The co-rec softball league came to an end Friday afternoon as the finals played out between WTOP and Athletes and Balls Deep.
Balls Deep started off the game with two runs. Josh Kay hit a triple for WTOP and Athletes, followed by two singles that brought in two runs.
Up to bat in the second inning, two players on WTOP and athletes, were walked by Matt Sheffer, the pitcher of Balls Deep. With bases loaded, a player on WTOP hit the ball to deep right, bringing in three runs for the team.
Ignatius Trentanelli of Balls Deep bombed a home run in the third inning with Nicole Wenke on base to bring in two runs. The team also brought in a run in the top of the fourth inning. With WTOP up at bat, Blaise Hill hit a double. His teammate followed with a single, bringing him to home plate, making the score 6-4.
Trentanelli hit a home run to start off the fifth inning. With bases loaded, Sheffer hit a ball that was caught in the deep outfield but, due to error, two runs came in for Balls Deep.
On defense, Trentanelli ran and dove to catch a ball in the critical last inning of the game. Two more outs quickly followed, ending the game 7-6 and crowning Balls Deep as the co-rec competitive league champions.
“They beat us throughout the regular season and to beat them in the game that counts feels great,” Sheffer said. “Our biggest weakness was previously losing to the team we just played and figuring out a way to beat them and what works best for our team.”
The men’s competitive softball championship took place on Monday, as longtime rivals, The Guild and Sons of Pitches, faced off. Coming into the game, there was an immensely strong desire by Sons of Pitches to defeat its opponent, for the fact that many members of both teams played in the co-rec softball championship. Members of The Guild were on the winning co-rec team, Balls Deep, that played on Friday. This made the atmosphere of the men’s competitive game very intense.
With the first up at bat, Sons of Pitches’ Jake Lawley started off the game with a home run. The Guild caught up with them in the bottom of the third inning, with a single by Trevor Bacon with bases loaded to bring a run in.
In the third inning, Sons of Pitches came out swinging. Mitch Lamb hit a triple, followed by a home run from Lawley.
The team also came in strong in the fifth inning, bringing in three runs. The Guild pulled it together to produce three runs also, bringing the score up to 6-4, in favor of Sons of Pitches.
The sixth inning brought about similar results. Kay of Sons of Pitches hit a single to deep certified, followed by Nate Krocke with a double. The next two batters were able to bring in three more runs. In the bottom of the inning, Tanner Stewart of The Guild brought in a run. Griffen Sheridan also hit a single to bring another run in, making the score 9-6.
With the atmosphere heavy coming into the seventh and final inning, The Guild did everything it could to keep Sons of Pitches from bringing in any more runs. Stewart had an amazing catch that kept the offensive team from advancing for the third out.
The Guild had to be strategic when swinging at pitches if they were going to take the lead. With one out and bases loaded, Stewart hit a single that brought in a run. Next up was Trentanelli. Infamous for hitting home runs, Sons of Pitches walked him. The next batter’s hit was caught for the third out and Sons of Pitches became the victors of the men’s competitive softball league.
“Feels great to win the finals… poetic justice,” said Matthew Stone, captain of Sons of Pitches. “It was a bitter feeling watching some of those guys win it last week, so to come out and finally win a men’s championship after trying every semester since freshman year it’s an awesome feeling.”
