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EASTERN CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP: GAME 7

Ah, game seven. Everyone loves a game seven. Everything is on the line for both teams. Every fan is living and dying by every pitch, every play. Even a bad game seven is fun because the buildup to it, and the moments before it falls apart are filled with excitement and tension. And this one, this was one of the good ones.

The Turtles were down three games to one and had battled back to force this deciding game. Both teams came in confident. Both teams knew they were capable of beating the other. The winner knew they would go on to face the Mesa Spiders in the Arizona Series in the coming days. The loser...neither team would let themselves think about that.

Matt Bastow was on the hill for Tucson. He struggled in game two but was determined to give his team, and the fans, a better performance this time around. He retired Scott Klein on a groundout but walked Rich Tidwell after going to a full count. Mike Campion singled to right, advancing Tidwell to third and Bastow was in trouble. Chris Kelly lifted a ball into right field that was deep enough for Tidwell to tag up and score. Bastow walked Phil Thooft on another full count but got through the inning with only one run on the board for the Jackrabbits.

Josh Sheppard has been given a lead to work with and he planned on keeping it. He walked Ben McDaniel but then induced ground balls from the next two batters, resulting in a fielder’s choice and a double play.

With 1 inning in the books, Douglas led game 7, 1-0.

The 2nd went much more smoothly for Bastow. He retired the side on 13 pitches, with two groundouts and a pop out.

Sheppard started off strong in the 2nd, striking out Justin Blohm. After Steve Stoddard put together a good at bat and ended up with a single, Sheppard walked Jaylen Lucas. Andy Sausser worked a full count but ended up striking out before Sheppard worked out of the jam by retiring Roy Lewis on a groundout.

After 2, It was Douglas 1-Tucson 0.

The top of the 3rd meant the Bastow would have to face the top of the order again. He got Klein to pop up to second but his 0-2 pitch to Tidwell got away from him and hit the batter in the back. Campion singled to bring Chris Kelly to the plate. Kelly fouled off the first three pitches he saw, then took two pitches out of the zone. Kelly and Bastow both stepped away to regroup and then settled back in. Two more foul balls. Then ball three. The count was full. Bastow shook off his catcher and came set. Kelly stared right at him, waiting.
The pitch...
The swing...
Contact...Good contact
The ball sailed high and deep to left center field.
Guilfoyle ran back toward the wall, looked up, and watched ball sail out of reach.
Bastow put his head in his hands. He regrouped and set down the next two batters.

Sheppard now had a four run lead. He seemed to be working faster in the bottom of the 3rd, but he got himself into a little trouble. After getting Lepore to ground out, he walked McDaniel and gave up a single to Guilfoyle. Elijah Leggett stepped up to the plate. Sheppard missed outside with the first pitch and then threw a slider down and in. Leggett took a hack at it and hit it on the ground. Hughes scooped it up at short, tossed it to second for one and on to first for an inning ending double play. Sheppard lumped his first in the air and ran back to the dugout.

At the end of 3, the Jackrabbits were ahead 4-0.

Bastow was back on the mound to start the 4th. He retired Sosa and Duffy but fell behind Hughes 2-1. The Doulas shortstop lined the next pitch into the left field bleachers and the Tucson fans booed loudly as Bastow was removed from the game and replaced by Xavier Blackwell. The crowd was not happy when Blackwell walked the first man he faced, but cheered half-heartedly when got Tidwell to pop up to short ending the inning.

Bastow paces and cursed in the dugout. He was upset with himself for putting his team in such a huge hole.

Justin Blohm led off the bottom of the 4th. He fouled off a few pitches on his way to drawing a leadoff walk. Stoddard and Lucas both worked deep counts but each flied out easily for the first two outs of the inning. Sausser singled and Lewis walked to load the bases for Lepore. The crowd itself to hope. Lepore took ball one and then drove the next pitch to deep left center where Chris Kelly tracked it down to end the inning.

With 4 innings complete, Douglas had a 5-0 lead.

The top of the 5th looked like it could get out of hand when Blackwell gave up a single to Campion and walked Kelly with no outs, but neither of them made it past third base and the score remained the same.

McDaniel strode confidently to the batters box and single on the first pitch to begin the bottom of the 5th. Guilfoyle walked on four pitches and Leggett came up with two on and nobody out. He fouled off a few pitches on his way to a full count and then hit a sharp groundball to short. McDaniel moves to third, but the defense turned a double play. Blohm slapped a single into right bringing home McDaniel and the Turtles were on the board. Stoddard fouled off four straight pitches before singling past the second baseman to keep the inning going. That was it for Sheppard. Jim Hintze came in from the bullpen to face Jaylen Lucas. Lucas watched his warmup pitches intently and stepped into the box. After getting ahead in the count 2-1, Lucas drove the next pitch into left center field for a two run double. Hintze retired Sausser to end the inning, but Tucson had made it a game again and the fans felt like they had a chance.

After 5, the score was 5-3 Jackrabbits.

Blackwell retired the first two batters in the top of the 6th but Klein reaches base on a throwing error by Tucson third baseman McDaniel. Tidwell followed that with a walk and that was the end of the line for Blackwell. Gregg Sheridan came in and retired Campion to end the inning.

It only took Hintze six pitches to retire the side in order in the bottom of the 6th.

With 6 innings in the books, Douglas still led 5-3.

Sheridan gave up a two out double to Kelvin Martin in the 7th but retired Danny Sosa with the next pitch to end the frame.

Hintze mowed through the first two batters of the 7th inning on four pitches before Blohm shot a line drive into right center for a single. Stoddard sent the next pitch to the wall in right for a double, and Blohm came around to score with Stoddard advancing. Lucas walked to put runners at the corners for Sausser who singled to drive in the tying run. Lewis flied out to end the inning while the crowd was still cheering from the game-tying hit.

7 innings down, the score was tied 5-5.

Chris Lawrence came in to pitch the 8th. He gave up a leadoff single to Steve Duffy and struck out Hughes. Klein hit a ground ball between first and second that Sausser blocked with a diving stop but he wasn’t able to make a play and Douglas had two men on. Tidwell followed that up with a single but Duffy had to hold at third. Jeremy Schmidt came in to pitch to Campion, who hit a deep enough fly ball to allow Duffy to tag and score. Tucson went back to the pen and called on Matt Teter who finished the inning without any further damage.

After 7 1/2, Douglas led the game 6-5.

Douglas called on Todd Shaffer to pitch the 8th. He threw his first four pitches out of the zone and the Turtles had a man on in Andy Lepore. McDaniel singled and the crowd started roaring out their support. Guilfoyle hit a long fly ball to right that was caught for the first out. Leggett then lined out to center and the crowd’s energy became more nervous. Justin Blohm walked calmly to the plate. The 38-year-old catcher was ready.

Ball one...outside.

Strike one...inside corner at the knees.

Blohm stepped out, spit on his hands, rubbed them together, and stepped back in.

The pitch.

Blohm drove the ball to right. It dropped in.

Lepore raced around to score the tying run.

McDaniel saw the third base coach waving him in and took the turn toward the plate.

The throw was cut off and sent to third, trying to cut down Blohm but it wasn’t in time. The Tucson catcher stood on third base basking in the cheers of his fans. He had just put his team on top for the first time today.

Stoddard hit a sharp groundball to short but Hughes couldn’t get a hold of it and another run scored on the error. Lucas flied out on the next pitch but the Turtles were now in the lead.

Heading to the 9th inning, Tucson now led 8-6.

Phil Thooft stepped up to face Teter leading off the 9th. He crushed a double into the left field corner to give the Jackrabbits hope. Martin was next. He grounded out to third for the first out. Danny Sosa took strike one. He took a huge cut at the next pitch and missed. Then he hit a ground ball to short for the second out.

Steve Duffy was their last chance.

Ball one...too low.

Ball two...low and outside.

A good cut, fouled back.

Another good swing...another foul ball. 2-2.

Teter three from the stretch.

Duffy hit a hard ground ball down the first base line.

Stoddard moved to his right and dove for it.

He got it!

He came to one knee and tossed the ball to Teter who was running to the bag.

Stoddard was running at full speed.

Teter got there first.

The Turtles came back in the game and the series to advance to the Arizona Seties against the Mesa Spiders.

The final score was 8-6 Tucson.

Justin Blohm was 3-4 with 1 double, 3 runs scored, and 3 RBI.

Steve Stoddard was named series MVP, going 3-5 with 1 double, 2 runs scored, and 1 RBI in game 7 and .452 with 1 home run, 9 runs scored, and 7 RBI in the series. Stoddard’s home run was amazingly the only home run hit by any Tucson player in the seven game series.