The wind was howling, almost biblically. The Diablos were being bedeviled by Nick Iocabitti, three hits in two innings. Tom Gonzales was keeping us in there, only allowing two runs through three. But it looked like we would never score against Iocabitti.
Then our own David, Mike Daley, stood up tall to the Goliath that is the Clipper team, and grabbed his slingshot, and boom! Sent a pea over the right fielder's head and went flying around the bases. The spell was broken.
Dan Roach and Brian Goldufsky followed with hits setting up Jim Krochka, our own giant, to blast a two run triple into the gap in right center. Mark Childress followed with a single and Jimbo Wilcox brought him home with a double for the fifth score, and the Clippers were the ones on the run.
The pitchers' duel lasted into the sixth - their fourth inning featured some excellent Diablo defense - Roach made a Willie Mays basket catch in right, and Krochka somehow lunged toward right field from SS on a hard grounder, reversed direction to get to second base in time to step on it and fire the ball to first for an inning ending double play.
Being generous, we had one defensive breakdown in the top of the sixth, but held them to three runs on six outs. They took their last lead but on hits from Goldufsky, Krochka, Childress, Greg Lagomarsino, and Bob Carver, we answered with four to win the inning, and it was starting to look good for the Devils. We held the top of their vaunted order to two in the seventh, and despite two strikeouts looking, answered with two of our own in the bottom half. Somewhere in there was another double play where second baseman Lagomarsino fired his own pivot slingshot to complete the play. We added an insurance run in the eighth, and Goliath was already on the ground wailing away, and they went meekly in the ninth to finish the 12-8 win.
Kudos to Gonzales for not walking anyone in that gale force gusty wind, not to mention keeping the big hitters in the park. Goldufsky and Krochka were 4-4, the latter with team leading three RBIs. Carver had three hits and the rest were spread around. Not our greatest offensive game, but we faced a great pitcher for about six innings, and we scored just enough for a comfortable win.
Next week, of course is the last game of the season. With Goliath dead, not much more to achieve, except an exclamation point to finish a great season. I don't know about you, but I don't want it to end. I wonder if it is too late to quit all our Danville winter league teams and just enter it together?
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