Williamstown Wolves have wearied of the pain caused by the Fitzroy Lions in Baseball Victoria division 2 this season.
After two heavy defeats to their bogey team, the Wolves said enough was enough, winning a thriller 7-6 at Greenwich Reserve on Sunday.
The Wolves, including player-coach Kile Rogers, were not playing down how sweet it was to get one back on the Lions at their third attempt.
“It’s definitely good to finally get a win against Fitzroy,” he told Star Weekly.
“I’m certainly not going to take anything away from Fitzroy, they’ve outplayed us in the first two times that we played them.
“It was 16-3 the first time we played them and 11-1 the second … so they’ve been a well-drilled team all year.
“Today we did all the right things. We managed to keep their bats in check for most of the game, which was the key.”
Wolves starting pitcher Jason Lester put the clamps on the Lions’ batters.
It was not until a late Lions surge, with the visitors levelling the scores at the top of the ninth, that the Wolves experienced a level of discomfort. But by then, Lester had checked out of the game.
The pitcher has found his top form at the right time of the season.
With the Wolves sitting in fourth and facing a battle to reach the finals with three teams breathing down their necks, they needed Lester to step up.
“He got ahead early in the counts by throwing a lot of first-pitch strikes, which is a key for any pitcher at any level,” Rogers said.
With the game seeming headed for extra innings, the Wolves made the most of their last out with Scott Meager making it home from third on a potential double play situation after a Bill Millar ground ball.
“We had runners in the corners at first and third with one out [and] a ground ball double play to shortstop,” Rogers said.
“Then, on the throw to third, I don’t know if it was a bad throw or whether the third baseman missed it, but our runner from third went on to score.”
The Wolves will meet Berwick City in a crucial game tonight at Melbourne Ball Park from 6.30pm.
Meanwhile, Newport Rams had a 2-0 win over Sunshine.
The victory was enough to lift the Rams off the bottom of the ladder in their division 1 conference.
The Rams will pay the powerful Cheltenham a visit on Sunday.
