Rob Laidlaw
WITH several key players missing, Gawler Rangers put up a brave fight early before going down 5-18 to Adelaide in division two baseball at Karbeethan Reserve.
Trailing 0-6 going into the bottom of the second inning, the Rangers managed a couple of runs after hits to Nathan Schreier, Zac Ainsworth and Noah Okeil to cut the deficit.
After holding Adelaide out in the third frame, Gawler came charging into the contest with three runs, including Rhys Argent smashing his first senior home run, plus RBI hits to Schreier and Okeil.
Even after holding Adelaide to a single run in the fourth, the game got away from the Rangers when the opposition scored 11 runs in the final two digs, with Gawler’s seven errors for the game not helping matters.
Josh Lands fought a brave fight from the mound, collecting eight strikeout victims in 4.2 innings of work, but it wasn’t enough.
The Rangers are going into the division two women’s finals with plenty of confidence, after beating Adelaide 17-3 in Friday’s final minor round game.
Gawler scored five runs in each of the first three innings, with hits to Ashley Filko, Tracy Filko, Sarah-Jane Jameson, Jessica Zemitis and Farrah Preston the highlights of the first frame.
In the second dig, Laura Helbig smashed a long triple and Jameson belted a three-run home run, before, Helbig followed up with a big two-run double in the third as she and Jameson both went a perfect three-for-three.
Although losing 0-5 to Goodwood, the Rangers under 13-1 team battled gamely, with the opposition scoring all its runs in the final inning.
Gawler starting pitcher Deakin Filko threw four innings of shutout ball, conceding two hits and two walks for 10 strikeouts.
Division two: Gawler Rangers | Adelaide 5-18 (hits: Nathan Schreier 2, Noah Okeil 2, Rhys Argent (hr), Jamie Diener, Zac Ainsworth);
Division three: Gawler Rangers | Adelaide 2-8 (hits: Rhys Argent, Steven Vanpoorten, Jamie Diener, Blaze Hurst, Jake Halliday);
Division six: Gawler Rangers | Glenelg 0-9;
Division seven: Gawler Rangers | Glenelg 9-13 (hits: Ben Nottle, Ben Lee, Leah Stirling);
Women’s division two: Gawler Rangers d Adelaide 17-3 (hits: Sarah-Jane Jameson 3 (hr), Laura Helbig 3, Jess Zemitis 2, Naomi Oxford 2, Ashley Filko, Tracy Filko, Farrah Preston, Magdalena Kanik);
Under-17: Gawler Rangers | H&G 0-21;
Under 15-2: Gawler Rangers d Sturt 10-9 (hits: Ross Oxford, Deakin Filko, Jay Young, Josh Cedamon);
Under 13-1: Gawler Rangers | Goodwood 0-5 (no hits);
Under 13-2: Gawler Rangers | Goodwood 11-12;
Under-11: Gawler Rangers | Port Adelaide 3-13.