Elevate raises game to down Talk of the Town

It was close until it wasn’t

By Than Acuff

“They got a name for the winners in the world, I want a name when I lose.” That name is Talk of the Town, at least it was on Tuesday, June 27 at Gothic Field. It’s not normally, as the Talk is a pretty damn good team and was fresh off a 25-24 comeback win the week before.

Speaking of before, before we go there, anyone notice the Fourth of July is here? And if you haven’t heard, the water fight has been moved to the first block of Beckwith. Furthermore, fireworks are back, and with lasers at Mt. Crested Butte. Not quite sharks with lasers but still pretty cool. And thanks to the legalization of psilocybin in Colorado, or is it decriminalization, it’s bound to be pretty cool. Truth is, a lit match is pretty cool if you eat enough, or so I’ve been told.

But, as I was saying before, the Talk must not have had enough of something when they faced Elevate on Tuesday because what started out as a great game eventually turned into a not-so-great game. Unless you’re Elevate.

With the wind occasionally gusting out of the northwest and both teams adorned in red, some white and blue, the patriotism was already flowing as a precursor to the coming of the Fourth.

Wait a minute, it just came 

to me and no, I did not micro dose to write this. The game between the Talk of the Town and Elevate was a modern day representation of our very battle for independence, a week before the very day we celebrate our independence.

The Talk in red, Elevate in blue. The Talk led early but Elevate rallied to come back and win. The Talk then… nope ends right there but still, it was quite the coincidence to be perfectly honest and another way to help fill the space between all of the ads in the Fourth of July paper.

Now let’s get to the game, shall we?

Despite getting their act going a little late for the game, Talk of the Town showed they were more than ready to do battle as they took a 5-0 lead in the first inning. A walk, a big hustle single from Erik Ervin and another walk loaded the bases for the Talk and Garrett McBride stepped up to knock one runner in with an RBI single with mom looking on.

Robbie Vandervoort won the battle at the plate to walk and push home two more runs and then Dave McGuire provided some additional punch as he flared a two RBI triple down the right field line for the 5-0 Talk lead.

After a hapless showing at the plate by Elevate in the first inning, they woke up enough to respond to the initial troop surge of the Talk and fire off six runs in the top of the second inning. Courtney Bock had a hex on the Talk defense turning a routine grounder into an error-assisted double and then scored on a double by Sam Reaman. Hillary Fujii and Grant Spear combined for two base hits to then load the bases and a single by Jodine Pahl and a three-run homerun by RJ Spinella cleared them for a 6-5 Elevate lead.

The two teams then traded runs in the next series of at bats as Ed White tied the game knocking a high fly into shallow center and Rob Holleran countered with an RBI single to put Elevate back ahead. 

Following the new era of Major League Baseball where teams may work three to four pitchers each game, Spear took the mound for Elevate in a middle reliever role looking to keep the Talk batters off balance. It didn’t work though as Ervin sprayed a double to right field, Barb Winter singled up the middle and McBride drove Ervin home with a single. McGuire struck again for a second RBI base hit and Pete Basile dropped a two RBI double into shallow centerfield for a 10-7 lead.

The British are coming, the British are coming.

The Talk defense then held back a counterattack from Elevate, led by McGuire who charged onto a grounder, scooped it up bare-handed and flicked it to first for an out. 

Elevate then went to their closer early, bringing Christian Allen in to pitch in the bottom of the fourth inning. His high delivery and Elevate’s defense held the Talk to one hit and no runs and Liz Wiggington (just kidding) Wigginton pulled Elevate back to within one of the Talk with a two RBI single to leftfield.

Spinella then led another defensive stand by Elevate chasing down a line drive to the gap in left center to rob McBride of an extra base hit. A weird area RBI triple from Vandervoort did push one Talk run across home plate but Elevate waited to see the whites of their eyes to then rise much like the American troops under the leadership of George Washington (yep, milking it).

Abbey McGee helped kick things off with an RBI powerbunt to tie the game 11-11 with CJ Hoover drawing a walk to score another run, Bock driving a two RBI double and Reaman closing out the initial push with an RBI hit for a 15-11 Elevate lead.

Much like the American troops eventually turning the war in their favor in the Battle of Saratoga, Elevate then turned the game in their favor for good in the top of the seventh inning. Though they did not earn any alliance with France in doing so. 

Base hits from the bottom of Elevate’s batting order, including a two RBI single by Erin Stock, drove in four runs and then Spinella stepped to the plate to crush a two-run shot over the left field netting for a 21-11 lead. Bock drove in two more RBIs, Reaman knocked an RBI triple and Holleran finished it all off for good with an RBI single and a 25-11 lead.

The Talk did fire one last shot across the bow as Micah Ryan and Ervin each connected for RBI base hits as they left Yorktown, I mean Gothic Field, but still lost the war 25-13.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness, such as winning a local softball game.