By Rob Potter
MONTICELLO — July 21, 2006 – The Fitness Factory softball team maintained its perfect record with two victories on Tuesday night in Monticello Men’s Softball League action at Kenneth H. Somerville Field.
Fitness Factory improved to 15-0 on the season with wins over fellow Culligan Division teams Schmidt’s Wholesale and Sutphen East. Fitness Factory topped Schmidt’s by a final score of 11-0 and defeated Sutphen East, 14-3.
Both games ended after five innings because of the league’s 10-run mercy rule.
Fitness Factory
Beats Schmidt’s
In the opening game of the evening, Fitness Factory got its offense going early versus Schmidt’s (5-11).
A first-inning sacrifice fly by Dan Gallo allowed Keith Shaddock to score the game’s first run.
In the top of the second, Fitness Factory extended its advantage by scoring five runs. Jay Legenos scored on an error to make it 2-0. Moments later, Wayne Kaiser singled to bring home Aaron Dinkle and Dennis Rivera crossed home plate thanks to a base hit by Mike Weiner.
The next batter, Serafin Rodriguez, reached base on an infield error. Kaiser and Weiner both scored on the miscue to push the Fitness Factory lead to 6-0.
In the top of the third, Dinkle ripped an RBI double and Rivera stroked an RBI single to give Fitness Factory an 8-0 advantage.
After adding a run on another sacrifice fly by Gallo in the fourth, Fitness Factory closed out the scoring in the fifth. Legenos led off the frame by hammering the ball into deep right field. He quickly rounded the bases for an inside-the-park home run. Four batters later, Weiner doubled to left field and Kaiser scored on the hit to make it an 11-0 game.
Fitness Factory pitcher Shane Conner got two quick outs in the bottom of the seventh before walking Jay Hook. But Conner struck out the next batter to end the game.
Conner allowed only one hit – an infield single by Mike Messenger in the second inning – to pick up the shutout victory.
Fitness Factory Comes
Back To Win
Because several games have been rained out this season, the Monticello Men’s Softball League has held tripleheaders nearly every night in July in an effort to make up each of those games that were postponed by rain. Because of that fact, Fitness Factory players only had a short rest after beating Schmidt’s before they took the field to face Sutphen East.
As the visitors, Sutphen East was up to bat first. The team took advantage of that opportunity, scoring three times in the top of the first.
Scott Gebelein began the contest with a sharp single to center field. He scored later in the frame when Chris Marston smacked a double to left center field. Nick Maori, who reached base after getting hit by a pitch, also crossed home plate on Marston’s double to give Sutphen East a 2-0 lead.
The next batter, Juan Dendarianraena, singled to center field to score Marston.
Sutphen East (7-7) had a 3-0 advantage at that point, but Fitness Factory quickly cut into that lead. Mark Logan singled to center field with two outs and Shaddock on first base. When the ball was bobbled, Shaddock sprinted around the bases to score.
Logan crossed the plate when the next batter, Legenos, reached base on an error.
Fitness Factory took the lead for good in the bottom of the second. Rivera led off with a single and scored the game-tying run on a passed ball later in the inning. Kaiser scored on a bunt single by Serafin Rodriguez to give Fitness Factory a 4-3 lead. Rodriguez scored on a sacrifice fly by Edwin Rodriguez.
Fitness Factory added three runs in the third. Legenos and Kaiser had RBI singles and Rivera hit a sacrifice fly as the team took an 8-3 advantage.
Logan and Dinkle each blasted a two-run homer in the fourth inning. Kaiser and Weiner added an RBI triple and sacrifice fly, respectively, as Fitness Factory extended its lead to 14-3.
In the top of the fifth, Conner allowed a one-out infield single to Marston before retiring the next two batters on fly balls.