Coming off of 2 very close, competitive games which resulted in 2 close losses, BLUR came to the fields for their 1st weeknight game of the season. They met the 2010 CHILI PEPPERS for the 1st time in the season. Having played very well against this team in one of their pre-season scrimmages and doing well there, BLUR was hopeful for a win, but knowing that there was some solid talent on the team, including a couple of tough pitchers and hitters, it would be a tall order in regular season play. Could BLUR get in the win column today or would it continue to elude them? It was time to see if they could make it happen on this cold Monday evening.
With BLUR visiting, it was the BLUR offense's opportunity to try to take control of the game early. PLAY BALL!
1st Inning
The CHILI PEPPER pitcher was throwing heat during warm ups. Could the BLUR girls handle the speed of this pitcher? Rachel was up first to kick the game off. A hard pitch blew by Rachel for strike 1. Obviously, this would take some getting used to. Another fast ball flew past right into the CHILI PEPPER catcher's glove for strike 2. Trying to draw the swing, the pitcher threw a change up for the 1st ball on Rachel. With the count at 1 and 2, the next pitch went low, then another heater flew right by, striking Rachel out and sending her back to the BLUR dugout. Lexie was up next. The pitcher's 1st 3 pitches on Lexie missed the mark to bring up 3 and 0. The next pitch brought the heat again for Lexie's 1st strike. Lexie took a swing on a low pitch to bring up full count. A swing and a miss on the next pitch sent Lexie back to the dugout empty handed. With the window of opportunity closing on BLUR's 1st at bat, Hylah came to the plate to face off against the CHILI PEPPER pitcher. Hylah left the bat out on a bunt attempt for strike 1. A swing on the next pitch brought up strike 2. Hylah knew it was her last chance to do something for the BLUR offense in the inning. She took an anxious swing on a high pitch and struck out.
Shutting down the BLUR offense, the CHILI PEPPERS' offense came to the plate to take their 1st at bats of the season. Lexie was in to pitch. After a couple of warm up pitches brought the count on the 1st batter to 2 and 0, Lexie got the batter to swing for strike 1. Swinging again, the count was now at 2 and 2 on the 1st batter. Making solid contact on the next pitch, the batter sent the ball over Olivia in the outfield. Reacting quickly, Olivia went out to retrieve the ball and threw it back to the infield to hold the runner to a double. Lexie turned her attention back to the plate as the 2nd batter took her turn. A ball on the 1st pitch sent the runner on base on a successful steal to 2nd base. A strike on the next pitch and the runner successfully stole 3rd, putting the CHILI PEPPERS in scoring position. A bad throw back from Hylah got past Lexie and the BLUR offense had to scramble to wrangle the ball as the runner took the shot for home and scored. Shaking it off, Lexie got back to work. The batter laid down a bunt, sending the ball dribbling close to the 1st base line. Lexie rushed over to pick it up and made the throw to Natalie at 1st to notch the 1st out of the inning. The next CHILI PEPPER was now up at the plate. Lexie went back and forth with the batter to full count. Lexie then threw a strike pitch, but the batter made contact and sent a grounder through the infield and caught the BLUR defense napping. The ball reached the right center field grass for a single. On Lexie's first strike pitch on the next batter, the runner stole 2nd. On strike 2, the runner made it to 3rd on a steal and put the CHILI PEPPERS back into scoring position. On the next pitch, the CHILI PEPPER's lefty batter took the ball for a ride deep into right field. Destiny took off to retrieve the ball. With no relay help coming, Destiny had to run the ball back for part of the way in order to make the throw to the infield, but it was not enough to stop the runners and the batter scored a home run, bringing 2 runs across home. Lexie got back to work to try to close the inning and prevent any more runs. The next batter took a swing on the 1st pitch for a strike, but a few wide pitches brought the count to 3 and 1 and eventually put another CHILI PEPPER runner on base with a walk. Gritting her teeth, Lexie dug in to get ready for the next batter. Throwing heat on the 1st pitch, the ball reached Hylah's glove. Strike 1. Another heater. Strike 2. Slowing it down a bit on the 3rd pitch drew the early swing for strike 3, getting the batter out of there for 2 outs. The 8th CHILI PEPPER batter came to the plate. A foul ball on the 1st pitch drew a strike. The batter took a swing on the next one, missing it for strike 2. The bat grazed the ball on the next pitch and the batter stayed alive. Staying in control, Lexie wanted to close out the inning strong. She sent a hard pitch down the middle, but the batter made late contact and send the ball down the 1st base line. Natalie was able to come off the bag and pick up the ball. She then walked over to step on the bag for the 3rd and final out of the inning.
BLUR 0 – CHILI PEPPERS 3
2nd Inning
With the CHILI PEPPERS taking control early, BLUR needed to rally stay in the game. Natalie was up to start us off in the inning. After a strike and a ball on the 1st 2 pitches, Natalie hit the ball past the pitcher, but, on the backup, the 2nd baseman grabbed it and made the easy throw to 1st to get Natalie out. Kas was up next. A swing and a foul tip on the 1st 1 pitches put Kas behind in the count. But Kas connected on the 3rd pitch sending it out to right field, but the CHILI PEPPER defense was on it quickly and the right fielder got under the ball to make the catch and the 2nd out. With the door closing quickly on BLUR's 2nd at bats, Anna was up next. A high ball on the 1st pitch and a check on a strike on the 2nd brought the count to 1 and 1. An outside pitch followed by a heater, that caught Anna by surprise, brought it to 2 and 2. If BLUR were to find their offense in this game, the time was now. The CHILI PEPPER pitcher had other ideas and fired one into the catcher's glove and BLUR came up empty handed in the 2nd.
Natalie came in to pitch in the 2nd. Trying to find an answer for the CHILI PEPPER offense in the 2nd, Natalie knew that she had her work cut out for her to keep BLUR in the game. Having little time to warm up her pitch before the game, Natalie soldiered through but struggled on the 1st batter. Four pitches resulted in a walk and the CHILI PEPPERS had a runner, once again, on base. Natalie fared better against the 2nd batter as the strikes started to come. A strike and a high pitch brought the count to 1 and 1. Natalie caught the batter napping on the next pitch and got the 2nd strike on the batter. Natalie threw the heat on the next pitch and the batter took a swing. The swing missed and Natalie sent the batter back to the dugout. Natalie went back and forth with the next batter, bringing the count to full, but a high pitch at the end put another CHILI PEPPER runner on base. Natalie got back to it and threw a strike on the 1st pitch. A ball and a strike to follow it up brought the count to 1 and 2. The runner on 2nd, wanting to move the CHILI PEPPERS into scoring position took a shot at 3rd. Hylah got up with the ball and tried to throw the runner out at 3rd. Katelyn made the catch just as the runner got to the bag and forced the umpires to discuss the play. The runner was ruled safe and the CHILI PEPPERS were now threatening to score. Natalie turned her attention back to the plate and the batter waiting to finish her at bat. Natalie dug in. Stepping out hard, she brought the heat once again and caught the batter swinging for the 2nd out of the inning. The 5th batter came to the plate. With runners now on 2nd and 3rd, the batter was eager to make contact to bring them in. She took a swing on the 1st pitch and missed. A high pitch, then a swing brought the count to 1 and 2. Natalie threw high on the next pitch and the batter took a swing. She connected and sent it into foul territory and she was able to stay alive to see the next pitch. She connected again and sent it into foul territory on the other side and stayed alive. The CHILI PEPPER batter tried to see if her magic would work a 3rd time, but this time Natalie got the better of her and struck her out, holding the CHILI PEPPERS scoreless in the 2nd and giving the BLUR offense another shot at a comeback.
BLUR 0 – CHILI PEPPERS 3
3rd Inning
So far, the game was moving fairly quickly. It was now BLUR's 3rd attempt to get things going. Katelyn was up to see what she could do. A ball on each of the 1st 2 pitches put Katelyn ahead in the count. But 2 strike pitches in a row evened the count up. On Katelyn's last chance, she took a swing, but the swing just missed and the ball reached the catcher's glove for the out. Destiny came to the plate next. The 1st pitch on Destiny went high. She then held the bat on the next pitch, which looked like it grazed the top of the strike zone, and the count evened up. Destiny fought to stay at the plate, eventually getting to full count. She held the bat on the next pitch and it paid off as it was ruled a ball and Destiny made it to 1st. Nikki was up next to try to solve the riddle of the CHILI PEPPER defense, but, until now, the CHILI PEPPERS were able to keep BLUR off base, making it very challenging for BLUR to mount an offense. Heat on the 1st pitch. Strike 1. Nikki took a stab at a low pitch to bring up strike 2. Then, a swing on the next pitch missed the mark and Nikki was sent back to the dugout empty handed. Jahlan was up next and, so far, BLUR was having a difficult time adjusting to the CHILI PEPPER pitcher's speed and delivery. High ball on the 1st pitch. Ball 1. Foul tip on the next pitch. 1 and 1. A passed ball on the next pitch brought up 2 and 1 and Destiny stole 2nd trying her hardest to get BLUR ready to score. The CHILI PEPPER pitcher stayed in control as she threw 1 more heater through to the catcher that caught Jahlan by surprise. The CHILI PEPPERS were effectively shutting the BLUR offense down in the game so far, keeping them off the board.
Natalie was brought back in to pitch in the 3rd. Struggling to find her pitch on the 1st batter, Natalie eventually walked the batter. As Hylah made the throw back to Natalie, the runner turned up the speed as she approached 1st and headed straight for 2nd. Stunned, the BLUR offense was caught off guard and the runner made it safely to 2nd on the steal. On the pitch, the aggressive CHILI PEPPER runner took off for 3rd. Hylah attempted to throw her out at 3rd. The ball was well on its way to Katelyn, but the ball bounced out of her glove and got past her. Seeing her opportunity, the runner turned the corner and headed home, touching the plate before BLUR could recover and extending the CHILI PEPPER lead. A walk on the next batter put a runner back on base. After Natalie threw 2 pitches to bring the count to 1 and 1, the batter connected on the next pitch and sent a hard grounder through the infield. Kas charged the ball, picked it up and threw to Lexie at 1st for the out. The next CHILI PEPPER batter (a lefty) came to the plate next and the BLUR defense adjusted. The batter took a hard swing on Natalie's 1st pitch and sent a high pop fly over foul territory. Lexie, backed up to the fence and reached her glove out to meet the ball. Lexie had to make a quick adjustment with her glove as she slightly misread the ball and made a fingertip catch to get and preserve the 2nd out. With the BLUR defense now gaining confidence, Natalie turned her attention to the next batter coming to the plate. More determined than ever to bring the BLUR offense back out, Natalie brought the heat. No swing. Strike 1. Swing. Strike 2. No swing. Strike 3!
BLUR 0 – CHILI PEPPERS 4
4th Inning
Trailing by 4 to start off the 4th inning, BLUR needed to start getting some runs if they were going to stay in this one. After fighting to full count, the CHILI PEPPER pitcher walked Olivia. With a BLUR runner on base early in the 4th, Jessica came to the plate to see if she could get the game moving in BLUR's favor. Holding the bat on the 1st 2 pitches, Jessica got behind in the count and Olivia managed to safely steal her way to 2nd. Jessica took a swing on the 3rd pitch, but the bat just missed and the pitch and Jessica came up empty handed. Janessa fared a little batter as she got ahead in the count early. With the count at 3 and 0 on Janessa, the CHILI PEPPER pitcher managed to string together 2 strikes to bring the count to full. She went wild on the next pitch and a passed ball got Janessa to 1st and Olivia to 3rd on a steal. Rachel was up next. The 1st pitch hit the ground and got past the catcher and Janessa stole 2nd. Rachel held the bat on the next pitch and it was close, but the umpire ruled it a strike. With the count at 0 and 2, Rachel took a swing at the next pitch, but missed it and she was sent back to the dugout, bringing up the 2nd out of the inning. Lexie was up next. The count was at 1 and 1 after a swing on the 1st pitch and a high ball on the next. Then, Lexie made contact, sending a hard grounder through the infield toward the short stop. The CHILI PEPPER defender stayed in front of the ball and reached out her glove. As she got up to transition into the throw to 1st, the ball fell out and hit the ground, allowing Lexie time to reach 1st and Olivia was able to cross the plate to put BLUR on the board for the 1st time in the game. With BLUR bats coming alive and runners on 1st and 2nd, Hylah came to the plate to take her at bat. A couple of foul balls on the 1st 2 pitches put Hylah behind in the count. The pitcher tried to get Hylah to swing at a change-up, but Hylah saw it coming and held the bat and the ball got past the catcher. Janessa took off for 3rd as the catcher got control of the ball and tried to throw her out at 3rd. The throw was short and the 3rd baseman had to come off the bag to make the catch. She turned and had to race Janessa to the bag. Janessa touched 3rd as the CHILI PEPPER defender applied the tag, but the ball fell out of her glove and Janessa was safe. The pitcher got back to work and tried to get Hylah out to close the inning, but Hylah had other plans. Staying alive on foul balls on the next 2 pitches, the count on Hylah was still at 1 and 2. She made solid contact on the next pitch sending a hard grounder through the CHILI PEPPER infield as the defense tried to stop the ball. The ball reached the grass for a single, but the play brought Janessa and Lexie home, making it a 1-point game. Natalie was up next. She took a swing on the 1st pitch and made solid contact sending a fast grounder down the 3rd base line. The 3rd baseman moved in to pick up the ball, but took her eye off of it. When she got control of the ball, she looked up to see where she could make a play, but both Natalie and Hylah made it to their respective bases safely and she was forced to give the ball back to the pitcher. Despite 2 outs in the inning, Kas was determined to keep the BLUR offense moving and came out swinging aggressively. Foul tips on the 1st 2 pitches brought up 0 and 2. Unfazed, Kas took a hard swing on the next pitch. The ball dropped like a stone right in front of the plate and the umpire ruled it fair. Not hearing the call, Kas stayed in the batter's box thinking that the ball was yet another foul. The catcher got up and scooped up the ball and made a quick throw to 1st to get the final out of the inning and putting an end to BLUR's rally.
Lexie was back in to pitch in the 4th. Getting behind in the count on the 1st batter, Lexie threw a high pitch that sent the batter to 1st on a walk. Lexie got back to the rubber and shook it off. She reached into her bag of tricks and got back to work as the next batter took the plate. Swing on the 1st pitch. Strike 1. No swing. Strike 2. Low pitch. 1 and 2. Next, Lexie threw the heat. No swing. Strike 3. This gave Lexie's confidence a boost as she got back into position with a smile on her face. A high ball on the 1st pitch and a low ball and the count was at 2 and 0, but Lexie found her rhythm again as the next 3 pitches brought up full count. Lexie threw the next pitch right down the middle into Hylah's glove and got it past the batter for the strikeout and the 2nd out of the inning. The next CHILI PEPPER batter came out swinging as she was determined to advance the runner on base and possibly bring her home. A foul tip on the 1st pitch brought up strike 1. Lexie threw high on the next pitch for 1 and 1. Wanting to make a statement to close out the 4th, Lexie put her game face on. She stepped forward and delivered a hard pitch that caught the batter napping for strike 2. Another hard pitch got through to Hylah and, once again, the batter held the bat for strike 3. Lexie's strong pitching performance in the 4th stalled the CHILI PEPPERS and gave the surging BLUR offense a shot to see if they could take control of the game.
BLUR 3 – CHILI PEPPERS 4
5th Inning
Trailing by 1, the BLUR offense needed to get the bats swinging. Anna came to the plate and, after an initial ball, she took a swing and sent a grounder down the 1st base line. The CHILI PEPPER 1st baseman came off of the bag to collect the ball and easily stepped back to get the out and keep Anna from reaching 1st. Katelyn was up next and, once again, after an initial ball, she got a hit herself. This time, she sent the ball down the 3rd base side of the field. The 3rd baseman reeled it in and made an arcing throw to 1st as Katelyn raced it to the bag. The 1st baseman lunged hard to make the catch, keeping her foot on the bag and gaining control of the ball just before Katelyn stepped on the bag for the 2nd out of the inning. The CHILI PEPPER defense was denying the BLUR's every attempt to get on base. Olivia was up next. No swing on the 1st 2 pitches brought the count on Olivia to 0 and 2. A swing on the next pitch sent the ball into foul territory and Olivia stayed alive. A couple of ball pitches evened up the count and it was a do or die situation for the BLUR offense. Olivia and the pitcher looked at each other and each wondered what the other would do. The pitcher pushed off of the rubber and sent the ball flying toward home. Olivia took a cut, but the ball dipped just under her bat, striking Olivia out and retiring the side.
Lexie was back in to pitch in the 5th. After a spectacular 4th inning, Lexie had trouble finding her pitch and walked the 1st 2 batters. Lexie threw a high pitch that hugged the top of the strike zone and the umpire ruled it a strike. A swing on an outside pitch drew a 2nd strike. Then, the batter took a swing at Lexie's 3rd pitch and struck out. The next CHILI PEPPER batter was up and held out her bat on a bunt attempt, but Lexie's pitch got past the bat for a strike. It looked like Lexie found her pitch, but a wild throw on the next pitch hit the batter and the batter was awarded a base. With bases loaded and Lexie in some trouble, she walked the next batter and brought 1 CHILI PEPPER runner across the plate. The next CHILI PEPPER batter came to the plate with 2 runners on and she was determined to put the ball in play to keep the offense moving. Lexie got the batter to swing on the 1st pitch for strike 1. A foul tip on the next pitch brought up strike 2. The batter fouled it out again to stay alive. And finally, Lexie was able to get the better of her as she threw a fast strike pitch as the batter brought the bat around too late. Strike 3. Riding the wave, Lexie threw a hard strike pitch, on the next batter, through to Hylah's glove for strike 1. On the next pitch, the batter was ready and she swung the bat and made contact. She sent the ball for a ride out into the BLUR outfield for a single, bringing 2 CHILI PEPPER runners home and extending the CHILI PEPPER lead. On a ball pitch to the next batter, the runners stole their way into scoring position. Lexie threw a strike and got it past the batter to bring the count to 1 and 1. On the next pitch, the batter took a swing, sending a grounder fast through the BLUR infield straight to Kas at short stop. Kas collected the ball and took a hard step toward 1st to make the throw. Natalie stretched to receive the ball and they connected just before the runner reached 1st, getting the out and moving the game into the 6th inning to give the BLUR offense another shot.
BLUR 3 – CHILI PEPPERS 7
6th Inning
Nikki was in to lead BLUR off in the 6th. Knowing the situation, BLUR had to battle to get back in the game. Nikki came out swinging aggressively. Missing on the 1st 2 pitches, Nikki got behind in the count, but she made contact on the next pitch, sending a grounder through the surprised CHILI PEPPER defense. The ball reached the grass in right field and Nikki got a single. Jahlan came to the plate next and, caught off guard by the pitcher's fast pitches took 2 strikes without swinging. Not wanting to go out without a fight. Jahlan took a swing at the next pitch, but misjudged it and barely missed the ball as it got past her for the out. Olivia was up next and the pitcher had trouble at 1st adjusting to the Olivia's strike zone. The 1st 2 pitches missed the mark, but a foul tip on the next pitch brought the count to 2 and 1. A strike and a ball on the next 2 pitches brought up full count on Olivia. Trying her best to put the ball in play, Olivia spotted the strike on the next pitch. She brought her bat around, but missed, striking out. With 1 out left to go, Jessica was up next. The pitcher lost control of the 1st pitch for a ball, but, sensing that she could put the inning to bed, gathered herself and focused on Jessica. A hard pitch caught Jessica by surprise for strike 1. The next pitch had some speed on it and Jessica was late with her swing, missing the ball for strike 2. The pitcher threw the ball hard and Jessica checked her swing, but the umpire ruled it a strike. The CHILI PEPPERS, once again, effectively shut down the BLUR offense in the 6th.
Fighting an uphill battle, with time running out in the game and the 7th inning fast approaching, the BLUR defense knew that they had to hold the CHILI PEPPERS here if they were going get another shot at a comeback. Natalie was back at the rubber for the 6th. All season, we've been working with Natalie to slow her delivery as she leaned toward what we've come to call rapid-fire pitching, but with the clock ticking, we had to reverse that in order to allow us enough time to start a new inning. Natalie got behind in the count with 2 balls. Natalie was able to string 2 strike pitches together to bring the count to 2 and 2. Trying to balance speed and efficiency, Natalie threw a hard pitch at the batter striking her out for the 1st out of the inning. She continued throwing strikes, until the next batter made contact. The ball flew out toward right field, but Lexie was able to get in front of it and reached out her hand to make the catch and the 2nd out. Going back and forth with the next batter, Natalie brought the count to 2 and 2. Natalie got into her stance and fired the ball through to Hylah, getting the strikeout on the batter with a little less than 1 minute left in the game.
BLUR 3 – CHILI PEPPERS 7
7th Inning
The BLUR girls quickly scrambled to get a batter out of the dugout before time expired and the umpire called the start of the 7th inning. Now reaching the 7th inning for the 2nd game in a row, it was now the BLUR's turn to see if they could finally figure out the CHILI PEPPER defense. A tall order as the answer largely eluded us through most of this game. Janessa came out swinging as she hit one out into right field, that bounced out of the right fielder's glove, for a single. Needing to get things moving, Janessa stole 2nd on the 1st pitch on Rachel. The catcher got up to try to get Janessa at 2nd, but the ball got past the 2nd baseman and Janessa was able to reach 3rd. A few pitches later and a little gamesmanship between Janessa and the catcher, the count on Rachel was full. The pitcher eventually lost the fight as she threw a ball on the next pitch, sending Rachel to 1st. Lexie was next and, on the 1st pitch, Lexie sent the ball bouncing down the 3rd base side of the field. The short stop kept the ball in the infield and was able to get a hold of it in time to step over to 2nd and got the out on Rachel, but Janessa was able to cross home on the play. Hylah was up. With a swing and a miss on the 1st pitch, Hylah took a swing on the next one and connected sending a hard grounder rolling into foul territory. Hylah reset and tried again. On the next pitch, Hylah made contact again. Unfortunately, the grounder rolled up the 1st base line right into the charging CHILI PEPPER 1st baseman's glove. She turned and tossed the ball to the 2nd baseman now covering 1st for the out on Hylah. Natalie was up next. With no runners on and 2 outs, it looked unlikely that BLUR would overcome the CHILI PEPPER lead, but Natalie was still game to keep things moving. She fouled out on the 1st pitch. On the next pitch, Natalie swung her bat hard and connected with the ball. On the bounce, the pitcher stepped over and reeled it in. She took a couple of steps to ensure the easy throw and tossed it to the waiting 1st baseman for the final out of the game.
Final Score
BLUR 4 – CHILI PEPPERS 7
Game Ball
Since the BLUR offense was shut out of most of this game, the game ball was awarded for defensive play. So, for keeping her head in the game and getting BLUR a couple of key outs at 1st from her position at short stop, Kas was awarded the game ball. Great job and stay strong out there!
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