FINAL: Roberts 7, Helmuth-Ingalls 6

I'm here at Holland Patent High School for a league game between Helmuth and Roberts. I'll be providing updates throughout the game. Feel free to chime in with any thoughts, questions or comments.

Top 1st: Helmuth loaded the bases with a hit batter, walk and infield single. Leadoff man Mark Vaughan scored on a passed ball to put Helmuth ahead 1-0. Matt Martin then struck out swinging for the first out of the inning and Chris Hughes was cut down at home on another passed ball for the second. Lee Foxton grounded out to the shortstop to end the inning.

Bottom 1st: Roberts brought the bats tonight. Kevin Quesnell bombed a double over the center fielder's head to lead it off. Devin Frye and Justin Weakley followed with line drive singles. Weakley's brought home Quesnell to even the score at 1-1. Roberts added two more on Nick Iselo's double to left center.

Roberts 3, Helmuth 1

Top 2nd: Helmuth scored when Wes Roberts grounded into a double play.

Bottom 2nd: Cory Hurlbut led off with a double and scored on a single to left by Frye. Weakley knocked in Frye three pitches later with a double. Weakley was caught stealing to end the inning.

Roberts 5, Helmuth 2

Top 3rd: Hughes led off the inning with a monstrous triple over the head of the left fielder. He scored two batters later on a Matt Martin ground out to the second baseman to cut the Roberts lead to 5-3.

Bottom 3rd: Roberts' clean-up hitter Matt Hammill led off with a single, but was stranded.

Roberts 5, Helmuth 3

Top 4th: Jordan Doroshenko led off the inning with a double down the third-base line. After a Wes Roberts line out to second, Vaughan went all the way to second on an error by the left fielder. Doroshenko advanced to third. A Hughes single scored Doroshenko and moved Vaughan to third. The next batter, Justin Corney, lined out to second, but the second baseman threw the ball away when he tried to pick Hughes off of first for a double play. Vaughan scored on the errant throw, tying the game, and Hughes went to second. Martin doubled in Hughes to give Helmuth a one-run lead.

Bottom 4th: Tyler White relieved Corney on the mound for Helmuth and made his presence felt. He struck out the first batter swinging, the next batter looking and got Frye to line out the third.

Helmuth 6, Roberts 5

Top 5th: Wes Roberts hit a two-out single, but was stranded as Vaughan flew out to left field on a deep fly ball.

Bottom 5th: Weakley led off with a fly ball single to left. The wind, which has been wreaking havoc on fly balls all day, helped it to drop in front of the right fielder. Hammill was hit by a pitch to put runners on first and second with no outs. Roberts then resorted to small ball as Iselo moved both runners over with a sacrifice bunt to the pitcher. The strategy worked to perfection as Geoff Ogden knocked in Weakley with a sac fly to center, tying the game at 6-6. Crego struck out swinging, stranding Hammill at second.

Roberts 6, Helmuth 6

*NOTE: The new helmets that the base coaches are required to wear are pretty amusing. I can't wait to see some of the league's coaches wearing these - it should provide a good laugh.

Top 6th: Tyler Mann replaced Ogden on the hill for Roberts and retired Helmuth's 2-3-4 hitters in order. Hughes grounded out to the first baseman, White stuck out swinging on a nasty curveball and Martin popped out to the shortstop.

Bottom 6th: Hurlbut led off the inning with a double to center, but was cut down at third when the next batter, Falk, bunted it right back to the pitcher. Leadoff man Quesnell then singled to center, putting runners at first and second with one out. Devin Frye, who has hit the ball hard in all four of his at-bats today, smoked a grounder at Foxton, the Helmuth third baseman. Foxton turned a nifty double play, snagging the hard-hit grounder, stepping on third and firing the ball over to first to complete the play.

Roberts 6, Helmuth 6

Top 7th: Foxton grounded out to third for the inning's first out. Gogola and Wooldridge followed with back-to-back singles. The runners advanced to second and third on a passed ball - the pitch was thrown for a strike, but the catcher missed it and it hit the umpire right in the gut - odd play. With the go ahead run just 90-feet away, Mann stepped up, striking out Doroshenko for the second out and getting Jeff Ostrander to ground out to the second baseman to end the inning.

*Roberts is now at-bat with their 3-4-5 hitters coming to the plate. One run will win it.

Bottom 7th: White continues his dominating relief performance, striking out Weakley and then getting the second out when Foxton snagged a Hammill line drive at third. Iselo bombed a triple over the center fielder's head and almost into the woods to put the winning run 90-feet away for Roberts. Mann then stepped to the plate and hit a long single over the head of the Helmuth left fielder, scoring Iselo to give Roberts the win.

FINAL: Roberts 7, Helmuth 6

With the win, Roberts improves to 2-1 in league play. Helmuth drops to 1-1.

Some thoughts on today's game:
*TYLER effect: Both relievers, Tyler Mann (2 IP, 2 Ks) for Roberts and Tyler White (4 IP, 4 Ks) for Helmuth were impressive. Mann allowed no runs and showed incredible poise getting out of a big jam in the top of the seventh. Getting the game winning hit wasn't too shabby either. White was equally as impressive. He was around the plate all day and showed movement on his curveball. He allowed only two runs, but unfortunately for him the second was the game-winner.
*The vacuum at third: Lee Foxton was a machine at third base for Helmuth. It seemed like every inning he made a play. In total, Foxton had six putouts and three assists. He turned a huge double play in the sixth when he scooped up a hard-hit groundball, stepped on third and fired it over to first to finish the play. In the seventh, he snagged a line drive that was smoked to his left.

* Check out tomorrow's Observer-Dispatch for more on the game.