Timp Sports Weekly
April 15, 2014
Publisher's Message
After having devoted the last two issues of this online sports magazine to coverage of Lehi Froggie baseball action, I am now going to devote the bulk of this particular issue to a weeklong series of baseball games between the Lone Peak Knights, AKA the Loners, and my Awesome American Fork Cavemen. Some of those contests were downright thrilling like the 12-inning varsity contest at Lone Peak, AKA Loner High. We will also see how the Awesome American Fork Cavewomen's softball team fared at last Saturday's Provo Invitational. Let's take a look at how those teams' games turned played out.
Dean Von Memmott
Publisher
magnanovelist@gmail.com
Awesome AF Cavemen Post 11-9 Win In JV Action on Lone Peak Loners' Home Field April 10
By Dean Von Memmott
Timp Sports Weekly Publisher
In April 10 junior varsity baseball action at Lone Peak, the Awesome American Fork Cavemen posted an 11-9 win over their arch rivals, the Lone Knights, AKA the Loners.
American Fork jayvee coach Jay Holmstead said, "Our pitchers [Sir] Turner Knight, Buster Hardman, and Seth Taylor threw very well. However, we had problems with our fielders backing up our pitchers. Our guys just didn't make some plays could have kept Lone Peak under control. However, they managed to move past their mistakes and keep coming back whenever Lone Peak would snatch the momentum from us. That was especially true when Lone Peak pulled ahead of us in the middle of the game. We didn't let their lead discourage us."
From the opening pitch, the game displayed the kinds of excitement found in varsity contest. Receiving the game's first pitch from hurler Nick "The Quick" Larsen, Hagen "Speedster" Holmstead doubled into center. That hit turned out to be the first of three straight doubles hit by him during the game. A brother of former Salt Lake Community College Lady Bruiin hoop standout Hayley Holmstead, Speedster soon raced home on a Seth "Needles" Taylor single. A cousin of former Awesome Caveman baseball legend Brock "Legs" Lamb, Dallin Searle batted in Taylor, leaving American Fork with a 2-0 lead at the end of the first inning's top half.
The Awesome Cavemen fell behind during the first's lower half. It opened with Stevie Burraston getting on base through an error at first. The mistake proved to be immediately advantageous to the Loners\. Keenan Kelshaw whacked a left-field double that set the stage for the evaporation of the Awesome Cavemen's first lead. Nate "Phones" Call singled in Burraston and Kelshaw. Call then scord a go-ahead run on a two-out. Connor Boyd single. American Fork retaliated by pinching Boyd in a fielder's choice play at second.
On two-outs in the top of the second, Mason Warenski singled into right, and Speedster Holmstead joined him on base via a walk. Taylor doubled in Warkenski to tie game at three. Taylor doubled in Holmstead and then came home on a go-ahead single hit by Justin DeMarco, a grandnephew of my former schoolmate Ken DeMarco. American Fork soon loaded the bases, and a Hayden "Chief" Wood walked brought in a run that improved American Fork's lead at 6-3. Pitcher Sir Turner Knight kept it intact by not letting any Loners get on base in the bottom of the second.
The Loners prevented the Awesome Cavemen from scoring any runs in the third, fourth, and fifth, despite a Wood single and a Holmstead second straight double. American Fork's inability to score during those innings enabled the Loners to retake the lead from the Awesome Cavemen. In the bottom of the third, for example, Matt "General" Lee doubled into left, and Riley "Hefty" Whimpey tripled him in, and then he came home on a Larsen single to cut the lead to 6-5. Third baseman A.J. Jones grounded out Boyd to delay a Loner takeover of the lead. The takeover occurred in the bottom of the fifth. On one out that inning, Whimpsey singled in Seth Corry to open a three-run rally. During it, Lee came home on an error, and Boyd doubled in Whiimpsey to put Lone Peak ahead 7-6.
With Holmtead hitting his third straight double into left field on one out in the to of the sixth, Taylor singled in Colby Willis to tie the game at eight. DeMarco hit a tie-breaking, two-run single. On two outs, Ty "Guard Dog" Gardner singled in two runs that improved American Fork's lead at 11-8.
The bottom of the sixth opened with Burraston singling into center. However, reliever Taylor picked him off at first, and no more Loners could get on base that inning.
With the Loners holding the Awesome Cavemen scoreless in the top of the seventh, Lone Peak. One out in the bottom of the seventh, Whimpey singled into left, and he came home on a Larsen single. When the Loners loaded the bases, American Fork pitching coach Sir Brock Knight had Buster "Bunny" Hardman take over at the mound. He caused Avery Goeckeritz to hit into a double play."
Awesome AF Cavebatters' Varsity Squad Defeats Lone Peak Loners in All 3 Games of Spring Break Series
By Dean Von Memmott
Timp Sports Weekly Publisher
The Awesome American Fork Cavemen's varsity team spent its recent spring break defeating the Lone Peak Knights, AKA the Loners, in all three games played between the two schools last week. In the April 8 game at Lone Peak, the Awesome Cavemen had to go eight innings. in order to pull out a 3-2 win over the Loners. At American Fork April 9, the Awesome Cavemen subdued the Loners 7-1 in just the seven regulation innings for high school games. Two days later at Lone Peak, however, American Fork had to spend nearly four hours to beat the Loners 11-10 in a 12-inning game that almost got suspended because of fading light.
Both of the Salt Lake City newspapers and the Provo rag sent reporters to cover games in the series. Those sportswriters' trips to those games proved to be worth their time. because of the excitement that they saw out on the diamond. Why those three dailies gave series so much ink was because it was a battle for sole possession of first in Region Four standings. Both the Awesome Cavemen and the Loners brought just one region loss into the series.
The one league loss that American Fork had suffered the week before was quite humiliating for the Awesome Cavemen, because it had been dealt to them by the Lehi Pioneers, AKA the Froggies, coached by Jason Ingersoll, the little brother of American Fork head baseball coach Jarod Ingersoll. Although the Awesome Cavemen did atone for the loss by drying up Lehi in the other two games of their series against the Froggies, American Fork still had to accept the fact the defeat had the series against Lone Peak all more the more critical.
Game 1 of the series opened with Loner pitcher Grant Lyman striking out American Fork leadoff hitter Emmett Green. The pitcher then walked Kody "Coco" Hall. That walk turned out to be a great break for the Awesome Cavemen. A Koy Dibb sacrifice fly scored Hall. Loner second baseman Jake "Hoff" Bateman grounded out Austin "Shagadelic" Pitcher to retire the Awesome Cavemen to the field.
Selected by Jarod Ingersoll to threw for the Awesome Cavemen, Pitcher proved that he had the kind of hurling arm that could stay reliable for eight consecutive innings. Ingersoll said, "His first pitch was as good as his 120th one today. The body language that he showed on the bump proved that he could do the job."
The younger brother of American Fork sports legend Ryan "Load the Dishwasher" Pitcher, Shagadelic Pitcher hurled only eight pitches in the first inning to prevent any of the first three Loner batters to get on base. After the first inning ended with No. 3 Loner hitter Hunter Christensen striking out, the game grounded down into a defensive battle. Even though the Awesome Cavemen did put runners on base through each of the following six innings, they couldn't bring home any runs. Occurring during those innings, American Fork singles hit by Hall, Logan Flinders, and Andy Batholomew filled Awesome Caveman fans with optimism about their team soon picking up runs. However, with Lyman holding the Awesome Cavemen scoreless until the sixth, the Loners became certain that they would produce a home win against their arch rivals, thereby convincing their fans that their first-year coach Matt Bezzant was someone worth keeping around for a long time to come.
On one out in the bottom of the second, Nate "Phone" Call and Ty "Rapid Fire" Thompson each clubbed a single, worrying American Fork fans to no end. Keeping his composure on the mound, Shagadelic Pitcher caused Sterling "Silver" Larsen to fly out into left field, ending the inning before the Loners could tie the score atone.
Doubling into center on one out in the bottom of the fourth, Lyman came home on an error at first, to tie the game at one. American Fork came really close to breaking the 1-1 tie during the top of the sixth. It opened with Pitcher singling into center. Pinch runner Buster "Bunny" Hardman tried stealing home on one out, but catcher Larsen tagged him at the plate.
On two outs in the top of the seventh, Hall doubled in Green. American Fork's 2-1 lead couldn't prove to be fatal to the Loners. In the bottom of the seventh, a Christensen, left-field single moved Trevor La Hargoue to third base. A Lyman sacrifice fly scored La Hargoue, tipping the game into extra innings.
In the top of that inning, Pitcher singled off Lyman, causing Thompson to take over at the mound. The pitching change couldn't save the Loners. Flinders singled in Hagen "Speedster" Holmstead. Ingersoll said, "In going 2-4 at the plate today, Logan Flinders came through for us in making that game-winning hit. Shortstop Hall clutched the game for us by turning up a double play in the bottom of the eighth to win the game for us."
Unlike the April 8 thriller at Lone Peak, AKA Loner High, the April 9 rematch at American Fork did not require an extra inning an extra inning to determine a winner. One big reason was Awesome Caveman Craig Brailsford, a nephew of my former schoolmate Bill Brailsford Junior. Craig's pitching prevented the Loners from scoring any runs during the game's first five innings. Also, during those same five innings, Loner High could produce only two hits against him.
Craig gave the Loners a taste of what they would be in for during that Wednesday afternoon. The Awesome Caveman pitcher opened the game by striking out Trevor La Hargoue. Craig then caused Goeckeritz and Christensen to pop out to shortstop Hall, keeping the game a scoreless tie.
In the bottom of the first, Emmett Green hit a ground ball, and he barely beat a throw from shortstop
Christensen to first baseman Tate Hansen. After ninth-grade pitcher Seth Corry struck Hall out, Green raced home on a Dibb sacrifice fly. In walking Pitcher, Corry pledged not to let him also score a run. The ninth-grader made good on the pledge by striking out Bartholomew, a nephew of AF wrestling legend John "Superstud" Bartholow and a son of former state grappler champ Rick "Dr. Death" Bartholomew.
Despite being a ninth-grader, Corry established his credibility as a varsity pitcher by holding the Awesome Cavemen scoreless during the second and third innings, even though he walked four batters during those innings.
The Loners came really close to tying the score in the top of the second. Slugging a right-field single in that inning, Grant tried scoring a tying run during Sterling "Silver" Larsen's hitting a groundball. However, Bartholomew tagged Grant at the plate to end the second's top half. Lone Peak would not receive another chance to score a run until the top of the fourth.
In the meantime, the Awesome Cavemen's lead grew. Flinders had to try twice to score the Awesome Cavemen's second run. On his first attempt. Flinders got tagged while trying score the second run in Inning 2. However, in the fourth inning, Flinders stole home to turn the American Fork scoring machine on. On two outs, Green tripled in Winter to improve the Awesome Caveman lead at 3-0.
Earlier in the fourth, Hunter hit a center-field double that gave the Loners a fine chance of least tying the game at one. However, Craig Brailsford turned up a double play that robbed the Loners of a golden chance for a run.
In the bottom of the fifth, Trevor Lomelli replaced Corry at the mound. Dibb singled off the reliever, and that Awesome Caveman soon came home on a Flinders' sacrifice fly.
A grandson of East German-American sports enthusiast Claus Goeckeritz, Chandler Goeckeritz singled into left, and Lyman doubled him in. That turned out to be the only Loner run for the game.
With Christensen replacing Lomelli at the mound in the bottom of the sixth, Dibb singled in Green to start a three-run rally that put the final score at 7-1.
A cousin of recently retired American Fork baseball player Gunner "Bells" Lamb, Dallin Searle took over pitching duties in seventh. Searle allowed only Stevie Burraston to get on base. That Loner got stranded at second as he watched Hall intercept a La Hargoue line fly to end the game.
"We had some good quality at-bats today," said Ingersoll. "We found more holes today than we did at Lone Peak yesterday. Brailsford kept Lone Peak under control during the six innings that he spent on the mound, and Dallin Searle did a real good job as a closer today."
Even though the April 9 game had left the Awesome Cavemen in sole possession of the first in the region, the Loners treated the April 11 rematch as if it would give them a chance to tie American Fork for the No. 1 spot in the league. The determination showed by the Loners helped to make the game one of the longest contests played during Spring Break. The game lasted until about a quarter to 8 p.m.
The game unfolded with Green getting on base through an error made by pitcher Goeckeritz. The Loner chucker quickly made up for his goof by grounding out Dibb and causing Hall to fly out to left fielder Seth Hanneman, a close relative of former Loner baseball start Jacob Hanneman.
A famous "distant cousin" of Hollywood actress Ursula Andress, Ryan Andrus had a rough inning as a pitcher. First, he gave up to Christensen a left-field, solo homer that angry American Fork fans declared to be a foul ball. The home run set off a four-run rally, fueled by a Goeckeritz single and a Phones Call single. In creating a 4-0 lead through four hits, the Loners appeared destined to defeat American Fork so severely that it would have nothing to grunt about after the end of the afternoon's action. Despite going through an embarrassing first inning, Andrus managed to hold the Loners scoreless in both the second and third innings. American Fork pitching coach Sir Brock Knight did replace him with Searle in the bottom of the fourth, though. By then, though, American Fork had already gotten back into the game.
Now in the top of the second, Andy Bartolomew got on base through center fielder Hanneman's error. A Flinders double moved John "Superstud" Bartholomew's nephew to third. Bartholomew then came home on a Hagan "Speedster" Holmstead sacrifice fly. American Fork soon loaded the bases on one out. After Goeckeritz struck out Seth Taylor, Hall singled in two runs to juice up a seven-run, gassed up by additional singles hit by Dibb and Pitcher.
Though held scoreless in the third, the Awesome Cavemen still took a 7-2 lead into the fourth inning. That round, Dibb singled in Green on one out and then scored on an error at third base. Dibb's fourth-inning handiwork almost got wiped away by the Loners. In the bottom of the fourth, Christensen doubled into left, and La Hargoue tripled him in to begin a six-run rally, fueled by doubles from Lyman and Goeckeritz. Tate Hansen contributed a single to the comeback that whittled the Awesome Cavemen's lead down to 9-8.
Taking over pitching duties for the Loners in the top of the fifth, Ty Thompson soon found himself with a Taylor single enabling the Awesome Cavemen to load the bases on one out. A Hall sacrifice fly scored Winters.
The bottom of the fifth opened with La Hargoue grounding out to Bartholomew. With center fielder Green picking off a Lyman fly ball right afterwards, Lone Peak seemed certain of quickly retiring to the field. However, Hansen's center-field double revived the Loners' cause, and they scored two runs on an error and a passed ball, tying the game at 10.
Aided by a Flinders' right-field single, American Fork loaded the bases on two outs in the top of the sixth in hopes of breaking the 10-10 tie. However, Taylor popped out to left fielder La Hargoue. That catch paved the way for the game to stay tied 10 through the next six innings. In the seventh's lower half, Holmstead turned up a double play that brought on the string of five extra innings.
As each of the following extra innings ended with the score still tied at 10, sunlight diminished. The plate umpire declared at one point, "If it's still tied at 10 by 7:45, we're calling the game."
Dibb saved them the need for doing that. In the top of the 12th, he came home on a Holmstead single. Pitcher tried scoring on that same hit, but he got tagged at the plate. In the bottom of the 12th, Green snatched a Goeckeritz fly balll, and second baseman Holmstead grounded out Thompson. Phones Call singled in left, only to see Jack "Hoff" Bateman fly out to third baseman Flinders, ending the game.
Ingersoll said, "It's good for the team to have games like that 12-inning one we played at Lone Peak. That particular game taught them well how to play under the pressure of extra innings.
Awesome AF Cavemen Defeat Lone Peak Loners 12-11 In 9-Inning JV Baseball Thriller
By Dean Von Memmott
Timp Sports Weekly Publisher
The Awesome American Fork Cavemen pulled out a 12-11 win at home against the Lone Peak Knights, AKA the Loners, in a nine-inning, junior varsity rematch at American Fork April 12.
Before any of you assume that the game had to go into extra innings in order to determine the winning team, you need to know something. Long before the opening pitch was made, the two teams had agreed to play their rematch as a nine-inning affair instead as a doubleheader, as it had originally been formatted as. With that matter now completely explained, let's switch to the focus of the nine-inning contest.
On one out in the top of the first, ninth-grader Seth Corry singled in Stevie Burraston. Corry then moved into scoring position on Slick Nick Larsen's two-out single. However, Matt "General" Lee grounded out to second baseman Hagen "Speedster" Holmstead, retiring the Loners to the field.
During the first's lower half, Dallin Searle launched a two-out single into left to bring Seth Taylor home. A grandnephew of my former schoolmate Ken DeMarco, Justin DeMarco singled in two runs to put the Awesome Cavemen ahead 3-1. American Fork's first lead did not survive the second inning's top half.
Smacking a one-out single into left, Riley "Hefty" Miller quickly came home on a Boyd Connor double. A very close relative of Channel 13 News Anchor Bobby Evans, Mikey Evans singled Connor in two outs. Pitcher Hayden "Chief" Wood answered that one-run single by striking out Stevie Burraston.
In the bottom of the second, American Fork loaded the bases on two outs, and Seth "Needles" Taylor doubled in Kolby "Watacha Talkin' About" Willis and Jake Norton to put American Fork back out in front 5-3. The Awesome Cavemen improved their lead at 6-3 through DeMarco doubling in Sir Turner Knight in the bottom of the third. The Awesome Cavemen were to stay ahead 6-3 until the fifth.
Despite a third-inning single from General Lee, the Loners, too, couldn't pick up additional runs until the top of the fifth. During it, Larsen doubled in Corry and Tate "Peelings" Hansen to put the Loners within 6-5. They went on to hold the Awesome Cavemen scoreless in the fifth's lower half.
Hefty Whimpey opened the top of the sixth by hitting a left-field double. Whimpey soon moved to third as Connor Boyd grounded out to Holmstead. After Evans got on base through an error, R.J. "Purple" Hazen singled in Whimpey to tie the game at six. Corry then slugged a two-run, tie-breaking single to put his Loners out in front 8-6. A.J. Jones therefore replaced Wood on the mood.
The pitching change failed to avert a three-run rally that Lone Peak staged in the seventh. The rally began with singles from Lee and Twister Miller. A Hazen one-run single unleashed the rally. When the seventh's upper half ended, the Loners commanded an 11-6 lead.
Doubling into left during the bottom of the seventh, Holmstead scored a run on an error. Wood doubled in Taylor and then came home on a Ty "Guard Dog" Gardner triple. On two outs, DeMarco batted in Gardner to cut the Loner lead to 11-10.
American Fork held the Loners scoreless in both the eighth and ninth innings. Jones hit a one-run single to tie the game at 10 in the bottom of the eight. In the bottom of the ninth, Gardner singled in Taylor to win the game 12-11 for the Awesome Cavemen.
Loss to Provo Mars Softball Tourney Record for Awesome AF Cavewomen
By Dean Von Memmott
Timp Sports Weekly Publisher
The Awesome American Fork Cavewomen's softball team had a great experience at the Provo Invitational last April 12 -- until the Provo Bulldogs, AKA the Bullpuppies, defeated them 10-1 in American Fork's last game of the tournament.
The Awesome Cavewomen took into the Provo game a tournament record of 3-0. In the first game, American Fork defeated the Timpanogo Timberwolves, AKA T-Pups, 7-3. In that game, Hailie Jackson, Bri Peterson, Akaila "KK" Rasmussen, and Anna Vargson each hit a double for American Fork. In the Awesome Cavewomen's 10-5 win over the Timpview Thunderbirds, AKA Millionaires, Rasmussen whacked a double while Jamie "Ham" Hamilton produced an infield homer for American Fork. During American Fork's 8-2 win over the Kearns Cougars, AKA the Kittens, Rasmussen and Allie Winter each posted a double.
American Fork's streak of good luck ended in the Provo game. Bullpuppy pitcher Emile Allman, a "distant cousin" of the Allman Brothers, who're very famous Southern rockers, held American Fork scoreless in the first four innings, even though she did give up a single to Rasmussen in the fourth.
American Fork and Provo battled to a scoreless tie in the first inning. In the bottom of the second inning, though, Kelly "Cow Bell" Ormsby doubled in two runs to set off a four-run rally, fueled by singles from Allman, Koryn Gustaffson, Callli Kassel, and Haley Kassel.
In the third inning, Ormsby' doubled in Natalie Geronimo to improve the lead at 5-0.
During the top of the fourth, Rasmussen hit an infield single, and Vargson batted her in. That turned out to be the only RBI for American Fork during the game.
A daughter of Mountain View Teddy Bear sports legend Julie the Wilde Girl, Calli Cassel smacked a left-field single, and she then scored on an Abbie "Lane" Maio single to set off a five-run rally for the Bullpuppies.
The fifth inning opened with Hannah Lind grounding out to Calli Kassel. After Hailie Jackson popped out to Allman, Hamilton got on base through an error. However, she got stuck on base as she watched teammate Shadow Robinson strike out, ending the game.
