Hares beat CB Extreme for their first softball win of season

“You’re not in a slump, you’re just due”

By Than Acuff

And then there was one.

One team that has yet to win a game in the Tuesday/Thursday softball league. And that team is CB Extreme. It’s not that they’re bad, they’re just not as good as the other teams, yet.

They’re due. 

CB Extreme was sharing the bottom of the league standings with the Hares until the two teams met at Pitsker Field on Tuesday, July 1, also known as Bobby Bonilla Day. 

As part of Bobby Bonilla’s buyout from the Mets in 2000, he receives $ 1.193 million dollars from the Mets every July 1 starting in 2011 and continuing until 2035. Shohei Ohtani is being paid just $2 million annually during the 10-year length of his deal with the Dodgers and then from 2034 to 2043, he will receive $68 million per year.

$68 million.

Per year.

2034 to 2043.

I should have paid more attention to my little league coach Mike Russ.

I did pay attention Tuesday night given the two teams were searching for their first win of the season so chances were that it would be a showdown of monumental proportions. Like Ohtani’s paycheck every year for nine years.

And it was, at times. Like I said, CB Extreme has no business being winless and nor did the Hares heading into the game as they both have qualities befitting teams that can win games. They got guys that can hit and field, women that can hit and field and a healthy dose of casual competitiveness. It’s just that the Hares had more than CB Extreme.

It started off as to be expected—tight.

The Hares got on the scoreboard first when Tom Stenerson singled, Alex Mattes-Ritz doubled and both scored on a triple by Richard O’Keefe. O’Keefe would then score on a bloop single from Mark Bortolin, and the Hares made the first move out of the cellar with a 3-0 lead.

CB Extreme responded with base hits from Tyler Burtchfield and Katy Ives setting up Addison Ives and Jolene Dreith for RBI hits, but the Hares came right back to build on their lead with pinpoint hitting and living up to their namesake with some speed on the basepath.

Gary Huresky led off with a single and would eventually score thanks to hits from Amy Kirschbaum and Connor Brown. CB Extreme turned the next two outs, but the Hares capitalized on some CB Extreme confusion when a grounder by Stenerson turned into a two RBI double. Mattes-Ritz then sent an over-the-air RBI double to centerfield and the Hares were up 7-2.

Defense was the name of the game for the next inning and a half as Amy tracked down a foul ball behind the plate for an inning ending grab with CB Extreme runners on base. Hannah Valian then doubled down on defense for CB Extreme in the top of the third inning turning two of the three outs for CB Extreme. The spotlight then shone on Hares outfielder Lucas McMullen as he charged in on a fly ball to make a sliding grab to close the third inning.

Alex Owen knocked in the Hares’ eighth run with an RBI single to left but CB Extreme found some plate magic over the fourth and fifth innings to at least make it a game, before it got away. Addison led off the bottom of the fourth with a double and scored on a triple from Brett Hubert. Vickie Hormuth then pushed Hubert home with a single and when Burtchfield led off the bottom of the fifth inning with a triple, Valian pushed him in with a single to pull CB Extreme within three with two innings left to play.

Patience at the plate proved the final ingredient for the Hares as they combined base hits from Bortolin and Sam Lumb with walks to score three more runs for an 11-5 lead heading into the seventh inning. CB Extreme never did find the pop needed for some late game heroics falling 11-5 and leaving them still searching for their first win of the season. Which will happen.