TUESDAY, MAY 20, WARINANCO PARK---When a bully out-hits their opponent on a playground, the victim is sure to go down.  Garwood Rest was that bully at Warinanco Park when they took on Black & Blues in Linden, NJ.  There was fierce competition on the field between the two teams, but several blows to the opponent’s defense from their bats is what made Garwood Rest the last one standing in their 9 to 0 win.

Team Captain Dave Ricks did an excellent job training his team on how to stand up for themselves when a softball is getting thrown at them.  His team showed outstanding plate discipline in the top of the first inning getting off to a 5 run start.  Lead off man Don Kuczera’s patience paid off from the beginning with his lead off walk and him finishing the game scoring two runs.  Paula Carey and Rob Keiser were two of the heavy hitters with Paula’s 2 for 3 at the plate and Rob’s 3 RBIs.

Black and Blue looked as if they were going to counter bat for bat with Garwood in the 2^nd inning but second baseman Lisa Trani had other ideas in mind.  She picked her team up with her glove making a critical out to end the inning, leaving runners stranded on 1^st and 3^rd base.

Garwood’s Mel Keuscher, Alysa Guinta, and Nancy Rhyner wanted to add to their team’s lead but Black and Blue shortstop Mike Palmer was just ridiculous, turning a ground ball into a double play.  On the first double play of the night he and 2^nd baseman Ieesha Turnage made it look easy.  Mike displayed how deadly he is at the position with his unassisted double play and 2^nd of the night.

The defense for Garwood really started to click late in the game.  Outfielders Greg Ricks and John Carey did a great job taking away any deep ball threats that could have been potential homeruns. 

It wasn’t just the long ball that Garwood Rest took away.  Catcher Tiffany Stulack showcased her athleticism snagging a slow rolling hit up the third base line getting the out at first base.  All of the infield plays in tonight’s game wouldn’t be possible if it wasn’t for 1^st baseman Kristi Cappuccio.  Kristi’s glove made up for any poorly thrown balls keeping the error category at a zero.

It was a team victory for Garwood Rest, but the player of the game both offensively and defensively was shortstop Frank Soto.  Frank went 3 for 3 with 3 runs, home run, and 3 RBIs on the offensive side of the plate.  To top it all off, he ended the game with a great snag off a hard hit ground ball turning it into an unassisted double play.

It’s understandable if no one wants to play with Garwood Rest because nobody likes a bully.