November 2007 News Archive
 November 2nd - Two games took place today because of the excellent turnout. The cooler weather seems to be bringing out the hitters. The home team won 20-18 on Fred White Field. Jerry Witter picked up the win against Dick Wilhelm.
The home team prevailed by the exact score of 20-18 on Field E. Larry Powell recorded the victory against opposing pitcher Bob Swartz.
The visiting team lead throughout the early innings of the game but the home team broke out with five runs in the 7th and 8th frames to seal the victory. The top of the lineup came through in the home 7th as the first five scored. Ed Neumyer, Ron Thompson, Cal Leigh, Jose Agosto, & Gene Morey all got hits in the inning. The home team got five runs in the 8th on three hits and four - YIKES!!!! - errors. The bottom three in the lineup all scored runs after two of the three banged out singles. Bringing up the rear were a single by Keith Linton, Jerry Witter, who reached on an error, & a single by Joel Freedman. The visitors were down 20-12 going into the 9th inning. A valiant effort fell short but they did score six runs of the eight needed for a tie. Singles by Carl Luebking, Frank Acevedo, Sam Harrell, & Erv Szewczuga and doubles by Fred Dampier, Don Witmer, Marshall Bloom, & Richard Moots accounted for the six runs. John Smith umpired the bases on Fred White Field this morning. Thank you, John, for volunteering your time while you recover from surgery.
The home team needed six runs to tie the score in the second inning and came through in the clutch. A combination of hits and walks brought in the needed runs. Ed Lupiani & Bob Lewis began the inning with walks, followed by a single by Rich Kralik and a John Ormsby double. A single by Jerry Remington drove in the final run. The eighth frame produced several extra base hits for the home team. Larry Powell & Doug Chamlee connected for triples while John Ormsby, Jerry Remington, Lloyd Hopper, & Ed Lupiani hit doubles. With the exception of one run, the visiting team produced every one of their runs from the top half of the lineup. Randy Lane scored four times on four hits and Cecil Vasquez scored four runs on three hits. Pitcher Bob Swartz scored three runs. Cecil Vasquez cranked a three run homer in the second inning after Jaime Rivera got on base with a single and Randy Lane reached base on a fielding error. Later in the game, Fred Ducham hit a two run homer down the leftfield line. 
LEADING HITTERS: Don Witmer - 6 for 6 with 3 doubles. Floyd Welton - 5 for 5 with 3 doubles. John Ormsby - 5 for 5 with 2 doubles. Lloyd Hopper - 4 for 5 with 2 doubles & 1 triple. Jose Agosto - 4 for 5 with 1 triple. Ed Lupiani - 3 for 4 with 1 double & 1 walk. A group of guys returned to Winter Haven this morning. Welcome back, Lloyd Hopper from St. Thomas, Ontario, Canada; Keith Linton from Berry, Ontario, Canada; Gene Morey from Howard City, Michigan; John Ormsby from London, Ontario, Canada; Gary Reed from Gainsville, Ohio; Jerry Remington from Canada; Mike Stepp from Clinton, Michigan; Erv Szewczuga from Waupaca, Wisconsin; and Dick Wilhelm from Windsor, Ontario, Canada. November 5th - The group of guys had to be divided into five teams this morning. The three team game was played on Fred White Field. The final score was 12-9-7. Don Witmer began the game and received the win. He was relieved by Dick Wilhelm. The opposing pitchers were George Radlein and Bob Swartz.
The two team, nine inning game was played on Field E with the home team prevailing by a score of 18-10. Jerry Witter picked up the win against Dick Sessink. Dick has been out of commission for almost a month with a sore ankle and returned to the playing field today. Welcome back, Dick.
A three team contest took place on Fred White Field. Although the middle team was highly favored and scored four runs in the first frame, it wasn't until the late innings that the team took charge of the game. Russ King cranked a three run homer to rightfield in the first inning after Don Witmer drove in the first run with a single. Five more runs were scored in the sixth inning on singles by Ron Thompson, Russ King, Richard Moots, & Keith Linton to go along with a double by Don Witmer. Dick Wilhelm also scored in that inning after reaching base on a fielding error. Overall, the second team knocked 21 hits in the game. A big five run fourth inning by Team One gave the team a one run lead at the time. The big hits of that inning were a double by Freddy Gonzalez followed by a deep triple to rightfield by George Radlein. Jack Valliere, Reg Barnes, Bill Rutan, & Jose Agosto also connected for singles in that inning. Team Three could only put a few hits together in the third inning and lead for a brief moment after two and two thirds innings of play. Marshall Bloom and Bob Swartz hit singles while Chuck Duff and Fred Dampier hit doubles in that frame.
The visiting team started out with a bang as they scored five runs in the first inning to take a 5-3 lead after one. The first five batters scored after each of the five hit singles. Jaime Rivera, Elvis Abney, Jim Laffoon, Lloyd Hopper, & Fred Ducham all scored runs. Dean Schapeler & Floyd Welton had singles to score the last two runs. After that fateful first inning, the visitors scored in two more innings during the entire game. The eighth inning brought across three runs. The big hit of that frame was a homer by Cecil Vasquez. The home team scored their runs in bunches but they also had a few innings with no runs. After Doug McLellan banged out a two run homer in the three run first, the second inning was even bigger. Rusty Landahl began with a double. Erv Szewczuga, Bill Spring, Walt Leggett, & Bob Lewis followed with singles. After the only out of the inning was made, Doug McLellan & Jerry Remington blasted out singles to end the hitting barrage. The final tally for inning two was five runs on seven hits with eight batters stepping to the plate. With the home team leading by the score 9-7 after six innings of play, they put the game more in their favor with four runs in the seventh and wrapped it up with five more in the eighth. Frank Miller and Jerry Remington each had hits and runs scored in both the 7th and 8th innings while Doug McLellan, John Ormsby, & Rusty Landahl each had hits in each of the two frames. 
LEADING HITTERS: Russ King - 4 for 5 with 1 triple & 1 homer. Doug McLellan - 4 for 5 with 1 double & 1 homer. Rusty Landahl - 4 for 5 with 2 doubles. Jerry Witter - 4 for 5 with 1 double. Frank Miller - 3 for 4 with 2 doubles & 1 walk. John Ormsby - 3 for 4 with 1 triple & 1 walk. Jim Laffoon - 3 for 4 with 1 double. Wayne Mundy- 3 for 4 with 1 double. Floyd Welton - 3 for 4 with 1 double. Mike Stepp - 3 for 4 with 1 walk. Marshall Bloom - 3 for 4. Rich Kralik - 3 for 4. Russ King returned from Kalamazoo, Michigan. Welcome back, Russ. Although Bill Rutan will not play in the Winter Haven Senior Softball Club season in 2008, he did come down for a visit. Bill resides in Columbus, Indiana during the summer months. Thank you for joining us in the game today, Bill. November 9th - Two very close games were played this morning. A total of three runs separated the two winning teams from the two teams that lost.
Don Witmer picked up the victory on Fred White Field against fellow pitcher Jerry Witter. The home team won 19-17. The game on Field “E” was even tighter. The home team won 15-14 although the official score sheet indicates that the game finished in a tie. At any rate, Dick Sessink recorded the win against Dick Wilhelm.
The only time the visiting team had the lead was after the completion of the first inning. The home team picked and scratched out runs in every inning except two - a zero was posted in the third and the seventh frames. Sam Harrell began the home first with a triple. He scored on a single by Jose Agosto. Sam crossed the plate again in the second inning as the home team scored the maximum five runs. The bottom of the lineup came through to begin the second. All three banged out singles and scored. Gene Morey led off the inning with a hit, followed by singles from the bats of Carl Luebking & Richard Moots. Don Witmer smashed a two run homer in the fifth, scoring Ted Taylor in front of him. The three runs in the home eighth were critical since they won by two runs. Jack Valliere got the RBI single that sealed the victory. The visiting team came alive in the top of the first after the first two batters were out. Afterwards, Wayne Mundy cranked a triple and scored on a double by Ron Thompson, who later scored the second run. Cal Leigh & Reg Barnes also singled and scored in the four run inning. After six up and six down in the second and third innings, the visitors put two more runs on the board. Jerry Witter & Floyd Welton each scored on a double by Bob Douglas. The visiting team scored late with four in the seventh and four in the eighth. Frank Acevedo singled and scored in both frames. A double by Reg Barnes in the eighth gave the visiting team a brief lead going into the bottom of the inning but a scoreless ninth inning sealed the fate of the visitors.
The lead on Field E changed hands a couple of times. The visiting team began the first with three runs. Fred Ducham lead off the game with a walk and scored on a triple by Russ King. Russ scored on a Dick Wilhelm single, was out on a double play ball, then Cecil Vasquez singled and scored on a booted ball. The home team charged back in the bottom of the first as the first five batters recorded hits and runs. No outs were made. Mike Stepp and Ed Kline singled, Ken King and John Ormsby doubled, Dick Sessink singled, and Doug McLellan drove in the final runs with a triple. As the home team was being held to goose eggs for three straight innings, the visiting team managed four runs in the fourth to take the lead. The big hit of that inning was a John Smith triple, scoring Larry Powell and Frank Miller, who each reached base on singles. After four innings of play, the visiting team lead 7-5. The home team took the lead back in the fifth with four runs. Elmer Black, Bob Lewis, Gale Doty, & Bill Spring each singled and scored in the frame. After five innings of play, the home team lead 9-7. Doug McLellan and Elmer Black scored in the home sixth to add to the lead but allowed the visiting team to take a two run lead in the eighth when Russ King banged a homer after a single by Fred Ducham. Going into the bottom of the eighth, the visitors lead 13-11. The home team fought back to tie the score at 13-13 on hits by Dick Sessink, Doug McLellan, & Elmer Black. Each team scored one run in the ninth to end the game tied at 14, according to the official score sheets. 
LEADING HITTERS: Reg Barnes - 5 for 5 with 1 double. Larry Powell - 5 for 5 with 1 double. Floyd Welton - 5 for 5. Elmer Black - 4 for 4. Russ King - 4 for 5 with 1 homer & 1 triple. Wayne Mundy - 4 for 5 with 1 triple. Cecil Vasquez - 4 for 5 with 1 triple. Ken King - 4 for 5 with 1 double. Jack Valliere - 4 for 5. Don Witmer - 3 for 4 with 1 homer, 1 double, & 1 walk. Frank Miller - 3 for 4 with 1 walk. Bob Lewis - 3 for 4. Richard Moots - 3 for 4. Ken King returned from Keswick, Ontario, Canada & Jerry Noble returned from Sullivan, Maine. Welcome back, Ken and Jerry.  November 10th - Saturday - Semper Fi! Happy birthday to the United States Marine Corps and all the Marine veterans.
November 13th - The game on Fred White Field was an offensive slugfest as the home team won 24-22. Dick Sessink came out on top against fellow pitcher Bob Swartz.
The home team dominated on Field E, partly due to an error filled game. The final score was 17-8. Don Witmer picked up another win. The opposing pitcher, George Radlein, didn’t get much defensive support.
The home team scored often in the first half of the game before coasting to a close win. After the visitors picked up two runs on six hits in the first, the home team racked up five runs on seven hits. Only one out had been recorded by the time John Smith drove in the fifth run. The visitors went scoreless for three straight innings while the home team packed on more runs. The runner for Joel Freedman scored in the second on a misplayed ball that was hit to third by Elvis Abney. That was the only run scored in the second. Five more runs crossed the plate in the home third as Jack Valliere, Dick Sessink, John Smith, the runner for Joel Freedman, & Bill Spring each scored in the frame. At the end of three, the home team lead 11-2. Four more runs scored in the fourth and three came from a John Smith homer. It was now turning into a slaughter as the score was up to 15-2. The visitors mounted a huge rally in the fifth. Fourteen players batted in the eight run inning. After the lead off batter made the first out, Bob Douglas, Carl Luebking, Ed Kline, Bob Swartz, Elmer Black, Rusty Landahl, and Marshall Bloom banged out consecutive hits before the second out was recorded. The only extra base hit in that barrage was a double by Rusty. After all that hitting, the home team still held a 15-10 lead, so they added four more in the bottom of the inning. The visitors fought back hard in the eighth frame. Six runs scored on six hits. Carl Luebking connected for a double in that inning. In the home eighth, the bases were loaded after Elvis Abney reached base on a single, Cal Leigh made it to first on a fielder's choice, and Ted Taylor singled. Sam Harrell then cranked a deep triple to score all three runs. The visiting team never gave up and came within two runs of tying the game so a big hats off to the guys for their valiant effort.
Denny Shaffer lead off the game for the visiting team with a single and scored on a Walt Leggett single. That run was enough to fire up the home team. Ed Lupiani lead off the home first with a triple and Ken King tripled in the final two runs of the five run first inning. Floyd Welton scored the only run in the home second on a single by Jim McPartlan and chipped in another run in the third after Don Witmer tripled to lead off the inning. The visiting team made it a close game as they scored four and then held the home team scoreless. At that time, the lead was cut to two runs as the score was 7-5. The big hit of that inning was a three run homer by Mike Stepp, which followed singles by Walt Leggett and Doug Chamlee. Tim Gallagher knocked an opposite field homer in the home sixth after Freddy Gonzalez reached base on a fielding error. Two more runs scored in the home sixth on hits and errors. The visiting team put together five consecutive hits and scored three in the eighth. Walt Leggett hit a triple, scoring Jim Laffoon and Fred Dampier and then scored on a Mike Stepp single. The home eighth witnessed a two run homer by Ed Lupiani. The ball cleared the leftfield fence. Gene Morey had singled before the blast. 
LEADING HITTERS: Carl Luebking - 5 for 6 with 1 double. Elvis Abney - 5 for 6. Reg Barnes - 5 for 6. Dick Sessink - 5 for 6. Sam Harrell - 4 for 5 with 1 triple. Rusty Landahl - 4 for 5 with 1 double. Marshall Bloom - 4 for 5 with 1 sacrifice fly. Bob Douglas - 4 for 5. Tim Gallagher - 3 for 4 with 1 homer. Walt Leggett - 3 for 4 with 1 triple. Richard Moots - 3 for 4. Denny Shaffer returned from Akron, Ohio & Vassurl Bess returned to play after taking the summer off from the old ballfield. Welcome back, Denny and Vassurl. November 15th - Today marks the last day to submit nominations for the Polk County Senior Softball Hall of Fame. No nominations will be accepted after today.
The current Hall of Fame members will cast their votes for new membership to the Hall of Fame following a meeting set for the purpose of studying each letter of nomination. New member induction will take place at the Hall of Fame banquet in 2008. The banquet date and location will be posted after arrangements have been made. Stay tuned. November 16th - Jerry Witter got back on the winning track as he hurled his team to victory on Fred White Field. Don Witmer was the opposing pitcher in the 18-9 game.
It took 10 innings to determine the winning team on Field “E”. Bob Swartz recorded the win against Dick Sessink. The final score was 16-11 in favor of the visiting team.
The score sheet was completely neglected on Fred White Field so there is nothing to report.
The home team jumped all over the visitors in the first three innings and it seemed like the game would be a runaway. The first four batters scored in the first inning for the home team. Vassurl Bess lead off the home first with a double, followed by singles by Mike Stepp, Russ King, Jerry Remington, and Cecil Vasquez. Frank Miller drove in the fourth and final run with a double. The second inning began similar to the first frame as the first three batters scored. Gene Morey and Rich Kralik lead off with 
singles before Joe DeForge reached base on a fielding error. All three scored and Frank Miller again drove in the fourth and final run with his second double.
With the visiting team down 8-1 going into the fourth, the home team had some unproductive innings while the visitors began chipping away at the lead. One run scored in the top of the fourth on consecutive hits by Bob Swartz, Denny Shaffer, Ed Kline, & Lloyd Hopper. Jaime Rivera scored in the fifth and the runner for Bob Swartz scored and Denny Shaffer also 
scored in the sixth. At the end of seven, the home team still held a 10-5 lead.
Then the game got more interesting for everyone. The visitors produced a huge rally in the eighth inning to tie the score 10-10. Jerry Noble and Larry Powell began with singles before Freddy Gonzalez slammed a double. Bob Swartz and Denny Shaffer had the hot bats today. Bob drove in Freddy with a single and Denny hit his fourth single in four at bats. Bob Lewis singled in the tying run after Lloyd Hopper advanced the runner to third with a single. Going into the bottom of the eighth, the score was knotted at 10-10. Vassurl Bess reached base on an error and scored on a Cecil Vasquez single. At the end of eight, the home team lead 11-10. Hank Gomez singled and the runner for Hank scored on a triple by Jerry Noble. That tied the score at 11-11 going into the bottom of the ninth. The home team couldn't manage to bring across a run, so the game continued into the tenth inning. That is when the visiting team broke it wide open. Five runs scored and Freddy Gonzalez began with a solo homer. Amazingly enough, the home team couldn't answer the call and they lost the game by the score of 16-11 after leading throughout the completion of eight innings. What a game to behold. LEADING HITTERS: Denny Shaffer - 4 for 5. Bob Swartz - 4 for 5. November 20th - The players were getting their exercise this morning because quite a few runs crossed the plate in the two games. The game on Fred White Field was a three-team contest. Don Witmer pulled double duties as a pitcher. Not only did he pitch for his team, but each team needed one fill-in player so he filled in as a pitcher for another team. For his team, Don pitched his way to a tie game against the team for which he filled in as a pitcher. Jerry Witter was the other player on the mound. The final score was 15-15-3.
Ron Thompson picked up the win against Dick Sessink on Field E in the 29-18 game. That could be a good football score! Now for an important message from the Winter Haven Senior Softball Board of Directors: Everyone needs to know that, when games end in a tie, the tied teams need to play one more inning. If the game is still tied after one extra inning, the game is considered complete.
Team Two jumped out of the gates with four runs. The first four batters in the lineup, Keith Linton, Elvis Abney, Don Witmer, & Dean Schapeler, all hit singles and scored. By the time the inning was over, the team had batted through the complete lineup. Team Three also began quickly as five runs were scored while no outs were recorded. Jose Agosto began with a single, followed by a single by Jack Valliere & Wayne Mundy. Jim Laffoon then had a two run triple. 
Singles by Doug Chamlee, Fred Dampier, & John Fulton finished off the inning with style. Every batter except the last three in the lineup had at least a single, so seven consecutive hits were achieved.
The second team came back in the second to score four more runs. Elvis Abney, Don Witmer, & Dean Schapeler scored again, but Don reached base on an error rather than a hit. The third inning saw a repeat of the first and second for Team Two. Five runs crossed the plate and three of those runs were Elvis Abney, Don Witmer, & Dean Schapeler. Elvis walked that time. Ed Lupiani completed the scoring with a three run homer that slipped past leftfielder Cecil Vasquez. A two out, bases loaded triple by Fred Dampier accounted for the scoring in the third frame for Team Three. While the second team was trying to run away with the game, the third team kept attempting to hang in there and not let the run deficit get too out of hand. After the 
end of three innings of play, Team Two lead 1-13-8.
Team One was having their troubles. Only one run had scored through three innings. Sam Harrell singled to lead off the game and scored on a booted fly ball that was hit by Freddy Gonzalez. Team Three inched closer to the leaders when two scored in the fifth inning but Team Two got those two runs back in the sixth when Elvis Abney blasted a double to score Gene Morey and Joel Freedman. Both players had reached base on singles before the hit by Elvis. Team One scored another lone run when Freddy Gonzalez hit a solo shot towards rightfielder Doug Chamlee. Jack Donnelly singled to begin the seventh inning. Jerry Witter, Frank Acevedo, and Cecil Vasquez also singled in the last frame, and Cecil's single drove in Jack. But the seventh inning belonged to Team Three. Down 3-15-10 to begin the bottom of the seventh and final inning of regulation play, they fought back to tie Team Two for the lead. Here's the highlights explaining how the five runs were scored. Jack Valliere hit his way on base and Wayne Mundy reached on an error. Jim Laffoon & Doug Chamlee followed with RBI singles before Fred Dampier cranked a three run homer to tie the score.
Both teams scored the limit of five runs in the first frame. The visiting team lead off batter, Frank Miller, began the game with his first of four doubles in the contest. Ron Thompson, John Ormsby, & Elmer Black all singled and Floyd Welton knocked in the final runs with a double. The home first earned their runs the hard way. The first two batters were out before the hitting began. Ted Taylor, Jim Rose, Lloyd Hopper, and Dick Sessink all banged out singles and scored. 
Gale Doty drove in the fifth and final run of the inning.
The visitors came right back in the second with five more runs. Frank Miller doubled and scored again. Jim McPartlan, Bob Douglas, Ron Thompson, and Chuck Duff all singled and scored. After the home team scored two in the third, five more runs touched the plate in the fourth. Ted Taylor and Tim Gallagher each scored their third run in as many plate appearances. The huge hit of the inning was a triple by Lloyd Hopper, which scored the fourth and fifth runs. At the end of four innings of play, the score was 12-12. The visitors took a one run lead after five innings. They scored three compared to two runs crossing the plate for the home team, but the home team got their run needed to tie when they scored in the sixth. A Lloyd Hopper double scored Jim Rose. At the end of six, the score was knotted at 15-15. It was now time for the visiting team to mount a charge. Floyd Welton hit a triple and scored on a single by Jim McPartlan. Ron Thompson singled in the last run with a two out bases loaded hit. The same team piled on five more runs in the ninth after four in the eighth. Ron Thompson had a three run homer in the final frame. The home team, after going scoreless in the seventh and eighth innings, could only muster three runs in the final inning. The only extra base hit came from the bat of John Smith. The rightfield double gave John a 4 for 5 day at the plate. LEADING HITTERS: Ron Thompson - 6 for 6 with 1 homer. Lloyd Hopper - 5 for 5 with 1 triple & 1 double. Jim Rose - 5 for 5. Jim Laffoon - 4 for 4 with 1 triple. Wayne Mundy - 4 for 4. Frank Miller - 5 for 6 with 4 doubles. John Ormsby - 5 for 6 with 1 double. Chuck Duff - 4 for 5 with 1 triple & 1 walk. John Smith - 4 for 5 with 1 double. Gale Doty - 4 for 5. Fred Dampier - 3 for 4 with 1 homer & 1 triple. Elvis Abney - 3 for 4 with 1 double & 1 walk. Frank Acevedo - 3 for 4. Jose Agosto - 3 for 4. Doug Chamlee - 3 for 4. Jack Valliere - 3 for 4. 
Bill Evans returned from Windsor, Ontario, Canada and Ron Augenstein returned from Marysville, Ohio. Art Zakrowski returned from Granger, Indiana but did not play today. Welcome back, Bill, Ron, and Art. The Winter Haven Senior Softball games are scheduled to be played on Friday, November 23rd, which is the day after Thanksgiving. Happy Thanksgiving everyone. November 22nd - Thanksgiving Day - Don't forget that the Winter Haven Senior Softball games are scheduled tomorrow, November 23rd. Arrive bright and early as usual.
Try not to get overfilled on the turkey and all the trimmings. But don't disappoint the cook, either. Have a blessed Thanksgiving with your family and loved ones.  November 23rd - We were about one team short after the Thanksgiving Day feast. Two nine inning games were played this morning. Fred Dampier picked up the win against Jerry Witter on Fred White Field. The final score was 14-13.
Bobby Ayers pitched his team to victory in the 22-21 game on Field E. The opposing pitcher was Dick Sessink.
The home team had a 9-0 lead before the visitors even put one run on the board. Don Witmer erased the zero for the visiting team in the fifth inning with a two out, three run homer. Jose Agosto and Fred Dampier had singled before the blast. A total of four runs scored in the visiting fifth and five more runs went into the books in the sixth. That brought the score to a 9-9 tie. The visitors finally took a one run lead after seven innings of play when John Smith joined in on the long ball act He cranked a ball over rightfielder fill in Bill Walker for a solo homer. That one run lead didn't last very long. The home team surged back in the bottom of the eighth frame to rack up four runs. Going into the final inning, the home team lead 13-10. All that cushion disappeared in the ninth as the away team scored four runs. Don Witmer hit his second three run homer to give him six RBIs for the game. Two batters, Sam Harrell and Fred Dampier, were on base with singles when Don connected. Before the inning was over, Gene Morey drove in the winning run with a single to left centerfield. The visiting team pulled off a 14-13 victory after being down almost the entire game. The home team was held scoreless in the bottom of the ninth inning on three successive ground balls to the infield. Other players who hit well in the game were Wayne Mundy, Jose Agosto, and Jerry Witter. Reg Barnes made two excellent plays while patrolling the rover position. Incidentally, Joel Freedman was robbed of hits by Reg on both plays. Both pitchers were targets of hard hit balls during the game. Jerry Witter fielded a hard grounder by Don Witmer and easily threw him out with a toss to first baseman Joel Freedman. Fred Dampier caught a rocket up the middle that came from the bat of Jack Valliere. You have to protect yourself out there guys! Nice job.
This game was one for the books! The visiting team performed a fantastic ninth inning hitting display as eight runs crossed the plate. The team was only one run shy of a tie game but it was a great comeback attempt. But, first things first so let's recap from the beginning. While the visiting team was putting goose eggs on the scoreboard for the first three innings, the home team had one busy inning of hitting the ball. Three runs scored in the second on hits by Ron Thomspon, Jerry Remington, Freddy Gonzalez, & Bobby Ayers. The visiting team woke up the bats in the fourth. Five runs scored and three were a result of homer by Cecil Vasquez. Singles by Doug Chamlee and Bill Evans were achieved prior to the home run. Floyd Welton had already singled and scored before the homer. Keith Linton singled afterwards but was unable to score. The home fourth saw a two run homer by Denny Shaffer. Bobby Ayers doubled but didn’t cross the plate. After four innings, the socre was tied 5-5. After the away team went scoreless in the fifth, the home team put up the limit of five runs on the board. Lead off hitter Randy Lane singled and scored on a Frank Miller triple. Frank scored when Ron Augenstein singled. Denny Shaffer received his first of two straight walks in the game and Freddy Gonzalez drove in the final two runs. Between the fifth through the seventh innings, the home team put up five runs per inning. The first three batters in the lineup, Randy Lane, Frank Miller, & Ron Augenstein all reached base one way or another and scored in each of the three frames. As it turned out, a two run homer by Freddy Gonzalez in the home eighth determined the deciding runs to pull the team to victory. Denny Shaffer, who had tripled directly before the hit, scored ahead of Freddy. The visiting team turned it up a notch in the eighth. Down by a score of 20-7, they mounted a big rally. Six runs scored on hits by Doug Chamlee, Bill Evans, Cecil Vasquez, Dick Sessink, Elmer Black, & Bob Lewis. It was time for another super rally in the ninth as the visitors were down 22-13. The team never gave up hope and sent 12 batters to the plate and scored eight times. Although Elmer Black was one of the hot hitters on the field this morning, he was finally able to step on home plate after his fifth hit of the day. Hits, walks, and errors allowed the away team to come within one run of a tie. Art Zakrowski didn't play today but did volunteer to umpire on Field E and Ed Neumyer worked as an umpire behind the plate on Fred White Field. Thank you, Art and Ed. 
LEADING HITTERS: Elmer Black - 5 for 6. Bill Evans - 5 for 6. Cecil Vasquez - 4 for 5 with 1 homer & 1 triple. Freddy Gonzalez - 4 for 5 with 1 homer. Ron Thompson - 4 for 5 with 1 triple. Bobby Ayers - 4 for 5 with 1 double. Jerry Remington - 4 for 5. Floyd Welton has gotten together his Winter Haven Wonders softball team to play in a four team tournament in Nalcrest tomorrow morning. Floyd chooses players from the Winter Haven Senior Softball Club to make up his teams. These teams have been playing in tourneys and competitions in Nalcrest since 2004. Check the "OTHER TEAMS" link to view past Winter Haven Wonder teams. There will be four teams in this tournament. The other teams are the Nalcrest All Stars, the Lakeshore All Stars, and the Lake Wales Legends. Come on by the Nalcrest ballpark tomorrow morning and cheer for your favorite team. The first game will begin around half past 10 in the morning. November 24th - The Lakeshore-Nalcrest Friendship Tournament was played today in Nalcrest. Click HERE to read about the results and view pictures.
November 27th - It was back to five teams again. The game on Fred White Field showcased three teams and it took one extra inning to determine the winner. The final score was 18-17-16. That's about as close as it gets guys.
Jerry Witter earned the victory for the winning team. Bob Swartz pitched for the team that scored 17 and allowed 16 runs. Rich Palmer was on the mound for the team that scored 16 and gave up 17 during regulation play. The score on Field E wasn't near as close. The visiting team won 20-4 as George Radlein recorded his very first Winter Haven Senior Softball Club win. The opposing pitcher was Dick Sessink.
The game on Fred White Field was a nail biter all the way. At the end of three innings of play, the score was all knotted up at 6-6-6. Yikes! Not a good number when it's all lined up like that. Two of the six runs for Team Two was a result of a homer by Freddy Gonzalez after Bob Swartz had a line drive single to leftfield. Back-to-back doubles from the bats of Bill Evans and Don Witmer ignited the rally for Team One in the third frame. Both players ended up crossing the plate. Eddie Diaz drove in Don with a single to right centerfield. The fourth inning was interesting. Team One began the frame with the first two batters out on infield hits. After that, Vassurl Bess singled and Marshall Bloom doubled. A single by Don Witmer finished off the scoring as Team One brought across five runs. Now it was time for Team Two to bat. Fred Dampier and John Fulton lead off the inning with triples. Wayne Mundy, Cal Leigh, & Ted Taylor all singled before Joel Freedman drove in the final and fifth run with a single. After a 6-6-6 tie at the conclusion of three innings, the score after the fourth was 11-11-11. The big hit of the fifth inning for Team Two was a triple by Freddy Gonzalez, which game his team the lead after five. Don Witmer hit a three run homer in the sixth as Team One scored five runs and flipped the lead to his team. In the final inning of regulation play, Team Two scored three to tie Team One for the lead. Bob Swartz and Wayne Mundy had singles and scored and Freddy Gonzalez had a double and scored. Freddy ended the day only a single away from hitting for the cycle in six trips to the plate. Team Three gave it their best shot in the seventh inning. Gary Reed and Al Andrews each had doubles and scored. A single by Sam Harrell drove in the final run for Team Three. They fell one run short of a three way tie. According to the rules, if there is a tie at the end of regulation play, one inning will be played. The eighth and final inning pitted Team One against Team Two. The first team had been defending against the second team all along but Team Two had yet to see the Team One batters. Four lefties adorned the lineup for that team and all batted against their opponents. Marshall Bloom hit a single and scored after Bill Evans and Don Witmer got hits. That was the only run scored for Team One in the final frame. Team Two could only manage two walks in the eighth. The team was shut down by relief pitcher Eddie Diaz.
The home team smoked the visitors. Five runs were scored in three successive innings in the middle of the game. The first inning of play gave a small sample of what was to come as Denny Shaffer and Ron Thompson singled and scored on a triple by Jim Laffoon. The home team lead by a mere 2-0 after one inning of play. The doors flew open in the 
home third. Chris Constantine, Jim McPartlan, Jose Agosto, and Ron Thompson singled before Jim Laffoon came through again. This time, he homered with two on to drive in the final three runs. In
his first two at bats, Jim had pounded out a homer and a triple and had collected five RBIs.
The home fourth finished with five more runs on the boards. Tim Gallagher and Dick Wilhelm singled, then scored on a Cecil Vasquez triple. Floyd Welton singled in Cecil. Chris Constantine singled and scored his second run in two innings when Bob Lewis singled him across home plate. Another five runs scored in the home fifth on seven consecutive hits. All were singles except for a Jim Laffoon double. By this time, Jim had a double, triple, and a homer in three plate appearances. He ended his day without a single so he missed hitting for the cycle in four at bats. The visiting team scored in two innings of the entire nine inning game. Ed Lupiani reached base on an error and scored and Frank Acevedo singled and scored in the visiting fourth. The other scoring frame for the visiting team came in the seventh when Chuck Duff connected for a solo homer. The next batter, Ron Augenstein, doubled, advanced to third on singles by Lloyd Hopper and Dick Sessink. Ron scored the fourth and last visiting team run in the seventh on a sacrifice fly by John Ormsby. LEADING HITTERS: Don Witmer - 5 for 5 with 1 homer & 1 double. Cecil Vasquez - 4 for 4 with 1 triple. Keith Linton - 4 for 4. Sam Harrell - 4 for 5 with 1 double. Wayne Mundy - 4 for 5. Ted Taylor - 4 for 5. Marshall Bloom - 3 for 4 with 1 double & 1 walk. Gary Reed - 3 for 4 with 1 double. Dean Schapeler - 3 for 4 with 1 walk. Jose Agosto - 3 for 4. Chris Constantine - 3 for 4. Tim Gallagher - 3 for 4. Ron Thompson - 3 for 4. Rich Palmer returned to the playing field this morning. He had knee replacement surgery. Rich wore a thick knee pad while pitching. Please, everyone, refrain from hitting the ball up the middle while Rich is pitching. He pitched well and we are happy to have him back. Al Andrews returned from West Port Island, Maine. He lead off for his team and hit two doubles after not playing ball since last Winter Haven Senior Softball Club season. Ernie Lancto returned from Syracuse, New York but didn't play this morning. Welcome back, Al and Ernie. November 30th - The three team game on Fred White Field showcased a team that smoked the others and the same was true for the game on Field E.
Ernie Lancto pitched his first game this fall and logged his first win as Team Three won 22-7-5. Jerry Witter was on the mound for the team that scored five and allowed seven runs and Bob Swartz pitched for the team that scored seven and surrendered 22 runs. The score of the game on Field E was 33-15. Ron Thompson recorded the win against Dick Sessink.
Team Three scored three in the first inning and poured it on during their final three times at bat to run away with the game. Ed Kline hit his first of two triples to lead off the home first, then scored on a sacrifice fly ball hit by Larry Powell. Fred Dampier & Ed Lupiani also scored in the frame. Gary Reed connected for his first of three hits in-a-row and drove in Ed. Team Two produced a productive second inning as they sent five across the plate. After the first out was in the books, Jack Valliere began the hitting spree with a single. Al Andrews, Gale Doty, Vassurl Bess, Gene Morey, & Chris Constantine all had hits and each figured in on the scoring in the inning. Team Three charged back with four runs to take a 7-5-0 lead after two innings of play. Don Witmer hit a two run homer in the direction of right centerfielder Gale Doty. Larry Powell, who reached on a single, scored ahead of Don. Al Andrews knocked a two run homer for Team Two in the third and, little did they know, but that would be their last score of the day for that team. Team One finally got on the boards when they scored four runs. Marshall Bloom, Rusty Landahl, & Jerry Witter all singled before Cliff Hamilton tripled, followed by an RBI single from the bat of Jack Donnelly. Bill Spring, who had an eagle eye today, walked in the fourth but didn't figure in on the scoring. By the time the game was completed, Bill had walked in all three times at bat. Team Three scored five runs in the fourth, fifth, & sixth innings to wrap up the mystery as to who would win the three team contest. John Smith banged a homer deep to right centerfield in the fourth to score two runs. Ed Kline & Eddie Diaz each scored in both the fifth & sixth frames after getting hits in each of the innings. Larry Powell put an exclamation point on the day as Team Three's last batter of the game. Larry homered to leftfield to drive in the foruth and fifth runs of the sixth inning.
On a normal day, 15 runs would be enough to win a ball game. But not today. It wasn't even half enough. The visiting team scored the limit of five runs in five of the nine innings and every hitter except one had multiple hits. Jerry Noble and Elmer Black had homers in the game and Lloyd Hopper connected for two homers. Jerry's homer came in the first inning and was a three run shot. Ron Thompson & Russ King had singled before the blast. The homer from Elmer came in the fifth. That homer also drove in three runs. Jerry Noble had walked and Cecil Vasquez had singled prior to the hit. The first homer by Lloyd was a solo shot to lead off the third frame. He hit his second in the five run sixth. The three run blast drove in Ron Thompson & Ron Augenstein. The five-six-seven batters in the visiting order were Russ King, Jerry Noble, & Cecil Vasquez. They could not be stopped as they went a combined 14 for 14. The bright spot for the home team came in the sixth when seven of the eleven batters scored runs. Bob Lewis, Jaime Rivera, Jerry Remington, Ted Taylor, Angel Merced, & Denny Shaffer all had hits. Denny had the only extra base hit of the inning. His double knocked in Ted. After the seven runs were scored in the sixth, the visiting team lead was cut to 24-13. Yikes! Although seven runs constituted a big inning, they needed a total of 18 runs to tie the score! The visiting team did win big, but the biggest defensive play of the day was pulled off by the home team. After Elmer Black and Keith Linton had singled, a triple play immediately took place. Since the scorebooks do not indicate how the triple play was turned, it is only an educated guess how the play evolved. 
LEADING HITTERS: Ed Kline - 5 for 5 with 2 triples. Russ King - 5 for 5 with 1 double. Cecil Vasquez - 5 for 5. Jerry Noble - 4 for 4 with 1 homer & 1 walk. Frank Miller - 5 for 6 with 2 doubles. Ron Augenstein - 5 for 6. Elmer Black - 4 for 5 with 1 homer. Keith Linton - 4 for 5. Angel Merced - 4 for 5. Larry Powell - 3 for 4 with 1 homer & 1 sacrifice fly. Ed Lupiani - 3 for 4 with 1 double. Wayne Mundy - 3 for 4. Gary Reed - 3 for 4. Don Witmer - 3 for 4. Cliff Hamilton returned from East Leroy, Michigan. Cliff had sustained a hamstring injury during the Winter Haven-Lakeland competition in March of this year and was forced to forego the remainder of the season. He is fully healed now and played today. Welcome back, Cliff. Angel Merced joined the Winter Haven Senior Softball Club today. He spent his working years in Puerto Rico. Welcome aboard, Angel. |
October 2007