Psycho Rocks pokes Third Eye with sharp stick

The third eye is a mystical and esoteric concept of a speculative invisible eye, usually depicted as located on the forehead, which provides perception beyond ordinary sight

by Than Acuff

Every now and again a player comes out of nowhere to take the local softball leagues by storm. In the past and typically, it’s been a guy, think Joe Buckel, Joe Dukeman, Scott Sanders and a couple others from the olden days that only Jim Schmidt and Gerry Heal remember.

But there have been some women too, and while I can think of this one third basewoman from a couple of years ago, I think she played on the Eldo, and some others as well, the new sheriff in town, man or woman, is Amanda Brack. But I will get to her later.

In the meantime, Third Eye Photography, formerly known as the Avalanche, faced Psycho Rocks at Tommy V Field last Thursday. Psycho Rocks was at full capacity with 50 Cent blaring and some stoke to get back on the winning track. Third Eye, on the other hand, was coming in hot, winning their last three games, but turned tepid as game time approached as they were short a player—a situation no team wants to be in when at Tommy V Field.

Psycho stepped to the plate in the top of the first inning and made sure that they and everyone else knew, they were hell bent on a win, scoring eight runs to open the game.

Back-to-back base hits set up Eli Fiddler for a two RBI triple. Rosa Greeley knocked a sac hit RBI in, Will Mixon jacked a solo shot over left field and Ben Hayes put the finishing touches on the early-game explosion with a grand slam inside the park home run (ITPHR) for an 8-0 lead.

Third Eye then stepped to the plate and made sure that they and everyone else knew that, despite missing a player, they were not going to go down without a fight.

Mike Lauerman fired the first shot across the Psycho Rocks bow leading off with a solo ITPHR. Hits from Rebecca Ofsterdahl, Adrienne Weil and Slater Weil then loaded the bases and Jack Collins pushed two of them home with a double. Lis Collins pushed a RBI single to left field, Mikey Weil popped up a sac fly RBI and a double by Andrew Hadley had Third Eye to within two of Psycho and clicking. But, missing a woman reared its ugly head as Third Eye had to take an automatic out, ending their rally and the inning.

The women for Third Eye then led the charge as they turned all of the outs in the top of the second inning and Slater tied the game up 8-8 with a two-run shot over the right field fence.

Psycho Rocks then took advantage of the “weird areas” in the expansive Tommy V outfield to score two more runs on solo ITPHRs from Mixon and Fiddler and go up 10-8, and then 11-8 before Third Eye rattled off six more runs to take a 14-11 lead.

Then came Brack. Brack had already proved she’s got one helluvan arm and then she proceeded to prove she’s got one helluva bat and some serious wheels to boot. The work of Brack at the plate, along with several others, had Psycho pick up where they left off in the first inning, scoring 10 runs this time around.

Montana Wiggins led it off with a Luigi-like solo ITPHR. Brack followed with her own ITPHR. Ally Kranz and Claire Bartholomew combined to drive in two more Psychos and Mallory Zimmerman and Wiggins sealed the deal for the 10-run inning, driving in three runs on two singles.

Third Eye chipped away at the 21-14 Psycho lead in the bottom of the fifth with a couple of runs but then Brack struck again with another solo ITPHR. Fiddler added in a solo shot into the left field netting and then Jason Keener may have crushed one of the longest home runs at Tommy V when he absolutely destroyed a two-run home run off the upper roof of the barn in the left field stands for a 25-16 Psycho lead.

That would be the straw that broke the camel’s back, or the sharp stick in the third eye, as Third Eye managed a few more runs before Psycho closed out the 25-20 win.