Stephenville Minor Baseball’s house league competition began July 3 with games in the T-ball/ rookie and peewee/ bantam divisions.
The occasion also represented the first T-ball division games since 2009 and the first ever house league games for a combined peewee/ bantam division.
In T-ball/ rookie action, the Pirates played to an 11-11 draw with the Red Sox. Pirates second baseman Kyle Marsden hit a long single in the first inning to kickstart the offence for his team.
Floyd Wood and Lydia Samms also picked up base hits in the inning to support their side. The Red Sox attack was led by Kaitlyn Gaudon and Brooklyn Hynes who each recorded three hits and three runs. Infielder James Burt recorded a crucial out to end the third inning, laying the tag on Pirates outfielder Caleb Whalen.
Later in the day it was the Athletics and Giants meeting up for an afternoon match in the peewee/ bantam division. With the game still scoreless in the second, Giants pitcher Ryan Kendall walked Ryan Perrier, who later advanced to second on a groundout by Russell Duffenais.
After Athletics teammate Dawson Drake sent a flyball to leftfield, Perrier advanced to third on a throwing error by Giants fielder Craig Laing. Alex Deveau retrieved the errant ball but his throw hopped the glove of third baseman Evan Rouzes, allowing Perrier to cross home plate.
Kendall, Rouzes and Cameron Lafitte recorded hits in the next inning as the Giants rallied back to take the lead. However, in the bottom of inning four, with runners in scoring position, Jonathan Burke singled to left field, scoring Ryan Perrier for the second time in the game, giving his Athletics a 3-2 walk-off victory.
Based on strong registration numbers over the past couple of years, the mosquito division was separated from the peewee group to form its own league.
However, registration has been slower than anticipated, which has resulted in the Mosquito house leagueís start being pushed back to this week. A player born in 2001 or later is eligible to participate in mosquito level play.
Registration is still open for all divisions and there is still lots of summer left. For more information on registration visit www.sport.ca/stephenvilleminorbaseball, or contact volunteer Jennifer Drake at 643-9794, or co-ordinator Trevor Murphy at 649-5729 or tsm353 mun.ca.
