Wine-Os teach Community Schoolers a lesson in comp league softball

“Ridonculous, just like the fishing”

Well, what can I say?
Oops.
And before you say it (I’ve actually heard it twice already), I know I should have been at some other game.
BUT, in my tireless effort to make sure I give every team in both leagues press during the regular season, I run the risk of witnessing the occasional mind-numbing blow out.
In my defense, I didn’t expect it to be as bad as it was when I headed to Tommy V Field to catch the Wine-Os and Community Schoolers. Sure the Wine-Os have always been a quality comp league team but as of Monday, they were sitting in sixth place with a record of 3-4.
Meanwhile the Community Schoolers have been locked in the cellar all season long without a win. They came close on June 20 when they lost by one run to the Mustache Bashers but, other than that, a majority of their losses have been double-digit punishments.
They’re new to the local softball leagues and the team is the brainchild of Bill Thompson. Thompson rallied a roster of high school kids to play, both boys and girls, but made the fatal error of spending their inaugural season of slowpitch softball in the competitive league.
Still, it was possible that they could put something together against the Wine-Os. Although, when asked how the Wine-Os had been playing recently, team player/manager and local fishing guide Brando Snyder responded, “Ridonculous, just like the fishing.”
Although, comp league is comp league, in other words, competitive, merciless, and at times, cut throat. When a team senses weakness in their opponent, they will pounce.
To make things worse, the Community Schoolers are flush with boys but the girl’s attendance has been a bit erratic and that can cost a team, in the competitive league.
That can really cost a team in the competitive league when they play at Tommy V Field.
And, it really, really cost the Community Schoolers at Tommy V Field Monday night when they took the field short two girls leaving them gaping holes on defense and two automatic outs in their batting order against the Wine-O’s.
Cost them to the tune of a 32-2 loss, their worst loss of the season so far.
It was close through one inning at least. The Schoolers made two big plays on defense when Marissa Lambert flagged down a fly ball in right and Liam Mortell made a leaping grab and tag at first to hold the Wine-O’s to a mere two-run Inside the Park Home Run (ITPHR) by Tom Consentino.
The Schoolers defense opened the top of the second inning with another great play when Montana Wiggins scooped up a line drive to left to gun down Dan Healy stretching for a double.
But it pretty much ended there as the Wine-O’s scored 10 more runs in the top of the second inning.
Scott Strouse stroked a RBI single up the middle. Snyder slapped a two RBI triple to right. Molly Keating cracked a RBI double to left. Amber Finley flared a RBI single. Consentino connected for a RBI double. Kat clipped a sac fly RBI to left and Strouse returned to the plate to smack a two RBI hit to shallow right giving the Wine-Os a 12-0 lead and forcing the umpires to unleash the 10-run rule.
(I dun learnt that katchy allyterashun riting at colege)
The Schoolers responded in the bottom of the second inning to score two runs off a hit from Wiggins, a walk by Ben Reaman and a two RBI single by Dylan Curtiss.
But that was it for the Schoolers as the Wine-Os continued to pour it on at the plate.
And they were actually being nice. So much so that Snyder offered to let the Schoolers slide on one of the two automatic outs starting in the fourth inning.
Zach Kinler blooped a RBI single and Consentino put the Wine-Os up 16-2 with a three-run, three error-assisted ITPHR.
The Schoolers only made things worse taking risks on the base path trying to stretch singles for triples and home runs only to get thrown out on both occasions.
The Wine-O’s then proceeded to score five runs per inning, except for the top of sixth when Schoolers shortstop Nolan Blunck pulled down two line drives and back handed a grounder to gun the runner out at first.
Other than that it was basically an evening of batting practice for the Wine-Os as they cruised to the 32-2 crushing.