By Tim “Shoe” Sullivan

One day after the biggest Buena Vista rainstorm in decades, the coed softball league was up and running with two games at Moore Barn Memorial.

Final Score (3-3) defeated Central Door Solutions (4-2) 16-9, and Joe’s Bar (5-1) knocked off Papa Joe’s (0-6) 16-12. Final Score had more hits than CDS (17 to 11), more walks (four to three), and more runs (16-9). CDS opened the scoring with three runs in the top of the first.

Brianna Dobbratz singled, Adam Lee walked, Kyle Brooks tripled, and Garrett Karnowski singled. Final Score answered with four runs in their half of the first as Codi Klismith singled, Bobby Sullivan walked, and Dalton Wriedt, Kassie McGettigan, and Cory Blake each doubled.

The Solutions picked up another three runs in the second behind hits by Dobbratz, Lee, and Aaron Dodson. The Score matched that with three runs in the bottom of the second. The rally included Carly Johnson’s walk, singles by Jake Mortimer, Kristin DeVogel, and Codi Klismith, and Bobby Sullivan’s double. 7-6 Score after two.

CDS failed to score in the third but the Score scored two more behind Cory Blake’s double and a booming home run by shortstop Dalton Wriedt. 9-6 after three. Aaron Dodson’s triple and Adam Lee’s single made the score 9-7. Then Final Score really unloaded with six runs in the bottom of the fourth to pretty much put the game away. The key hits in the rally were Morgan Oppor’s triple, Kassie McGettigan’s second double of the game, singles by Jake Mortimer and Bobby Sullivan.

CDS also committed an error and the Score coaxed a pair of walks. 15-7 after four. The play of the game came in the top of the fifth. With two outs and nobody on, Robby Armatoski of the Solutions belted a bomb to right that had “home run” written all over it. At the last second, Score’s outfielder Codi Klismith ran up against the fence, jumped, fell over the sign, and somehow caught the ball.

Umpire Jesse Higgins ruled it an “out” and Armatoski jogged back to the dugout while shaking his head in disgust. Then Final Score came to bat and Klismith tripled and came home on Morgan Oppor’s base hit. That ended Final Score’s scoring for the night.

But the Solutions weren’t going down without a fight. In the top of the sixth, Aaron Dodson homered to make it 16-8. Then Brianna Dobbratz stepped to the plate. She already had two singles and scored twice. Final Score pitcher Jake Mortimer looked in for the sign, delivered, and hit Brianna right in the back.

The fans wanted her to charge the mound, but she shook it off and stepped back in and drilled the next pitch to deep left for an inside-the-park home run. 16-9 was the final.

CENTRAL DOOR SOLUTIONS HITTING STATS: Brianna Dobbratz: two singles, solo homer, hit by pitch but didn’t cry cuz there’s no crying in softball; Adam Lee: walk, single double; Kyle Brooks: triple, double; Brooke Simonis: walk; Garrett Karnowski: single; Katie Kahrs: walk; Robby Armatoski: robbed of homer by Codi Klismith in the fifth. (Codi said he didn’t even know he caught it); Aaron Dodson: single, triple, homer; Taylor Brooks: nice play in the field. FINAL SCORE HITTING STATS: Codi Klismith: two singles, walk, triple, four runs; Morgan Oppor(tunity): triple, single; was singing some song she used to sing when the Pointers played); Bobby Sullivan: walk, double, single; Kelly Arndt: sac fly, run; Dalton Wriedt: double, homer, walk, put a roof on before the game; Kassie McGettigan: two doubles, two runs, made about ten plays at first; Cory Blake: two doubles; Carly Johnson: walk, run; Jake Mortimer: three singles; Kristin DeVogel: single, RBI. TIME OF GAME: 52 minutes.

Papa Joe’s played its best game of the year in the opener but eventually lost, 16-12. Pitcher Jeremy Studinski said, “We’re getting better each week. It’s only a matter of time before we take home a win.”

In the bottom of the first, Joe’s Bar, winners of five straight, took an early 5-0 lead. Singles by Casey Kedrowski, Nicole Kirsch, and Bre Dobbratz plus Travis Kempf’s double and Kyle Salzman’s home run did the trick. Kempf, a former pitcher for the Pointers, would go on to single, triple, and homer which of course gave him the “cycle”.

Travis won a bottle of Point from Rob King. Joe’s Bar upped its lead to 8-0 with three more runs in the second. Kempf and Bailey Hinderman had the key hits. Then Pa Joe’s suddenly came alive in the top of the third. They scored five runs behind a couple of walks and hits by Sam Przybelski, Asia Herr, Matt Bauman, and Jeremy Studinski. 8-5. Kyle Salzman homered again for Joe’s to make it 9-5 after three.

Then Papa Joe’s had another big inning in the top of the fourth. They scored six runs to actually take a 11-9 lead. Their big rally included five consecutive singles by Jason VanDeWalle, Hiroko Koashi, John Wachowiak, Sam Przybelski, and Asia Herr to go along with Jeremy Studinski’s bases-clearing triple. Joe’s was stymied in the fourth and the inning ended with Papa’s on top, 11-9.

Joe’s, however, regained the lead by pushing across three runs in the bottom of the fifth as Kempf tripled and Bre Dobbratz, Salzman, Drew Lemke, Chelsea Stenzel, and Bailey Hinderman each singled. 12-11 Joe’s after five. Joe’s finally put the game away in the sixth by scoring four runs.

The big blows were home runs by Kempf and winning pitcher Drew Lemke. Papa’s got one run in the seventh behind doubles from Jeremy Studinski and Ashley Radmer but that was all she wrote. Jeremy had six RBIs during the contest. Casey Kedrowski of Joe’s Bar leads the league in walks with six.

PAPA JOE’S HITTING STATS: Samantha Przybelski: three singles, two runs; Asia Herr: two singles, two runs; Cheryl Kubisiak: two walks, run; Matt Bauman: single, run; Laura Mattek: walk; Jeremy Studinski: two doubles, triple, bunch of RBIs; Ashley Radmer: double; Jason VanDeWalle: single, run; Hiroko Koashi: single, run; John Wachowiak: walk, single, two runs. JOE’S BAR HITTING STATS: Bailey Hinderman: two singles, run; Casey Kedrowski: single, walk, two runs; Nicole Kirsch: single, run; Travis Kempf: hit for the cycle; Bre Dobbratz: three singles, three runs; Kyle Salzman: two homers, two singles, four runs; Beke Blue: fine play at second; Drew Lemke: single, homer; Chelsea Stenzel: single; Rob King: single, run. TIME OF GAME: 54 minutes.

TUESDAY NIGHT “JIM BARDEN” CO-ED LEAGUE STANDINGS: Joe’s Bar: 5-1. Central Door Solutions: 4-2. Final Score: 3-3. Papa Joe’s: 0-6.