After a tough loss on Opening Day, the Hounds took the field looking to bounce back. The location was Riverside Park, and the opponents were the team from Paragon Sports. After the usual pleasantries were exchanged between the two managers, it was time to play ball.
As the home team, we took the field first behind Wink, who was making his first start of the season. A nice 5-5-3 double play set the tone early that this we would be a different defensive performance than last week. Paragon was still able to score a run but that is all they would get in the top of the 1st. As we came to bat in the bottom of the frame, it was evident that Paragon was short-handed and only had 8 fielders out on the field. We were quick to capitalize, scoring 7 runs in the 1st. Mike set the tone, hitting a leadoff solo home run, part of a huge day for MIkePa (4-4, 3 HR, 4 RBI, 4 RS). Paragon eventually had some more people show up and were able to field a complete team. They scored 3 runs in the 3rd, but we also kept putting numbers on the board. We brought an 11-4 lead into the bottom of the 5th, and then we really exploded offensively to put the game to bed. 11 runs were scored in the inning. Every Hound made a contribution, but some of the standouts were Pat (3-3, RBI, RS), Paige (2-2, RBI, RS) and Sam (3-3, 3 RBI, 3 RS). Wink also helped his own cause by going 1-2 with a SAC and 3 RBIs. The umpire finally and mercifully ended the game after Iain's 2-RBI triple. Final Score: Hounds 22, Paragon 4. (mercy)
This was a great win, Hounds. I was particularly impressed with the way we kept up the intensity even though we had a big lead throughout. There weren't very many cheap hits in that 5th inning. Our defense was also much stronger than last game, although there is always room for improvement. If we play like this all the time, we will be a difficult opponent for anybody. Keep up the good work, team.
