STANDINGS:

FINAL REGULAR SEASON

Reed's Liquors                6-2

Lehner Masonry               6-2

Wallenwein's                    3-5

EA Moose DUDAS         3-5

EA Wireless                     2-6

*Reed's defeated Lehner Masonry twice 

PLAY-OFFS:

DOUBLE-ELIMINATION

RESULTS 8/26:

Reed's 4  Surfin' Birds 1

9/02 Results:

 LEHNER MASONRY 4  Reed's 3

9 innings

LEHNER MASONRY WINS the LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP

First Team listed = Home team

Umpires Paid before 1st Pitch

6:30 First Pitch

JP Nicely Memorial Park

West Falls NY 

PLAY-OFF RULES

Double Elimination   (See Chart below) 

Games will start at 6:35 PM SHARP – no exceptions

Eligible Players must have participated in one (1) League game ( listed in both scorebooks)

7 inning games:

 -In the 1^st 6 innings the team at bat will have 3 outs, clear the bases, have 3       more outs at which time the fielding team will bat.  Innings 7 and beyond will be played as regular innings.

The 1^st Place team after the season ends gets an automatic BYE in Round #1.  Ties in the standings will be broken by head-to-head records.  If those are even then the difference in runs scored between the two teams will be the next tie breaker.  The 3^rd and final tie breaker will be a coin toss.

The Team with the better record in the Regular Season will always be the HOME TEAM in the Play-Offs

 In Round # 1  the 2^nd Place Team will play the 5^th Place Team (Game # 2 on the Chart).  The 3^rd Place Team will play the 4^th Place Team (Game #1 on the Chart).  The 2^nd Place team will get choice of diamond.

In Round # 2 the 1^st Place Team will play the Winner of 3 vs. 4 (Game #3) and the Loser of 2 vs. 5 will play the Loser of 3 vs. 4 (Game #4).  The Winner of 2 vs. 5 will have a BYE.  The 1^st Place Team will have choice of diamond.

•  The next Rounds will be determined by the results of the games above.

•   2^nd Half Regular Season Rules apply unless superseded above.

9-02-10 ADVERTISER ARTICLE 

BIRDS AND CHILL IN THE LAST DANCE

            A popular song in the mid-60’s was named “See you in September” by the Happenings.  It was a standard at college dances in the spring as students prepared to go home for the summer.  The Lehner Masonry Surfin’ Birds and the Blue Chill of Reed’s Liquors first started play in the Glory Days Wood Bat Softball League in early May.  Now these two rivals will play for the League Championship trophy in September.  Reed’s Liquors, facing elimination, earned the right to play in the final game with a 4-1 victory over the Birds. Both teams now have one loss in the double-elimination play-offs as they strive to win the inaugural League championship.

            The Surfin’ Birds jumped to a 2^nd inning 1-0 lead as Larry Allen and Ken Mamon singled with just one out.   Following a fielder’s choice put-out Ed Engels smacked a line drive single to left field scoring Allen for the initial score of the game.   Bird’s pitcher Craig Zielin retired the first 10 Chill hitters but a rare walk in the 4^th frame to Frank Walsh changed this great defensive game.  With two outs Ken Struck followed with a single and Mike Hallinan hit a double to centerfield scoring Walsh and Struck to give the Chill a 2-1 lead.  Dave Corbelli drove in Pete Rich for a 3-1 lead in the 5^th while Hallinan poked another RBI double scoring Struck in the 6^th to close out the scoring. 

            The Birds went down in order during innings 5 through 7 as Hallinan and the stout Reed’s Liquor defense refused to bend.   In a pitcher’s battle Hallinan gave up just 3 hits and Zielin only allowed 5 for Lehner Masonry.  Boris Kuvshinoff and Struck had 14 put-outs in the infield which accounted for 70% of the Surfin’ Birds outs.  John Roedel made several nice running catches in the outfield, Ken Mamon had 5 tough put-outs at 3^rd base and John Grabon added 4 from second base for the Birds in what was truly a well played slow-pitch game.

            The title game will be played on Thursday September 2^nd at 6:30 PM at J.P. Nicely Memorial Park in West Falls.  Come out and see some spirited and truly entertaining softball.  The Glory Days Softball website is www.woodbatsoftball.com

The View From Right Field 

by Rick Ohler  August 26, 2010

Zippity Duda  (With apologies to Ernest Thayer, author of  “Casey at the Bat”)

It was hot that night, and muggy, too, but that hardly dampened the thrill;

It was playoff time at the diamonds of West Falls , the Dudas against the Blue Chill.

As game time approached those legendary Dudas, playing for the venerable Club Moose

Arrived upon that Field of Dreams, and attempted to get their old limbs loose.

The league you see is for those over 50, whose skills though slightly diminished,

Still bring their aches and sprains each week, never believing that they could be finished.

They love the game, and this Glory Days League, John Stegner their able commissioner;

So for three months of glorious summertime, they are joyful softball practicioners.

We Dudas measure 650 years old, the total more than the sum of its parts

With each one a mountain of diamond experience, we’re more than a bunch of old farts

There’s Wilson Curry at 61, not just a purveyor of antiques;

He talks a good game, knows all the lingo, and at first base he’s an acrobatic freak.

The Great Mazu a stately 57, is enshrined in three athletic halls of fame,

As a slugger who gave pitchers panic attacks at the simple mention of his name.

We had Hayes at second, Yogi Cooke at the plate, Bill and Kerry out in right field,

And Tony Roncone the veteran hurler, mixing up pitches despite a bad wheel.

There’s lightning on the basepaths, Jimmy O’Brien, who runs like he’s being chased,

And the youth squad, Joe Shanahan and counselor Tony D, our token forty-eights.

And if  ever you want a good time come watch, Jimmy Kane play a game of soft ball;

He attacks every pitch, every grounder, every fly, as if he’s mixed up in a barroom brawl.

With a lineup like that it was easy to assume, that our win was a foregone conclusion,

And the Chills really had no chance at all, and were headed for playoff  exclusion

But softball’s a funny pursuit that way, and just when you’re out to impress,

Things go “Ka-flooey,” and then self-destruct, til you’re stuck in softball distress.

We started with Kane’s soft pop-up to left, then Kerry’s room service grounder to short,

Then Hayes tripped over a shoelace after hitting a dribbler and barely got out of port.

In the second  “Long Ball” Shanahan, grounded out politely to first base,

And Curry lashed a liner to right that a statue could have caught stuck in one place.

DiFilippo got on and so did Mazu but  a tired bloop to first ended our threat,

And Cooke, Tony and Jimmy went down 1,2,3; we didn’t have any runs yet.

In the field things weren’t quite so bleak, we only gave up two runs in the first,

And one in the second and none in the third, we were ready for a Duda outburst.

We loaded ‘em in the fourth--Kane, Kerry and Hayes, all beaming with hope on the bases,

Til a ground ball with nothing and a can o’ corn pop-up, put worry on all Duda faces.

The fifth was worse--three batters, three outs; the sixth  another offensive zero;

We hit ball after ball right at those  Chillers; we made ‘em  look like Glory Days heroes.

In their sixth we had inspiration anew, when from left field young Joe threw to the plate,

And Cooke standing tall as the runner bore down, tagged the Chiller and sealed his fate. 

So it came to three outs, the season at stake, and we were down seven to nil

We’d crank out some runs in old Duda style, or give the playoff win to the Chill.

Well, we loaded ‘em again, Dudas abounded; we could taste a big rally a brewin’,

And if we’d had any fans they’d  been a cheerin’ to see the Blue Chillers’ undoin’.

But  drat, when we sent up our last Duda hope, a guy who will be nameless forever,

He gave it a ride, but short little ride, for it fell into the  Chill’s waiting leather.

The  “whoosh” that was heard far and wide that night, just as sun  yielded to moon,

Was the air escaping from grand softball dreams, the deflating of the Duda balloon.

Yes, somewhere in this favored land, the stars are shining bright,

The beer is flowing somewhere, from parking lot tailgates at twilight,

And somewhere old men are laughing, and somewhere slo-pitch fans shout;

But there is no joy in West Falls; the mighty Dudas have been shut out.

Rick Ohler played a few games for the Dudas this season, but couldn’t find a bat that was light enough, so he took up with a different kind of lumber, a No. 2 pencil, and became the team’s scorekeeper.

-8-26 ADVERTISER ARTICLE

REED’S BATTLES BACK

            Reed’s Liquors finished the regular season on a 6 game winning streak and with the best record in the Glory Days Wood Bat Softball League.   A second round loss in the League’s double-elimination play-offs put them in the loser’s bracket and in need of 4 straight victories to claim the Championship.  With a 4-0 win over Wallenwein’s in an elimination game at J.P. Nicely Memorial Park in West Falls they accomplished one-half of their very difficult mission. 

            A large crowd turned out to find out which team would move on to meet the Lehner Masonry Surfin’ Birds who are undefeated in the play-offs.  After 3 scoreless innings Reed’s took the lead in the bottom of the 4^th as John Furey singled with 2 outs, advanced on a hit by Boris Kuvshinoff and then scored on a key hit by Ken Struck.  In the 5^th frame Reed’s Liquors took advantage of several Wallenwein’s miscues in the field with big hits by Dave Carlson and Pete Rich to make the score 4-0.

Wally’s loaded the bases with 1 out in the top of the 7^th but couldn’t push across a run as the Blue Chill recorded their 2^nd straight shut-out.

            Kuvshinoff was solid at shortstop and went 2 for 2 at the plate while Tom Aris tripled for the winners.  Mike Hallinan allowed just 3 hits from the hill with great defensive support from Al Malke, Jeff Gianiodis, Frank Walsh, Dave Corbelli, Carl Duerr and Tony Rusinek at 1^st base for the Chill.   Jeff Becker, Steve Pinewski and Larry Howell all had singles for Wallenwein’s while Denny Collins pitched a strong game in the loss.   

            This week Lehner Masonry can win the Championship with a win over Reed’s Liquors.  If Reed’s wins then the two teams will meet on September 2^nd to determine a Champion.  Complete information about the Glory Days League can be found at www.woodbatsoftball.com

-8-19 EA ADVERTISER ARTICLE

BIRDS FLY TO FINALS

            The Lehner Masonry Surfin’ Birds won their 5^th come from behind game of the season as they rallied to defeat Wallenwein’s 7-6 to highlight Glory Days Wood Bat Softball League play-off action.  With the victory the Birds remain the only undefeated team in the double elimination play-off tournament and jump to the Championship finals in Round V.  The Blue Chill of Reed’s Liquors recorded the first shut-out in League history with a 7-0 whitewash over the EA Moose Lodge #370 DUDAS.  The loss eliminated the DUDAS from the play-offs and sent the Chill on to Round IV.

            Wallenwein’s jumped to a 4-0 lead in the 1^st frame as Woody Benzin and John Venezia stroked singles.  Venezia made it 5-0 in the 3^rd with an RBI single.  The Birds showed some life in the 4^th as Larry Allen drove in John Grabon and John Wichman to make the score 5-2.  In the 5^th frame Terry Belz doubled for Wally’s and came home on an RBI single by Dan Ozimek putting Lehner Masonry in a 6-2 hole.  At this point the Birds turned on their comeback magic and went to work.  Winning pitcher Craig Zielin, Ed Engels, Kevin Palmer and Tom Tighe all poked singles in the bottom of the 5^th to close the gap to 6-4.  In the 6^th Allen drove in Grabon who singled to start the inning, Jerry Krawczyk smacked a single and scored on another Engels hit and Mark Brinkel knocked in Krawczyk with what would be the winning run.  Lehner Masonry turned a 6-4-3 double-play in the top of the 7^th inning and closed out the 7-6 victory.

            Reed’s Liquors combined great defense and timely hitting with the steady pitching of veteran Mike Hallinan to record the very rare shut-out over the DUDAS.  Boris Kuvshinoff played a great game at shortstop and went 2 for 3 at the plate.  Tom Aris, Pete Rich, Carl Duerr, Dave Corbelli, Al Malke, Hallinan and John Furey all had RBI hits to pace the balanced Chill attack.  Kerry Hise had 2 hits against the stingy Blue Chill defense while Joe Shanahan combined with Mark Cooke for a 7-2 double-play for the DUDAS.

            Reed’s Liquors will face Wallenwein’s in an elimination game this week at JP Nicely Park in West Falls.  The winner of that game will play Lehner Masonry in Round V next week.  For information about the Glory Days Wood Bat Softball League please visit www.woodbatsoftball.com.

8-12 EA ADVERTISER ARTICLE

WALLENWEIN’S WINS BIG IN PLAY-OFFS

            Wallenwein’s continued to pile on runs as they defeated Reed’s Liquors 16-4 in the 2^nd Round of the Glory Days Wood Bat Softball League double-elimination Play-Offs.  Last week they scored 15 runs in a win over the Moose.  The EA Moose DUDAS rebounded and pulled out a tense 7-6 victory over EA Wireless in 9 innings.  This was the 2^nd straight extra-inning defeat in the Play-Offs for EA Wireless and ended their season.

            Wallenwein’s combined solid hitting, strong defense and took advantage of shoddy fielding by the Blue Chill of Reed’s Liquors to score 7 quick runs and take control of the game. Steve Pinewski smacked a home run, Brian Spink drove in 2 runs with a double and winning pitcher Denny Collins added an RBI single in the 2nd frame.  Wally’s pulled away in the 5^th as Dan Ozimek tripled in 2 runs and scored on a single by Gary Preischel.  Jeff Becker and Dan Whitehead each had 2 hits while Terry Belz made a great running catch in right field to save two runs and also added 2 hits for Wallenwein’s.  Warren Lippert, Spink and Larry Howell sparkled in the field for the winners. Tony Rusinek went 3 for 3 with a triple, Ken Struck was 2 for 3 with a triple and Jeff Gianiodis had 3 singles for Reed’s Liquors.

            The EA Moose DUDAS advanced to Round 3 of the Play-Offs with a 7-6 win over EA Wireless in a wonderfully played game.  Both teams had chances to win in extra innings and an unexpected play led to game ending run.  The DUDAS jumped to a 5-0 lead after 2 innings of play. EA Wireless held the DUDAS bats in check and finally took a 6-5 lead in the 5^th inning as John Marshall drove in the go-ahead run.  In the bottom of the 5^th Doug Hayes drove in Jim Kane to knot the score at 6 each which would stand into extra-innings.  Dom Patterson, Daryl Szarpa and Bill Snyder made tremendous catches in the outfield while Lance Over and Ray Orr were great in the infield for EA Wireless in the extra frames. In the bottom of the 9^th with 2 outs Lenny Mazurkiewicz poked a typical “Mazu” single into right field to keep the inning alive.  Hayes followed with a sharp single to left field and the ensuing throw behind the runner rounding 2^nd base went into right field allowing the winning run to score. Both teams were stunned by the sudden game ending play that ended the season for EA Wireless and sent the DUDAS on to Round 3 of the Play-Offs.  Tony Roncone got the pitching win in relief of Wilson Curry, Mark Cooke and Tony DiFilippo each had 2 RBI’s while Kane added 3 hits for the winners.

            In Round 3 Wallenwein’s will play the Lehner Masonry Surfin’ Birds in a battle of unbeaten teams while the EA Moose DUDAS will face the Blue Chill of Reed’s Liquors in an elimination game.  For more information about Glory Days Softball please go to www.woodbatsoftball.com.

8-5 NEWS ARTICLE

BIRDS SOAR IN PLAY-OFFS

The Surfin’ Birds of Lehner Masonry defeated EA Wireless 4-3 in extra innings and will advance to the third round in the Glory Days Wood Bat Softball League double-elimination play-offs.  As the 2^nd seed in the play-offs the Birds win will give them a week to spend time in the nest while the balance of the League will play at J.P. Nicely Park in West Falls with games starting on Thursday at 6:35 PM.  Wallenwein’s moved to the next round with 15-1 win over the EA Moose Lodge #370 team.  First place Reed’s Liquors had the week off in Round I.

The Connection of EA Wireless played a spectacular game and jumped to a 3-0 lead in the top of the 5^th frame.  Dom Patterson, Brian Andrzejewski and John Marshall each had RBI’s in the inning.  The Surfin’ Birds finally scored in bottom of the 5^th as winning pitcher Craig Zielin drove in the first run and Kevin Palmer knocked in Ed Engels to make the score 3-2.  Lehner Masonry tied the game up in the 6^th as John Roedel poked a double and John Grabon smacked a sharp single.  Both teams played great defense in innings 7 through 9.  Larry Allen made a great running catch for the 3^rd out in the top of the 9^th inning with two Connection runners on base.  Daryl Szarpa made several diving catches in left field for EA Wireless to keep the Birds off the board.  Finally, in the bottom of the 9^th, Ken Mamon drove in Grabon from 2^nd base with two outs to plate the winning run for Lehner Masonry.  Grabon was 4 for 4, Palmer 2 for 3 and John Wichman played a strong game at shortstop for the Surfin’ Birds.  Barry Guido made several excellent running catches in the outfield and went 3 for 4 at the dish, Lance Over went 3 for 4 and was flawless at shortstop while Bill Gonsa pitched a great game for WA Wireless.

 Wallenwein’s took advantage of wildness on the hill by three hurlers from the DUDAS of EA Moose Lodge #370 and won going away 15-1.  Woody Benzin and Terry Belz each had a double and 2 RBI’s.   Steve Pinewski slugged a home run, John Venezia doubled while Dan Ozimek and Brian Spink made big plays in the outfield for Wallenwein’s. Jeff Becker looked like a rookie with an unassisted double-play and a great running catch in support of winning pitcher Denny Collins.

Wallenwein’s will face Reed’s Liquors while the DUDAS will tangle with EA Wireless in the 2^nd Round of the play-offs.  Information about Glory Days Softball is available at www.woodbatsoftball.com

7-28-10 NEWS ARTICLE 

PLAY-OFF PARTNERS SET

            The Glory Days Softball League was established this year as the 1^st slow-pitch softball League in Western NY to use wood bats offering safe and competitive play for men over 50 years of age.  After 10 weeks of games the League has met its goal with great defense and timely hitting the keys to winning games.  Reed’s Liquors held on to 1^st Place with a tense 7-6 win over EA Wireless while Lehner Masonry defeated Wallenwein’s 10-4.  Both teams finished with 6-2 records but Reed’s won both games against Lehner Masonry and thus took the top spot. 

            The Connection of EA Wireless scored 4 runs in the 1^st inning behind a triple by Joe Levesque to take an early lead against Reed’s Liquors.  The Blue Chill of Reed’s tied it in the 2^nd as Pete Rich singled in 2 runs and Coach Ken Struck drove in 2 more with a single to right field. Jeff Gianiodis drove in Dave Corbelli for the go ahead Chill run in the 3^rd inning. Tony Rusinek knocked in the 6^th run and Al Malke smacked a key 2 out single to give Reed’s a  7-4 lead.  The Connection refused to quit and scored 2 runs in the bottom of the 6^th behind hits by Lance Over and Bill Snyder.  Reed’s Liquors shut down the EAW offense in the bottom of the final frame and clinched 1^st place with the 7-6 win.  Rookie Tom Aris had 2 hits and made several nice catches in the outfield as Kevin Struck got the hill victory.  Barry Guido had 3 hits while Daryl Szarpa and Over were strong on the defensive side for EA Wireless.

            The surprising Surfin’ Birds of Lehner Masonry moved their record to 6-2 with a 10-4 win over Wallenwein’s.  The Birds jumped to a 10-1 lead after 4 innings behind the great pitching of Craig Zielin and never looked back.  Joe Tighe came out of retirement to play a great game in the outfield and added 2 hits and 2 RBI’s.  Coach John Grabon had 3 hits, Ken Mamon went 3 for 3 with a double, while John Roedel, John Wichman and Kevin Palmer each had 2 hits for the winners.  For Wallenwein’s Warren Lippert smacked a deep triple as Steve Pinewski, Brian Spink, and Gary Preischel all contributed 2 hits.

            The Play-Offs start this week with Lehner Masonry playing EA Wireless and Wallenwein’s going against EA Moose Lodge #370.  Games will start at 6:35 at J.P. Nicely Memorial Park in West Falls.

7-1 New Article

LEHNER MASONRY HOLDS TOP SPOT

            The Lehner Masonry Surfin’ Birds held on to first place in the Glory Days Wood Bat Softball League as they rallied to defeat the DUDAS 13-12 in the bottom of the 7^th inning.  EA Wireless got back on the winning track as they tallied 6 times in the 7^th frame to beat Wallenwein’s 17-8 at JP Nicely Memorial Park in West Falls.  The Blue Chill of Reed’s Liquors were given the night off in the 5 team league.

            Things looked bleak for the beaks as the EA Moose Lodge #370 DUDAS jumped to a quick 8-0 lead.  Joe Shanahan, Tony DiFillipo, Mark Cooke and Greg Hunt all had key hits to jump-start the DUDAS offense.  The Surfin’ Birds rallied to tie the score at 9-9 in the 4^th inning as Larry Allen stroked a triple to drive in John Roedel.   Lehner Masonry took a 11-9 lead in the 5th as Eugene Rogacki and winning pitcher Craig Zielin scored behind hits by John Grabon and Tom Tighe.  The DUDAS wouldn’t quit in the 7^th and took a 12-11 win as Shanahan crushed a triple.  In the bottom of the 7^th Tighe drove in Zielin to tie the game and Roedel stroked an opposite field single over 1^st base to drive in Jerry Krawczyk to win the game 13-12.  John Wichman played a great game at shortstop and Ed Engels blanketed the outfield for the winning Birds.  Rick Ohler, Lenny Mazurkiewicz and Frank Bartolomeo each had 2 hits for the DUDAS.

            EA Wireless won their 2^nd game of the season with an excellent all around performance against Wallenwein’s.  EAW led 8-4 after 3 innings as an infield defense of John Marshall, Lance Over and Ray Orr behind the pitching of Bill Gonsa controlled the mighty bats of Wallenwein’s.  With the score 11-8 going to the 7^th the Connection of EA Wireless pushed across 6 runs for a 17-8 win.  Orr was 4 for 4 while scoring 4 runs with a double, Joe Levesque tripled with the bases load during a 3 for 4 day and Don Ripper went 2 for 2.  Rookie Daryl Szarpa made 3 great catches in left field and Dominic Patterson was 2 for 4 and made a tremendous catch in right field on a twisting line drive.  Gary Preischel and John Venezia each went 2 for 4 with a double and Dan Whitehead had 2 hits for Wallenwein’s who dropped their 4^th straight.