Softball: Falcons put bite on Sharks

Mike Moore was given the ball to pitch his first league game for the Falcons, who were shaky in the first innings, conceding five runs.

The nervy start continued as lead-off hitter Peter Martin struck out but James Mortimore shored up with a right-field triple which first baseman Lucy Morris brought home.

Going into the second innings, the Falcons knuckled down somewhat and started to turn plays, getting themselves back to 8-7 down by the third thanks to Veronika Green’s quick thinking at second base, switching the play between bases to pick off the Sharks runners each time.

Ally Warr was her usual self at bat, clubbing a pair of doubles on the day and Moore started to shine, pitching a shutout in the fourth.

Keaton Irvine lasered a hard-hit line drive straight to the Sharks’ pitcher for a catch but Hettie McNeil continued to impress, matching David Morris’ double with one of her own to keep the Falcons in it.

The left infield pairing of Ben Sawkins and Olly Howley were quiet at bat but they more than made up for it on the field, notably when Irvine gunned down an attempt to squeeze third base, with Howley diving spectacularly to put a tag on for the out.

With the score tied thanks to two further shutouts, the Falcons needed just one run to win it. Moore led off with a blooped single into the dirt which the Sharks hesitated on, before Peter Martin deservedly redeemed his opening at-bat by airmailing the ball way over the Sharks outfield to centre right, bringing both Moore and himself in with a walk-off home run.

The Falcons have now dispatched three teams from a higher division in the Solent League.