OTTAWA - The first game of the Fun Bunch 2017 season was canceled because the City of Ottawa closed all baseball diamonds due to the soggy conditions.

OTTAWA - Once again mother nature conspired against the fun bunch as their last game in May was rained out. As it turned out the game conflicted with the seventh and deciding game of the Eastern Conference semi-final between the Ottawa Senators and the Pittsburgh Penguins so the fun bunch would have been unable to field a team as the players had all decided to watch the Sens game instead.

OTTAWA - Down five players--including an unprecedented bail-out at 5 pm for a 6 pm game by John "hans solo" Devries--the Fun Bunch managed to defeat Bass Line Station. Clark "pound 'em back" Lawlor, Scott "boom boom" Saunders, Richard "wild thing" Bujold" and Jess "bulls-eye" Belanger, all decided to kick-back and take the night off and leave their teammates twisting in the wind. Eschewing the scheduled team game--and against the toughest adversary in the league no less--they opted instead for a night of lighthearted fun and frivolity watching the Red Blacks first pre-season game. With "pound 'em back" away on his own "boys weekend trip", steve "field marshal" saunders was left flabbergasted when he received a text from "hans solo" at 5 pm stating that he had a "business meeting" that he "couldn't get out of" , leaving "field marshal"--and the rest of the team--short of players with only an hour to go before game time.

Scrambling , "field marshal" and mark "polygon" pintar sent out text messages, emails, phone calls and instagrams, trying to track down a couple of spare players. Only minutes before game time, they secured stalwart spare Corey "too tall" Ploegman and Chris "yankee clipper" Nicol. "too tall" had yet to play a game for the team this year, and when asked the last time he played softball "yankee clipper" replied, "you don't want to know"--not an encouraging sign. Up against hated Bass Line Station the fun bunch were going to have their hands full.

Bass Line Station started the game by sending a guy to the plate who promptly hit a solo shot. Their illegal slight-of-hand was picked up by glen "the wrangler" rankin. "Hey you're supposed to have a woman bat first", he yelled from the outfield. Feigning ignorance, their notorious captain "paul" agreed to send two women to the plate consecutively to make amends. The first one hit another solo shot. With many new and intimidating looking players in their dugout, clearly this was going to be a long night.

The fun bunch cobbled together band of team elders, keen youngsters and last-minute substitute, however, responded with an impressive five run inning to take an early lead 5-2. Seven of the first eight batters got hits, including an awkward jab at the ball by steve "field marshal" saunders trying to desperately to make contact on his third wild pitch from mark "polygon" pintar in his pitching debut.

Bass Line Station were caught off-guard by this effrontery. Teams were supposed to be fearful and intimidated when confronted by their team of elite athletes. Didn't these guys get the memo? Nevertheless they answered back with a blitzkrieg of their own scoring five runs to take a 7-5 lead. The fun bunch stumbled in the bottom half of the inning and managed to score only a single run. That's more like it, Bass Line Station smugly thought.

But the fun bunch weren't about to roll over and play dead. They scored seven runs in the next two innings and held Bass Line station to a single run to make the score 13-8 in the last full inning of play. Exceptional hitting by all the women including a perfect four-for-four night by Rowena "scoresheet" Sams lead the team comeback. Alison "bulldozer" Hale also had another solid game after her stellar performance last week--including catching a pop fly for an out.

Substitutes Corey "too tall" Ploegman started off a little rusty, but found his groove by the end of the game as he hit a deep shot to center field, ran around the bases like a gazelle and scooped up ground balls like a vacuum cleaner. Chris "yankee clipper" Nicol also started off the game a little rusty, but his years of little league training south of the border came in handy as he drilled the ball hard at each at bat.

In the middle of the third inning, as the fun bunch prepared to trot on to the field, "field marshal's" cell phone "pinged" to signal the arrival of a text message. Curiosity got the better of him and he grabbed his phone to see who it was from. His jaw dropped when he saw the picture attached. It was a selfie by "hans solo" from the red blacks game. Posing with a rogues gallery of AWOL players was "hans solo", "wild thing" , "bullseye", and "boom boom". "I guess his 'business meeting' ended early", harrumphed leah "roadrunner" morrell as she looked over "field marshal's" shoulder at the shameful display

With only four full innings in the books, "paul" informed the fun bunch that this would be their last inning as they had "another game" to go to (apparently the fun bunch were merely batting practice). Once again, he had to be informed of the rules of softball. You are not allowed to end the game in the middle of an inning, but rather only after both teams had had their at-bat. "Ok we'll try to go quick", he replied. In a new low, however, half his team packed up their arsenal of high end baseball bats and did indeed leave the ball park after they finished their half of the inning leaving the rest of his team apologetic but without enough players to finish the game.

Fun bunch win 13-8 in four innings

OTTAWA – With only seven players in the dugout and the game already ten minutes behind schedule, steve “field marshal” saunders was madly scanning the horizon for any sign of a handful of players who were holding up the game. In typical fun bunch fashion, two players bailed out last minute and two said they would be “late” five minutes before the game started. The other team—the normally cordial bons vivants--were having a field day, hollering insults, taunts and catcalls across the diamond, expressing their displeasure with the antics of their opponent.

Once again it was the usual culprits responsible for the pre-game drama as scott “boom boom” saunders decided to kick back and take the night off leaving his teammates to twist in the wind. Jess “bulls-eye” belanger then informed “field marshal” that her car broke down and she had no way to get to the game. Then just for good measure Alison “bulldozer” Hale and Glen “the wrangler” Rankin—seemingly in cahoots—booth said they would be “late”—without offering up any further details.

Buoying the spirits of the team however, was the presence of Richard “wild thing” Bujold who was making his season debut. In his now trade-mark pizza stained jersey and wool-socks-and-work-boots attire he cut an imposing figure as he sloppily fielded ground balls while kicking up plumes of dust in the warmup. The game was now bound to be interesting if nothing else.

Down three players and unable to hold off the other team any longer, “field marshal” finally conceded and led his porous defense out onto the field. With a grand total of three outfielders, three infielders and a catcher, the bons vivants were licking their chops as they looked out into acres of unprotected real-estate. Three outs later however, with nothing to show for their efforts, they slunk out of their dugout and onto the field--shut out in the first inning by the razor-sharp (and razor-thin) fun bunch defense.

Players now began trickling in. John “hans solo” devries, sauntered in from the parking lot about mid way through the second inning. Although he originally said he wouldn’t be able to play—this is typical of the miscommunication within the team—he showed up anyways - a welcome sight for sore eyes. Glen “the wrangler” rankin and Alison “bulldozer” hale meandered in from the parking lot as well—in no particular hurry—in the third and fourth inning respectively.

The once amorphous team was now taking shape and refining their focus. With a full lineup “field marshal” re-arranged his defense like a general on the battle field. The bons vivants were nonplussed. The mood in their dugout quickly turned from conviviality to consternation. The fun bunch women unleashed a barrage of hits that rained down on them like artillery. They were caught in the cross-hairs--unsure what to do. Panic ensued. Several bons vivants began hastily searching for a white flag to raise. Two home runs by “the wrangler” and a third by “downtown” made the score 20-6 by the end of the sixth inning. Still the women continued their onslaught—looking to send a message after last weeks lacklustre performance. Rowena “scoresheet” sams – six hits, Alison “bulldozer” Hale and Leah “roadrunner” Morrell five hits each and Kathie “daredevil” Adare – four more hits for good measure.

Even “wild thing” was looking to help out—in his own misguided way: dropping a ball in the outfield after he stumbled and fell when he slipped on the slick soles of his workboots, tripping and falling in the infield as he stutter-stepped rounding second with catastrophic consequences, and seizing control of the pitching mound only to deliver a disastrous performance as balls sailed in pretty much everywhere except the strike zone.

The bons vivants managed to regroup for one inning as they scored five runs in the seventh to make the score 11 – 20, but the fun bunch quickly answered back with five runs of their own. Down 27-11 in the top of the ninth, they were unable to score a run as the fun bunch shut them down mercilessly including an over-the-shoulder basket catch for the final out.

OTTAWA - Being the manager of the fun bunch is anything but “fun”. Every week is an adventure that commences with a simple inquiry – who’s playing this week? Of course there are the stalwarts that answer immediately and are the first ones at the diamond: leah “roadrunner” morrel, mark “polygon” pintar, jess “bullseye” belanger. Then there are the players who answer relatively quickly, and to their credit eventually make it to the diamond: rowena “scoresheet” sams and alison “bulldozer” hale. Clark “pound-em-back” lawlor and kathie “daredevil” adare, respond relatively quickly but their attendance record is not exemplary. Then the real fun starts. Glen “the wrangler” rankin and john "methuselah” devries usually reply with mild prompting, and will most times make it to the field just as the game starts or just slight thereafter. But leading the way in difficulty--by a country mile—is the latcon contingent. Scott “twist-in-the-wind” Saunders and Richard “wild thing” Bujold require incessant badgering to extract a response--kind of like pulling teeth only less fun. “I’ll try”, “I’m going to be last minute if I make it”, “not sure yet, ask me again tomorrow”, goes the litany of non-committal responses leaving steve “field marshal” saunders wringing his hands In frustration unsure if he should get replacement players or not. It is a weekly ritual that repeats with clock-work precision.

Alas, this week was more of the same. With the patience of a saint, “field marshal”, inquired, followed up, badgered and then decoded the replies. With “scoresheet” on holidays, “field marshal” asked “bullseye” if she could bring a friend out. No reply. “Twist-in-the-wind” and “wild-thing” “didn’t know” if they could play. “Maybe”, “going to be last minute” was their less than helpful joint reply. “daredevil” and Clark “lightweight” Lawlor both bailed out—“going to bluesfest”, team commitment clearly a low priority. With john “hans solo” devries on vacation, it was going to be a threadbare turnout—yet again.

With no “reply” from “bullseye”, “field marshal” assumed she would not be bringing a friend out so was a bit surprised to see scott “boom boom” saunders bring his daughter meghan to the game—presumably to watch as punishment of some sort. But no, he was informed. Meghan was taking “bullseye’s” place, this despite the fact she had never played a game of baseball in her life, and no one had informed “field marshal” of that decision. He rolled his eyes upon getting the update. “I’m too old for this”, he thought to himself in a moment of self-pity as he quickly explained the game of baseball to Meghan—the sixty second condensed version.

No sooner was he done, when “bullseye” sauntered into the diamond. “Why aren’t you at bluesfest?”, “field marshal” asked, now totally confused. “I never said I was going to blues fest”, she replied calmly. “But Meghan said she was taking your place because you were at Bluesfest”, “field marshal” continued, desperate to unravel the mystery. “I told Meghan to come out because my other baseball friends couldn’t make it. She is the friend you asked me to bring out”, she explained. “field marshal” guffawed at the absurdity of the situation. Like something out of a keystones cops movie or the “who’s on first” three stooges skit. Self-pity once again descended upon him

With richard “wild thing” Bujold nowhere in site, they were forced to commence the game with only eight players including an eighteen year old neophyte who had never played baseball before in her life (and who like her father showed up in tennis shoes).

Facing a new team to the league “pitch please”, “field marshal” wasn’t sure what to expect. Half an inning later, mercied with five runs scored and no outs he had a pretty good idea. The team consisted entirely of twenty-something year old athletes. Everyone hit well. There were no ground balls. With only three fielders and no rovers, they had a field day with the porous defense. This was shaping up to be a long game.

The ”roadrunner” led off with a pop-up to go one down very quickly. But consecutive hits by “bullseye” and “polygon” set the table for steve “downtown” saunders. He strode to the plate--game plan in mind. Time to right this sinking ship and send a blunt message to “pitch please”. The fun bunch weren’t about to roll over and let them steamroller them. No sir, not on his watch.

With his little brother “boom boom” pitching, “downtown” took a deep breath and in a soothing voice calmly asked him to “toss it in like a beachball”. Complying on the first pitch, “downtown” parked the ball neatly over the outfield fence to chalk up three runs. Hits by Meghan “the machine” Saunders (in her first ever softball at bat) , “bulldozer” , “the wrangler” and “boom boom” brought the inning total to five, to tie the game.

Lifting spirits somewhat was the arrival of richard “wild thing” Bujold to start the second inning. He had brought along his dog “max” a chihuahua sized mini-doberman in tow. “Aw how cute”, the women fawned over the miniscule canine. Clearly “max” was not fond of being left on his own, for the minute “wild thing” trotted out on to the field he began yapping. A piercing, staccato, repetitive sound – like nails on a chalkboard except with a jackhammer. The sound cut through the din of the 417 rush-hour traffic like a sharp scalpel through butter. Nerves were becoming frayed as the sound was relentless. Repeated like a metronome inning after inning. The only respite was when “wild thing” came into the dugout and clutched the dog to his bosom. But like a wind-up toy he was fully recharged and ready to go as soon as “wild thing” left the dugout again. Mercilessly, the pattern played itself out over and over again. Max “motor mouth” bujold had somehow managed to turn a pleasant evening into something akin to the Chinese water torture.

The lead see-sawed back and forth. The fun bunch took the lead in the second, only to lose it again in the third. They regained it in the fourth only to fall behind 17-16 in the fifth. Compounding their challenge was the fact that they were out of home runs. With the fifth run on third base, “boom boom” belted a solo home run over the fence—the team’s last—when a single would have sufficed. That was back in the third. So now they faced the daunting task of beating this aggressive young athletic team with no home runs left in their arsenal.

But once again, like they have so many, many times before, under the careful tutelage of “field marshal” , the team responded. “The wrangler” led the guys with a perfect five-for-five night and five runs scored. But the biggest surprise was meghan “the machine” saunders who displayed exemplary hand-eye coordination and blazingly fast speed as she beat out five singles and scored four runs in her debut performance.

While the fun bunch offence was running along tickety-boo, defense was another matter entirely. It was an error-fest plain and simple. Dropped balls, misplayed grounders, missed tags, allowed “pitch perfect” to keep pace with the fun bunch , while they should have been falling behind. “field marshal” tried to tighten things up by moving players around but the team was having an off night and the changes only had marginal impact.

With the bases loaded and a soft pop-up to the infield , “field marshal” moved halfway to home plate anticipating a error. When the infielder dropped the ball he darted for home plate. Crossing the home plate line, before the ball came home he was shocked to hear “the roadrunner” call him out. A bad call that hopefully wouldn’t come back to haunt them. In the next inning—in an ironic twist-- “the roadrunner” was called out herself by “polygon” when she tried to stretch a triple into an in-the-park home run. Casting “field marshal” a playful wink, “polygon” yelled “you’re out” in a successful attempt to settle the score.

In a light-hearted moment in the sixth inning, “boom boom” got caught in a run down. In this league, a run down is a relatively straightforward affair with the advantage going to the base runner. But when you don’t have cleats, the results can be catastrophic as they were with “boom boom”. Attempting to stop and reverse direction, resulted in him sliding helplessly—as if standing on marbles--towards the ball carrier. He sat down hard on the infield and kicked up a plume of dust. Coughing the infielder lunged to apply the tag. Not quite done yet, “boom boom” attempted humorously to craw-daddy back to second base, using his buttocks as appendages. He didn’t make it very far, but you have to give him an A for effort and creativity. Now if he would only buy a pair of cleats!

The fun bunch pulled away scoring four, five and then four runs in the sixth, seventh and eighth inning, to pitch please’s three. The score now stood at 29 to 20 going into the top of the ninth. The game plan became simple: keep them from scoring nine runs.

Easier said than done, as the pitch please came out with a vengeance to score three quick runs, narrowing the gap to six runs. With runners on first and second and one out , “field marshal” playing short stop reminded “wild thing” playing third that it was a force play at any bag. The next batter hit a hard grounder directly to “field marshal”. Perfect, he thought, should be an easy double play. He carefully scooped up the ball and shuttled it over to “wild thing”. As he released the ball, he realize with horror, that “wild thing” was not on the bag. In fact he wasn’t even looking at the play. He seemed to be staring at an odd-shaped cloud in the sky. “get on third!”, “field marshal’s” shrill cry, seemed to shock him back to reality. He stepped on the bag as the ball hit him in the chin, then dropped to the ground. “pick it up and touch the base”, “field marshal” continued as if coaxing a temperamental child. In a rather ungraceful display of defense, “wild thing” managed to pick up the ball, get his foot on the bag and get one out (when there should have been two).

With runners still at first and second, the next batter hit a short blooper into left field. Unable to make the catch, “the wrangler” fielded it and threw to third in plenty of time to get the force. “wild thing” reached out, opened his glove, jabbed at the ball but closed it on nothing but air as the ball sailed past him into the back stop. Another gloriously opportunity to end the game gone by the wayside leaving the bases loaded and the potential seventh run at the plate.

The next batter hit a deep fly ball to left field that the wrangler mercifully caught for the final out. Upon leaving the diamond, “bulldozer” looked “wild thing” in the eye and said matter-of-factly: “you owe that guy a beer”.

OTTAWA – It was a disaster in the making. John “methuselah” devries, scott “boom boom” saunders, richard “wild thing” Bujold, and jess “bullseye” belanger all pulled a collective disappearing act that would have put Harry Houdini to shame. Eschewing the fun bunch game to leave their teammates to “twist-in-the-wind”, they all kicked back to enjoy a night out to watch the red blacks at Lansdowne park instead. Sadly, this is not the first time this has happened, however Alison “bulldozer” Hale, Leah “Roadrunner” morrell and clark “pound ‘em back” lawlor were all out of town that night too. That left steve “field marshal” saunders with a grand total of five players for the game. Including himself there was mark “polygon” pintar, rowena “scoresheet” sams, kathie “daredevil” adare and glen “the wrangler” rankin.

By game time, he had managed to secure three more players. Stu “all-in” allan, mark “oak tree” cuhaci, and alana “the machine” mcdonald (on loan form pitch please , the team that was playing next at 8:15). “all-in” was the son of the “field marshal’s” neighbor , who hadn’t played softball for over a year. “oak tree” (so named because of opponents inability to move him away from the front of the net in hockey), hadn’t played softball for a couple of years and “the machine” volunteered to play for the fun bunch as her team was playing the late game at that diamond.

So all together there were three women and five men. Pretty meagre but it would have to do.

Actually, the original game had been rescheduled at the request of league convenor Colin Bromfield. He had asked “field marshal” if he would switch their original game from Thursday to Wednesday because the other team “blue zone” couldn’t play on Wednesdays. So when “field marshal” strode into the dugout, stop hitting on us were a little taken aback. “what are you doing here?”, their captain asked nervously. “colin asked us to switch games with the blue zone”, came “field marshal’s” curt reply. A cloud of trepidation settled over their bench. Consternation and dread emanated from their side of the diamond. Someone whimpered softly.

“field marshal” didn’t know what to expect from his cobbled-together crew. He would find out soon enough he surmised.

As the visiting team, the fun bunch went to bat first. Hits by “the machine”, “polygon” and “field marshal” scored one run, but unfortunately, the fun bunch left two base runners stranded. This would become an unpleasant theme of the evening as they struggled to cash in runners all night long.

Stop hitting on us had a big second inning and scored four runs while the fun bunch faltered and left two more runners on base, unable to cash in a run. The score was now 4 – 1 for stop hitting on us.

In the third inning with “polygon” on base, “field marshal” realized something had to be done quickly to right his sinking ship. This was to be their watershed moment and he knew it. He grabbed his trusty Louisville Z-34, end loaded bat and gave it a twirl. He strode to the plate , the weight of his team once again on his mighty shoulders, but he was unfazed. He had been down this path, many, many times before. It was well-worn and he could traverse it blind folded.

“all-in” was standing on the pitching mound. Conscripted to pitch with no other alternatives. “you better stand back a bit son”, “field marshal” cautioned the eager, but somewhat unseasoned neophyte. “now toss it in like a beach ball”, he cautiously advised. One swing later and the fun bunch were back in the game 4-3. But they weren’t done yet. Suddenly the good ship fun bunch was righting itself. The bilge pumps--now fully engaged--were spewing water from the hold, as the gunwales rose in the water. With two outs, kathie “daredevil” adare kept the rally going, with a brilliant hit into the gap in the outfield. “all-in” followed suit and then “the wrangler” blasted another home run for three more runs. The fun bunch had now pulled ahead with a big five running inning to lead 6-4.

The battle continued for several more innings with the fun bunch continuing to pull away. In fact stop hitting on us, scored only two more runs in the next five innings and a big part of the reason was the play of the one-woman-wrecking-crew named alana “the machine” mcdonald. Her prowess at second base was simply astounding. She fielded ground balls and threw out base runners. She made the force at second on a relay from short and then threw to first. And not done yet, she tagged out two base runners and threw to first for two double plays, missing a third only because the runner broke his base line to avoid her tag.

As stop hitting on us fell further behind, the calls by their umpire became more one-sided—a common refrain in this league. One particularly onerous example occurred in the eight inning. With stop hitting on us now behind 14-6, their base runner had aggressively rounded second and was heading to third. When the ball from the outfield sailed in to “field marshal” at short, he saw “oak tree” perfectly positioned to make the tag and gunned the ball over to his outstretched mitt. He lowered his glove and slapped the leg of the runner clearly tagging them out. “safe” came the call from the stop hitting on us umpire, keen to get their team back in the game.

Hits by “daredevil”, “polygon”, “field marshal”, “all-in”, and “the wrangler” added four more runs in the ninth. The score now sat at 18-8. Some great defense in the ninth including a feet-first diving catch, then drop, then catch again by “the wrangler” and an amazing catch by “the machine” on a deflection off the glove of “field marshal” as he dove for a hard grounder, ended the game with stop hitting on us managing only two more runs.

Final score fun bunch 18-10 for their fourth win in a row.

OTTAWA - This was the last game of the regular season—a final preparation for the end-of-year tournament. With Steve “field marshal” Saunders back at the helm, the fun bunch exuded confidence as they swaggered about the diamond. They were facing the Blue Zone. A new team that was somewhat disorganized but displayed some raw talent in their first meeting.

As usual the 8:15 game was delayed. This time the culprits were Alison “bulldozer” Hale and Glen “the wrangler” Rankin—both of whom sauntered into the dugout 20 minutes after game start time. Missing the usual “twist-in-the-wind” gang of scott “boom boom” saunders, richard “wild thing” Bujold, john “hans solo” devries and clark “pound ‘em back lawlor”, the team recruited mark “oak tree” cuhaci and ryan “man-o-war” matishuck – both significant upgrades.

The Blue zone took an early 4 – 0 lead, until back-to-back doubles by “oak tree” and “man-o-war” scored the first run of the game for the fun bunch to make it 4-1 at the end of the second.

Clearly the player of the game was Mark “polygon” Pintar. Still smarting from the back-to-back losses that he skippered while “field marshal” was on holiday, he had a career game tonight. Batting leadoff, he went six for six, and scored five runs including an in-the-park home run. He ran the bases aggressively all night, taking extra bases on every play.

It was a late game on a moonless night so darkness combined with the lights of the diamond and a steady soft drizzle combined to wreak havoc with high fly balls causing both teams to drop a fair number in the outfield.

“the wrangler”, in some pain from his marathon of hockey games this week, played second base for the first time this year. The results were spectacular as he fielded grounders, threw runners out at first and combined with “field marshal” and kathie “dare-devil” adare for some high light reel double plays.

Playing in only his second game, “oak tree” had a big night too. After driving in “field marshal” for his first RBI ever, he called time and gathered up the game ball for his trophy case.

While the fun bunch seemed in cruise control, the hit a snag in the sixth inning. After putting the first two batters out, it looked like they were headed for a clean getaway, when the third batter hit a hard liner to short. Taking an awkward bounce at the last minute that drilled “field marshal” on the finger tips, he nevertheless reeled in the ball and threw to first. The momentary delay however allowed the baserunner to beat out the throw. The Blue Zone capitalized and scored five runs before the bleeding was stopped. The score now stood at 11-10 for the fun bunch.

Heading into the ninth inning, the fun bunch lead 14-10 . It seemed the Blue Zone held a “pow wow” before they came to bat. Struggling to drop any hits into the outfield, they devised a plan “B” and proceeded to get the next 7 runners on base by bunting. As if that wasn’t bad enough, one of their runners, slid into third and spiked leah “roadrunner” morrell who grimaced and clenched her teeth in pain. She would make them pay for taking that liberty.

When the fun bunch came to bat, the score was 16-14 for the Blue Zone. Giggling and high fiving they skipped off the field, giddy with excitement over their dubious rally and six sketchy runs.

But the fun bunch were not impressed. They were not about to be beaten by cheaters. “The Wrangler” lead they way. Batting leadoff he crushed a double. He was followed by Kathie “dare-devil” Adare who promptly hit a deep single to drive him in. “Polygon” was up next and he also hit a double to send “dare devil” to third. By this time the Blue Zone had stopped giggling. The fun bunch had runners on second and third with no one out and were now one run away from tying the game. And they had done all that with legitimate hits. “the roadrunner” came to the plate. She looked straight into the eye of the player who had spiked her the inning before and mouthed the words “watch this asshole” as she crushed the next pitch all the way to the fence for a triple. Fun bunch win 17-16.

OTTAWA - Funbunch beat Aquabats 16-13 in six innings

Leah player of the game with five hits, five runs scored and an over the fence home run to tie for team lead in home runs!

Next game Athletics at 2

OTTAWA - FUN BUNCH COME FROM BEHIND IN THE BOTTOM OF THE 7TH TO WIN FOURTH STRAIGHT GAME AND REMAIN UNDEFEATED

Leah moves back into a tie for home run lead in the tournament

Fun bunch up 4-0 until rebels have back-to-back 5 run innings to move ahead 10-7

rebels up 10-8 going into the 7th

mark starts inning with a triple, scores on next play, out at first. Score 10-9 – 1 out

leah gets single, ryan gets single , runners on first and second, 1 out.

fm gets double drives in ryan. Score tied. Leah on 3rd , fm on 2nd 1 – out

jess gets a single to drive in leah and win the ballgame 11-10

fun bunch now 4-0

OTTAWA – Coming off a worrisome loss in their fifth game of the tournament, the fun bunch finished the round robin 4-1. While still an excellent record, the magical hitting that propelled the team to an unbeaten 3-0 record on staturday, was showing signs of fading as the team began to show their age.

Sadly, that trend continued in the final. Opportunity after opportunity was squandered as the fun bunch simply could not get a clutch hit leaving runners stranded in most innings. Their stellar defensive play kept the game within reach, but no one was able to rise to the occasion, with no one having more than two hits in the game, and no one scoring more than one run.

Perhaps the best chance and turning point of the game occurred in the sixth inning. Steve “field marshal” saunders had blasted a leadoff solo home run to cut the Athletic lead to 3 runs 10 – 7. With a modicum of momentum in their favour leah “road runner” morrell and glen “the wrangler” rankin had each got hits and were standing at third and second respectively bring scott “boom boom” saunders as the tying run to home plate.

With his big brother emploring him to “wait for his pitch” , “boom boom” swung mightily at the first offering with was a tad low to generate a hard grounder right to first base for the third out to end the fun bunch dubious rally. The fun bunch went meekly in the seventh , three-up, three-down with three weak pop-ups. The team limped across the finish line, hot, dirty, exhausted, and now disappointed.

While they had made it to the A Final for the first time since they had won the championship in 2011 (when ironically they had beaten the Athletics 8-5), they realized they weren’t so much as beaten but rather beat themselves, unable to bring their ‘A’ game to the ‘A’ final.

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Field marshal’s note:

Awesome tournament everyone!

I think we just ran out of gas. Next year we will try to recruit 6 women I think that will help.

Some awesome highlights:

Leah on her unprecedented two home run rampage and torrid hitting streak!

Alison with a DOUBLE in the final!

New recruits ryan, meghan and jessica who all pitched in to help us out

Glen’s new home at second with some spectacular plays

John “methuselah” devries age-defying game play.

Magical hitting by everyone on Saturday

Superb defense (best in the league) – we held athletics to 11 runs and they were CRUSHING all of their opponents including one game where they mercied the opposition

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TEAM PHOTOS taken after final at CARLINGTON #2

team photos