Hutt Valley softball team impresses

Press, 30 December 1985, Page 3

Hutt Valley softball team impresses

Only Hutt Valley and Wellington have come unscathed through the first two days of the Rothmans national men’s inter-provin-cial softball championships in Christchurch. The other member of the “big three” of softball, Auckland, had its first reverse last evening when it was beaten, 3-1, by Wellington, in easily the most eventful game of the weekend.

Hutt Valley has been the team to impress in roundrobin play, scoring 15 runs in its four games and not conceding a single run. All three pitchers, Paul Magan, Chris Nicholas and Graeme Robertson, threw shut-out games. There was drama from the start in the AucklandWellington game yesterday with the New Zealand world series pitching star, Steve Jackson (Auckland), being called for illegal pitching, by the first base umpire, Mr Mike Mulholland. He ruled that Jackson gained an advantage by changing the position of his feet immediately before delivery. Later in the game another illegal pitch was called on Jackson — after the batter hit a fly ball to the outfield — and his performance started to deteriorate.

After three innings, with Wellington ahead, 2-1, the Auckland coach, Mr Mike Forsyth, replaced Jackson on the mound with Simon Roskvist. “Jackson wasn’t with it. He was putting pressure on the other guys,” Mr Forsyth said.

Confusion in the infield had helped bring about Wellington’s initial run in the top of the first innings, scored by Dean Stevenson. At one stage both Stevenson and Doug Honey were virtually on the same base, but Auckland failed to get an out. Stevenson was subsequently batted in by Jimmy Hall with the throw to home plate too high for the catcher to make the tag. Auckland managed to get its game together sufficiently to equalise in the bottom of the frame when the lead-off batter, Brett McKenzie, scored on an overthrow at third base.

However, Wellington went back in front in the top of the third when McKenzie made an error on a hit by Mark Storer to short-stop, giving Hall time to score in a headlong dive across the plate.

The win was sealed in amazing fashion in the top of the seventh when Stevenson scored from third base on the wildest of pitches by Roskvist. Auckland had decided to walk Hall to first base, but Roskvist’s pitch cleared the backstop and landed on the full in the creek nearly 25, metres behind the batter. Both teams finished with six hits each; Wellington having seven men left on base and Auckland six. Earlier Auckland had easily beaten Canterbury, 40, all the runs being batted in by the team’s designated hitter, lan Stringer, who pulled two Roger Keith pitches over the left field fencfe for automatic home runjg

Canterbury still has a great chance of making the top four play-offs, after recording its second tournament win in a 4-1 scoreline against Counties. Results:— Division A Saturday. — Kirk Motors Wellington 2, Counties 0; Hutt Valley 2, Hawke’s Bay 0; Radio Avon Canterbury 1, Southland 0; Lion Red Auckland 1, North Shore 0; Hutt Valley 7, Counties 0; Wellington 3, Canterbury 2 (9 innings); Hawke’s Bay 1, North Shore 0; Auckland 1, Southland 0. Sunday. — Hutt Valley 1, Southland 0; Wellington 3, Hawke’s Bay 0; Counties 2, North Shore 1; Auckland 4, Canterbury 0; Hutt Valley 5, North Shore 0; Hawke’s Bay 2, Southland 0; Canterbury 4, Counties 1; Wellington 3, Auckland 1. Section Bl Saturday. — Combined Services 8, West Coast 0; Nelson 9, North Otago 2; South Canterbury 4, Waikato 1; North Otago 1, Combined Services 0; Nelson 3, Waikato 1; South Canterbury 9, West Coast 0. Sunday. — Waikato 13, West Coast 3; Nelson 2, Combined Services 0; South Canterbury 5, North Otago 0; Waikato 2, North Otago 0; Nelson 8, West Coast 0; Combined Services 6, South Canterbury 5. Section B2 Saturday. — Otago 16, Taupo 0; Manawatu 3, Canterbury B 0; Mid-Canterbury 4, Eastern Southland 3; Manawatu 4, MidCanterbury 0; Canterbury B 35, Taupo 1; Otago 7, Eastern Southland 3. Sunday. — Otago 8, Canterbury A 1; Manawatu 7, Eastern Southland 0; Mid-Canterbury 12, Taupo 1; Canterbury B 1, Eastern Southland 0; Mid-Can-terbury 2, Otago 1; Manawatu 14, Taupo 0. ,