MASTERS DRAW 3-3 WITH SPRINGVALE LIONS
John Ferguson Reports
Cheltenham produce their best game of the season to draw 3-3 against last years premiers.
The Rustlers scored to 2 runs in the first when Joey Tucker led off with a single to centre field and Darren Hiddlestone beat out an infield single. Heath Dunkley dropped a flare into right and the Big Dog Russell Ashen smashed a hit to shortstop to drive Tucker across the plate. Steve Flaski hammered a line drive to centre to drive in the hard running Dunkley from second base.
The Big Dog threw 4 dominant innings and held the Lions to 3 hits with the help of some brilliant outfield work by Tony Kouch Adam Leech and Heath Dunkley who collected a total of 7 flies between them. The ever reliable Tucker at short stop turned a double at a key moment to led a strong infield defense.
Cheltenham picked up their third run in the third when Damon Pettit led off with a hard hit ball down the third base line that was thrown away and Pettit scrambled on to second, Tucker’s infield ground ball to the right side moved the pinch runner to third and Adam Leech pushed over the third with a professional ground ball to the right side to give Cheltenham a 3-1 lead.
Springvale fought back hard to score runs in the bottom of the first and another in the sixth. Hiddlestone (2 Hits 44 pitches over 3 innings) had taken over from Ashen in the fifth and pitched superbly to take a 3-3 in the last. The lead off Lion singled to left and moved to second on a passed ball and then to third base as Tucker recorded the first out. The Lions tied the score with a ground ball to second base for the second out but then an infield error put the potential winning run on base. The next Lions batter hit a towering fly ball into no man’s land behind second base and with runners going everywhere, Steve Flaski pushed back the years to take a great running catch to end the game.
Ashen and Hiddelstone each threw 44 pitches and held the powerful Lions to 5 hits while the Rustlers collected 7 in a high standard game that went the full seven innings.
Hitting: (Total 7)
Joey Tucker: Single, Run; Adam Leech: RBI; Darren Hiddlestone: Single. Heath Dunkley: Single Run. Russell Ashen: 2 singles RBI. Tony Kouchardjian: Single Steve Flaski: Single RBI Damon Pettit Run
