder blockbuster which will see the home side looking to avenge their first half loss to the Tigers in what will surely be the game of the season.
