Knights Sweep Irish. Clark Goes the Distance.
It was a game under the lights and under the spotlight of local television and mixed together with an infamous rowdy Irish left field crowd. Despite the added pressure, Ben Clark took the mound in an attempt to do something the Knights have never done as a franchise; sweep the Irish. In their first match up the Knights walked away with a 3-1 win behind a complete game gem from Clark.
The offense got started right away in the first inning when team veteran Frank Matteson took a high fastball and sent it over the center field wall for a solo home run. Clark would follow that up by shutting down the heart of the Irish offense. Then, heading into the third inning, Justus Nelson would battle through tough pitching and earn a walk with no outs. The hard earned walk would be followed up by a Matteson Triple that unfortunately ended with Nelson being thrown out at home due to him slowing up to make sure the ball wasn't caught in the gap. Next to the plate was veteran Dan Piilola who lead the team in RBI the previous year. He would sit on a belt high curveball and reward the triple and give the Knights a 2-0 early lead over the Irish.
Clark would go on cruise control heading into the 5th inning with a 2-0 lead. After the leadoff batter reached second base, an error would lead to the Irish' first run of the game cutting the lead to 2-1. The Knights offense would respond in the top of the 6th with a couple of infield hits followed by a run scoring fielders choice off the bat of Shawn Rasmussen putting the score at 3-1.
The Irish would make it interesting in the bottom of the 7th, mounting a comeback scoring a run off a double down the right field line. Dan Miller would then reach and steal second base putting the tying run into scoring position. Tired and under pressure, Clark would put the team on his back and would come through with the win retiring the next two batters by fly out and ground out to end the game. The Knights move to 6-3 behind the complete game gem and a half game out of first. Other highlights were great defensive play all around by the Knights. Great communication by outfielders and infielders to avoid multiple mishaps during the game. Cutoffs were being hit on throws. Accurate throws to first were made. It's great to see what can happen when the small things are done right consistently.