July 9-11

Friday night at the ballpark for the start of a new series, the Gastonia Honey Hunters were in town for the second of their two visits in 2021. Another late-afternoon thunderstorm with high winds delayed game time until almost 7:30, once it started the Hunters ended it in a big hurry. The visitors from North Carolina scored three in the first, five in the second and four more in the fourth on the way to an 18-2 blowout. The Stormers did not record a base hit until the seventh inning, the two runs came in the ninth on an RBI hit by Trayvon Robinson and an Anderson De La Rosa RBI groundout. Junior Rincon started and took the loss. On Saturday it was Farm Show Night at the ballpark, several area agricultural concerns were represented and there were various farm animals on display on the berm in left field. To our friends in the major metropolitan areas it might not seem like a big deal but agriculture has always been one of Lancaster County's major industries and around here it's taken very seriously. The first three innings of the game itself were a roller-coaster ride worthy of any amusement park in the country. Gastonia led 2-0 in the first, in the bottom half the Stormers tied it on back-to-back bases-loaded walks to Anthony Peroni and Anderson De La Rosa. The Hunters made it 6-2 in the second, Blake Gailen replied with a two-run home run to bring the Stormers within two. Gastonia added two more in the third but the Stormers chipped away on a Nick Shumpert RBI hit and De La Rosa'a sac fly to make it 8-6. Neither team (incredibly) scored in the fourth, in the home fifth the Stormers put together a six-spot. One run scored on a wild pitch, another on an RBI hit by Shumpert, the third on Trayvon Robinson's RBI double and the Big Blow was a three-run bomb to right-center from Alejandro De Aza. Two more were added in the sixth on RBI hits from Cleuluis Rondon (single) and Caleb Gindl (double) making the score 14-8, one final run scored in the eighth on an error. Gastonia scored four cosmetic runs in the ninth but the Stormers prevailed 15-12, Dominic Disabatino worked five innings for the victory. There was a note earlier in the week that in home games the Stormers and their opponents have combined for an average of twenty runs scored per game, all you need to know is the Stormers lead the league in both runs scored and runs allowed. The series ended with a Gastonia win on Sunday, my afternoon was spent at Lions Park in Rothsville. After a week off for the holiday we were back for week #9 of street hockey with Warwick winning over Ephrata and Hillside over Township. The regular season ends on the 18th, we'll have playoffs on the 25th and August 1. Take care, thanks for reading.