Springvale cruises home in 7-2 victory

By Paul Pickering
SPRINGVALE made light work of its State League Division Three encounter with second-placed Port Melbourne on Sunday, cruising to a 7-2 victory at K.H. Wearne Reserve.
The Lions went into the top-of-the-table clash without proven performers Rob Hogan and Mark Anderton, who were playing in a Masters event on the Gold Coast.
But they found two handy replacements in Australian women’s team representatives Kellie Manzie-Novotny and Shae Lillywhite.
The pair lined up in Springvale’s in-field, where they had prime positions to witness another pitching exhibition from Glenn Richards. The intimidating left-armer shut Port Melbourne out in the first four innings before leaking a couple of runs in the fifth.
By that stage the Lions had set up a comfortable lead, leaving relief pitcher Myles Barnden to finish the kill from the hill in the seventh.
Richards complemented his 10 strike-outs with four hits – at a clip of .800 – for the afternoon, while Barnden registered the only home run of the match.
American import Dave Hermes had two hits.
Springvale playing-coach Ben Bartlett was more than satisfied with a tidy and disciplined performance.
“We came out and scored a couple in the early innings, which is always important against a pretty handy side like Port Melbourne,” Bartlett said.
“Our defence has been pretty rusty in recent weeks, but I thought we were very solid on Sunday.”
Bartlett has been pleased by the way his side has “settled down” after its first-round loss to defending champ Williamstown.
The Lions have now won four straight to secure top spot on the ladder.
Springvale’s women’s team had a bye on Saturday.