PREMIER SOFTBALL REPORT

(Saturday 5th March 2022)

By Tony Smith

Callum Bishop celebrated his inclusion in the Black Sox training squad with some impressive batting as leaders Papanui picked up two weekend wins in the Canterbury premier men’s softball championship.

The 24-year-old – named in Mark Sorenson’s 24-man training squad along with Papanui clubmates Jackson Watt and Ben Watts and PCU Devils catcher Cam Watts – played a pivotal part in victories over PCU and Halswell.

Bishop batted three from four (.750) at the top of the order in the Papanui Tigers’ 6-2 comeback win over PCU on Friday night.

He backed up with three from five (.600) as Papanui piled on 20 safe hits in a 13-3 win over Halswell at Papanui Domain on Saturday.

PCU – with a double-header win on Saturday – lead the men’s competition with 61 points, four more than Papanui, who have played one game fewer.

In the women’s championship, co-leaders Halswell Hornets needed a late rally to see off Papanui 10-6 while second-placed Sydenham Kereru edged the PCU Angels 10-7.

Halswell and champions Sydenham Kereru share the lead on 48 points, but the Hornets have two games in hand.

RESULTS

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PAPANUI TIGERS 6 PCU Devils 2

Papanui got impressive performances from two of their Black Sox brigade in Friday night’s win at Mizuno Ballpark.

Callum Bishop – revelling at leadoff – slammed three safe hits while Jackson Watt, given the ball as starting pitcher, recovered from a difficult start to hurl a win.

Watt has hardly had much mound time in a truncated season, and the southpaw was given a big wake-up call in the top of the first inning.

The second batter, Josh Harbrow, singled to right field then Bailey Hamilton hammered a two-run automatic homerun over the leftfield fence.

Watt soon settled, giving up only one more hit (to Craig Nelson) before Tigers ace Ben Watts took over in the sixth.

By then, Papanui had a comfortable lead, having wrested back control in the bottom of the second when NZ Major Sox Under-23 team selection Josh Lubiejewski, Jayden Britt, Nathan Watt and Bishop scored, the latter having blasted an opposite field RBI double.

Jackson Watt showed some gas to beat out an infield single in the fifth frame, scoring after Callum Muir’s safe bunt and Ant Stuart’s sacrifice fly.

His brother, Nathan singled in the sixth before completing the scoring when Bishop bagged his third hit.

Shortstop Britt batted 1.000 with two from two, while Nathan Watt went two from three.

PCU coach Ted Forrester used three pitchers, with starter Liam Potts, Bailey Hamilton and Quinn Wickens combining for four strikeouts, nine hits and three walks.

The scene is now set for a title showdown between the Tigers and Devils on March 19-20.

PCU 1 ALBION ANTEATERS 0

Catcher Cam Watts marked his inclusion in the Black Sox squad with PCU’s winning run at Linfield Park on Saturday.

The game was scoreless until the sixth inning when leadoff Watts doubled to make base, advanced on a wild pitch and scored on Josh Harbrow’s sacrifice fly to centre field.

A much-improved Albion side had not had a decent hit until Matt Dougherty and Lopeti Sumner supplied back-to-back- singles in the seventh inning, but the Devils dug deep to preserve their shutout.

The defeat was no reflection on Albion pitcher Kev Papuni, who bagged nine strikeouts, conceded two walks and held the Devils to three hits – doubles by Leon Lumb and Watts and a single by Craig Nelson.

Leftie Liam Potts and Ryan Britt mustered eight strikeouts for PCU.

PCU 6 RICHMOND KEAS BLINDERS 0

Hands up Canterbury softball fans who wish Josh Harbrow was still available for the Black Sox squad?

The two-time world series infielder – a gold medal winner in 2017 – showed his class in the Devils’ second win at Linfield Park.

Harbrow hammered a fourth inning home run and a triple in the fifth – no mean feat considering he was facing former Black Sox pitcher Penese Iosefo-Harris, who has shrewdly guided Richmond into third place in their first season back in premier grade.

PCU proved there is still a gap between the top two teams and the chasing pack by finishing strongly at the business end.

Their winning margin was embellished by three runs in the fifth after a triple by Craig Nelson, a single from Jayden Potts and Harbrow’s three-bagger.

Nelson, enjoying a rich recent run of batting form, drove in Leon Lumb and Quinn Wickens in the sixth. He finished with .666 (2 from 3), along with Wickens, who popped down two safe bunts.

Young Liam Potts won the pitching duel with 10 strikeouts for four hits and two walks.

Iosefo-Harris claimed six Ks for nine hits and two walks.

Matt Baxter, Whetu Beattie, Finn Mounty (double) and Brandie Reihana (bunt) had the Blinders’ hits.

HALSWELL HORNETS 6 KAIAPOI KINGS 0

Harrison Bruhns-Croy hurled a shut-out as the Hornets strolled home at Papanui Domain on Saturday.

They showed they meant business from the get-go with leadoff Marty Warren cracking a double for the first of 11 Halswell hits.

Aaron Collier led the power hitting with two hits from three at-bats, including a triple. Fletcher Due also hit a three-bagger.

Collier also collected a double to score Reuben Elkins and Sam Church in a three-run spree in the fifth inning.

Church had a perfect 1.000 average from three infield singles.

Bruhns-Croy struck out 10 Riversiders and offered up just two safe hits, both to the Kings battery. Scott Sutherland – pitching his first game in ages after injury – stroked a two-bagger and catcher Liam Hughes had a seventh inning single.

PAPANUI 13 HALSWELL 3

Substitute Josh Glading starred with a two-run home run and a double Papanui piled on 20 hits on the Lesley Byrne Memorial diamond.

There were other impressive efforts from Callum Bishop (3 form 5), New Zealand Major Sox Under-23 infielder Caleb Stewart (3/5), Ant Stuart (3/4) and Tyron Bartorillo (2/4).

Jack Watt and Callum Muir had two-baggers while replacement Nathan Watt contributed a triple and a double.

Halswell fielded part-time pitchers Aaron Collier and Kieran Nation, but the score did not blow out until the latter stages, with Papanui scoring five runs in both the fifth and sixth innings.

Reuben Elkins batted in all three Hornets runs, singling to score Fletcher Due in the fourth before his sharply-struck opposite field double to leftfield in the seventh brought in Marty Warren and Due.

Black Sox pitcher Ben Watts fanned 14 Hornets for five hits and a walk. He would have appreciated having former Canterbury pitcher Colin Sutherland umpiring on the dish, with Kaiapoi Kings stalwart calling an impressive game.

Results: Papanui 6 PCU Devils 2, PCU 1 Albion 0, PCU 6 Richmond Keas 0, Halswell 6 Kaiapoi 0, Papanui 13 Halswell 3.

Standings: Papanui 65pts (18 Games), PCU 65 (19), Richmond Keas 39 (18), Albion 32 (19), Halswell 25 (19), Kaiapoi 18 (19).

WOMEN

KAIAPOI QUEENS 5 PAPANUI TIGERS 4

Kaiapoi hit their straps in the final innings to clinch a hard-fought win.

The Queens took the lead in the first inning after back-to-back doubles by Lyndsay Thomas and Layla Bailey-McDowell.

Papanui struck back when Aimee Metuatini scored on Amy Sloane’s hit and Elizabeth Rice batted in Simone Salter.

The Tigers took a 4-1 lead after Sloane and Shylah DeLautour scored on a Salter single in the bottom of the fourth.

But Kaiapoi rallied in the fifth, with Thomas scampering in on a hit by Oriana Connell, who also plated on Bohemian Quinn’s leaguer single.

The Queens won the game in the seventh with McKenzie Bailey-McDowell scoring on a single by Lauren Sutherland, who scored on Layla’s second RBI.

Sutherland tossed six strikeouts on the Kaiapoi mound while Papanui’s Britt Terrey took nine Ks.

Rice was Papanui’s top batter with three from four (.750) while Salter batted .500.

SYDENHAM KERERU 10 PCU ANGELS 7

The score see-sawed in a game that produced 25 safe hits (15 to PCU and 10 to SK).

The hits count could have been even higher had PCU not elected to twice intentionally walk SK’s White Sox star Mikayla Werahiko with runners in scoring position.

Shortstop Stella Jorgensen slugged two hits for the Angels, including an in-the-park home run to rightfield in the fifth, which gave PCU a 7-5 lead.

The Angels had earlier scored four runs in the third after six straight hits by Caitlin Davidson, Lillie Simcott, Sammy Fawcett-Kay, Jorgensen, Kaiyah Ratu and Manaia Makiri.

SK put on three runs in the third to Robyn Hall, Mikayla Werahiko and Cassandra McLeod, but they needed a five-run burst in the sixth to cement victory after Jahneiya Taiapa, Cassie Siataga, Carly and Mikayla Werahiko and Cheyann Whyte scored. White cracked a two-RBI single and substitute Tyrissa Elisara got a good hit.

Fawcett-Kay and Simcott (both 3 from 3) batted 1.000 for the Angels, with Tessa Metuatini going two from three, and Ratu and Davidson 2 from 4.

Mikayla Werahiko, who hit safely on the two occasions she wasn’t deliberately walked, batted 1.000 for SK and Whyte .666.

HALSWELL 10 PAPANUI 6

Top of the table Halswell Hornets needed a four-run rally in the bottom of the sixth to subdue an improving Papanui.

Elizabeth Rice continued her fine batting form to smash a triple in the top of the third to score Simone Salter, but Halswell pitcher Cherie Inwood replied with a home run through right-centre field.

Hana Allen singled and Simone Salter doubled in the fourth before Rice hit safely to centrefield to score them both.

Halswell needed a big inning and got it in the sixth with four runs to Finlay Martin, Melissa Chapman, Rebecca James and Beth Lethlean, the last two crossing on Ashley Lightfoot’s triple to right field.

Papanui kept the pressure on in the top of the seventh when Aimee Metuatini doubled and scored on an error. But Lightfoot, who took over the pitching, got two strikeouts and a ground out to end the game.

Rice impressed at the plate for Papanui, with three hits from four at-bats and three RBIs.

Chapman was the top Hornets hitter with three from four, Lightfoot had two from three and Sophie Yarham two from four.

Britt Terrey tallied eight Ks for 10 hits and four walks.

PCU 9 KAIAPOI 8

PCU withstood a late challenge from Kaiapoi in an 18-hit game.

McKenzie Bailey-McDowell gave Kaiapoi a 1-0 lead on Lyndsay Thomas’ squeeze play bunt in the top of the first, but that proved shortlived.

Stella Jorgensen and Manaia Makiri (who’d hit a triple) scored on Tessa Metuatini’s hit for the Angels in the second.

Stephen Ratu’s young side led 5-1 after Caitlin Davidson scored in the second and Johanna Church batted in Makiri and Metuatini in the third.

Catcher Layla Bailey-McDowell pulled a run back for the Queens in the top of the fourth and they tied it up at 5-5 when McKenzie Bailey-McDowell, Lauren Sutherland and Thomas crossed on hits by Thomas and Oriana Connell.

Lillie Simcott drove the ball up the middle to score Church to put the Angels ahead 6-5 in the bottom of the fifth.

Then Kaiyah Ratu (infield single), Metuatini (triple) and Church scored after a triple by Davidson in the sixth.

Trailing 9-5, Kaiapoi needed to score four times to potentially force a tiebreaker. They managed three runs after a Connell triple and signle from Teagan Maxted, but PCU clung on for the final out.

PCU, led by Metuatini (3 from 4), mustered 10 hits to Kaiapoi’s eight. McKenzie Bailey-McDowell, Thomas and Connell went 2 from 4 for the Queens.

Results: Kaiapoi 5 Papanui 4, Sydenham Kereru 10 PCU 7, Halswell 10 Papanui 6, PCU 9 Kaiapoi 0.

Standings: Halswell 52 (18 games), Sydenham Kereru 48 (19), Kaiapoi 46 (19), PCU 40 (19), Papanui 25 (19).

Article added: Thursday 10 March 2022