It was shaping up to be a quick baseball game between the Listowel Legionnaires and London Stingrays.
Listowel came to bat in the bottom of the fifth, staring at a sizeable 12-1 deficit. With the mercy rule looming – a 10-run difference after seven innings equals game over – the Legionnaires faced an early exit if they couldn’t muster some offence.
But that’s exactly what they did.
The group started to draw walks, scratch out bunts and string hits together, rallying to pull within a pair of runs in the bottom of the ninth.
With runners on base and two out, right-handed hitter Cody Newbigging made great contact on a ball to the opposite field, but outfielder Corbin Rubinski tracked it down for the final out.
In the end it was a heartbreaking 13-11 loss at home on Saturday, July 3, but plenty of positives to take as a three-game road trip approaches. It was also a much better result than the previous night’s affair: a 15-2 defeat in Forest City against the Barons.
The group was shorthanded for the night game, forcing manager Larry Brooks to play. He cracked a hit, going one for three and drawing a reaction from the Listowel dugout.
Joel Graves (3-1) held them to just six hits and the pair of runs over seven innings. First baseman Michael McDonald went four for five scoring two runs and batting in a pair.
The back-to-back defeats drop their record to 3-5, seventh overall in the 10-team Thames Valley Senior League. They’ve also played between one and three fewer games than most of the squads.
In the matinee versus London, Listowel started making noise in the bottom of the fifth.
With Chris DiCarlo and Curtis Harding both aboard, Newbigging singled and Tyler Kellum ripped a triple to cash in three runs in total, taking the mercy rule out of play.
They continued hitting well in the sixth to pull within 12-7.
A sloppy start defensively played a big role in the early deficit, but a more focused approach kept the Stingrays at bay as the game progressed.
Catcher Travis Bennett gunned down two runners trying to steal second, helped by relief pitcher Don Clarke’s moves on the mound.
The Stingrays collected 10 runs off starter Nate Arands, two off Clarke and one more from Dustin Gilkinson in the final frame.
Another back-to-back set is on deck this weekend. On Saturday, July 10 they challenge the London Area Dodgers (3-7) at 7:30 p.m. The following day at 2 p.m. they meet with the Byron Bulldogs (2-7-1).