Springvale Lions catcher Siobhan Taylor and her team-mates will begin their finals campaign at home this weekend. Picture: Luke Plummer.By Paul Pickering
A BASEBALL dynasty will be on the line at K.H. Wearne Field in Keysborough this weekend as the Springvale Lions men’s and women’s teams begin their tilt at an unprecedented fourth straight premiership.
After claiming top spot in a final-round double-header at Port Melbourne last weekend, both the Lions’ Division One Women and Division Three Men will begin their finals campaigns at home this Saturday and Sunday.
On Saturday, the ladies bounced back ominously from a sloppy defeat the previous weekend, securing top billing with a crushing 9-1 win over Port Melbourne.
Pitching duo Cat Row and Vic Brown combined to concede just four hits for the day, while star second baseman Shae Lillywhite led the hitting with two doubles and two singles.
A much-improved defensive effort gave coach Mick Wearne reason for optimism ahead of this Saturday’s anticipated semi-final clash against second-placed Doncaster.
“We got all the girls into the game and they all contributed, so it was a much better preparation for the finals,” Wearne said.
But in stark contrast to the ladies comfortable final-round tune-up, it took 12 innings and 185 pitches from Glen Richards for the Springvale men to claim a 6-2 win against the Mariners.
With relief pitcher Rob Hogan resting his arm ahead of the finals, Richards manned the mound for entire match in a superhuman effort.
The Lions levelled the score at 2-2 on a two-run homer from Rob Hogan in the bottom of the eighth, but the score remained that way until a flurry of four runs at the top of the 12th dig.
It was then left to Richards to close the game out with his 20th strike-out of the afternoon and 178th of the season – both are believed to be league records.
While Wearne conceded it was an unusual finals rehearsal for Richards, he was confident the workout would hold the former Atlanta Braves pitcher in good stead.
“I’ve always been of the opinion that with Glen the more work he does the stronger he gets,” Wearne said.
Richards will start again this Sunday against Williamstown, but is likely to receive some respite from Hogan.
Meanwhile, Wearne said he will leave it until Saturday morning to decide who takes the mound first for the lady Lions.
Having finished on top, the men and women will both be looking to ensure a swift passage into the grand final with wins in their sudden-death clashes this weekend.
The ladies game will start at 1.30pm on Saturday, while the men take the field at 1.30pm on Sunday.
