Game Summaries
August 30th, 2003
The Byrd House

Opening Doubleheader
Road Warriors versus Wiffolution

Game 1
Wiffolution jumped out of the gate, trying in vain to keep their season alive.

Jeff Morrison hit a three run homerun in the top of the first to account for all the scoring as Wiffolution took Game 1, 3-0.

Morrison's homerun came off Pat Plummer, younger brother of Matt Plummer who had reached via double and single prior to the two-out shot.

Pat also accounted for all of the Road Warrior offense, going 2-3 with a pair of doubles. Despite fielding all four players (Dave Cain made a surprise return), and putting runners in scoring position every inning, the Warriors could not capitalize.

Matt Plummer walked four batters in his two ininngs, but was able to get out of each jam.

The win pulled Wiffolution to a tie with the Horsemen as the Holy Whites came out on top across town in Game 1, pummeling the Horsemen, 8-0.

Final Score: 3-0, Wiffolution

Game 2
The Warriors bounced back, putting on a clinic from the mound and finally taking advantage of Matt Plummer's control problems to pick up the split.

The Warriors' staff yielded only two singles and no walks while Dave Cain hit a three-run homerun (after two Matt Plummer walks) en route to a 6-0 win.

Curtis started the scoring in the top of the third, taking Dean Evans deep to make it 1-0. In the top of the fourth, Plummer walked the first two batters he faced and then gave up a homerun to Dave, making it 4-0. Darnell and Curtis both followed with solo shots before Matt was able to get an out. The way the Warriors were pitching, the game was all but over.

Darnell then shut the door, pitching a scoreless fourth.

Over at The Sac, the Horsemen pulled out a 2-0 win, pushing them back ahead of Wiffolution by a game.

Final Score: 6-0, Road Warriors

Nitecap
Horsemen versus Road Warriors

In a game suitable for history lessons 20 years from now, the Road Warriors staged a late rally and beat the Horsemen, knocking them out of the playoff race and setting the stage for a new league champion.

Pat Plummer and Dave Cain both homered off Eric Christensen in the bottom of the fourth, leading the charge during a five run inning that saw the Horsemen's 6-2 lead morph into a 7-6 deficit.

The Horsemen, fielding all four players (that's right, a FIVE inning game!!) put a run up in the top of the first. Seth Yoder led off with a single, and Ian moved him to third with a single of his own. Joey lined out to the mound, but Eric Christensen's groundout plated Yoder.

The Warriors did one better in the bottom half of the inning. Yoder issued a rare walk to Darnell, and then a towering drive to left from Dave Cain. He then got the next three outs easily.

The Horsemen made a statement in the top of the second that they wouldn't go down easy. Ian Byrd led off with his 16th homerun of the year, and Joey later hit a three run shot to make it 5-2, Horsemen. Ian would then toss a hitless inning in the bottom of the second.

Yoder hit his 11th of the year in the third, making it 6-2, and Joey followed with a scoreless inning of pitching in the bottom half.

Pat Plummer shut down the Horsemen bats, and then led the charge that changed everything.

The phone rang, and it was Wiffolution, informing the teams that they had beaten the Holy Whites 8-6, meaning the Horsemen HAD to win this game. While a Horsemen loss and Wiffolution win would have tied the team's records, Wiffolution had the tie-breaker, winning the season series between the teams, 5-3. One could imagine the disappointment they must have felt when they heard that the Horsemen sported a 6-2 lead heading into the bottom of the fourth.

With Eric taking the hill in the top of the fourth, Dave Cain led off by...striking out. Pat then hit a routine groundball up the middle that Eric badly bobbled, putting him on. Darnell then walked, but Eric came up big and got Dave to ground out to the mound, moving runners to 2nd and 3rd. He wouldn't be so lucky against Plummer, who cleared the bases with a deep shot to left, his 4th of the year. The blast cut the lead to 6-5.

Darnell ripped a single just out of reach of Yoder's out-stretched arms, and Dave promptly hit a two-run bomb to left, putting the Warriors back on top. Pat then grounded out to end the inning.

In the top of the fifth, Darnell made a mistake to Yoder, but got the pop out. Ian Byrd lined a single down the 3rd base line, but Joey hit into a fielder's choice. Eric then struck out to end his team's inning, game, and season.

Dean Evans and Jeff Morrison arrived shortly after only to find out that the Warriors put together a five-run inning and got them into the playoffs.

Final Score: 7-6, Road Warriors

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