Selects vs. Jaxx
Tuesday, June 30, 2015
On Tuesday night, the Selects were unable to exact any revenge for their series sweep in the 2014 Finals at the hands of the Diamond Jaxx, as the two-time defending champs beat them 4-1.
The Selects opened the scoring in the top of the first, oddly without even notching a hit. Kevin Ryrie drew a leadoff walk and advanced to second on a Scott Clark sacrifice bunt. The Jaxx tried to get Ryrie going to third on a Mike Brown grounder, to no avail, setting up runners at the corners. Brown then intentionally got himself into a rundown between first and second, eventually getting tagged out but allowing Ryrie to score. That staked the Selects to a 1-0 lead they would hold through three innings, as Shayne Riepert and Jeff Wise allowed a combined one hit.
The Jaxx eventually awoke their sticks in the bottom of the fourth, as Wise tripled home Jason Farrelly before scoring on a Rob MacDonald grounder. They added two more in the fifth, courtesy of a Ryan Ferber two-run homer, cashing Matt Gregory.
The Selects threatened with hits from Mike Welton, Aaron McCaw, and Brad Cleasby in the final two frames, but failed to score, falling to 9-5 on the season. Riepert allowed just five hits over five innings, while striking out seven, and Clark held the Jaxx hitless in his lone inning of work.
MVP: Scott Clark, SS/P