Gamers End Regular Season With Doubleheader Sweep

Hicksville, NY -

With four of their players stuck in traffic the Gamers (9-3) had to start the first game with only 7 players including an injured Craig Shames who was not supposed to be playing. As a result they fell behind after the first inning by a score of 5-2.

It looked like they would be in for a long day but they rallied for two runs in the fourth inning as Stu Plotkin and Brian Malfettone singled, Jeremy Webman hit a sac fly, and Dave Roll added another run scoring hit. After giving up two runs in the fifth inning the Gamers were able to get those right back in the sixth as Malfettone came up huge again with a 2 run double to dead center that scored Plotkin and Jimmy Dundon.

Still trailing by a run in the 7th inning the Gamers exploded for a ten spot to put the game out of reach. The rally started when Greg Roll singled and then Tom McGrath doubled. McGrath who showed no signs of rust in his first game action of the year was 6 for 7 on the day. After Shames walked, Rob Roll came up and hit a well timed Grand Slam. With a 2 home run limit on a short field, the fact that Roll still had that homerun to use was the difference in the game. The Hustlers hit about 9 homeruns but after the first two those all went for outs. Meanwhile the Gamers saved their homerun for when it counted most. Dundon had hit a two run shot in the first innning for their other homerun.

All in all, it was a total team effort in the first game as every player scored at least one run led by Dundon and Plotkin who had three each and Adam Goldberg who chipped in two as part of a 2 for 4 day. Goldberg also played his usual stellar defense even turning a double play to end the game, one of three double plays that the Gamers turned on the day.

In the second game it was more of the same as the Gamers followed up their 16-7 win with a 13-4 victory. Offensively they were led by Zafonte went 4 for 4 and Dundon who went 3 for 4 as both hit three run homeruns. Meanwhile the trio of McGrath, Webman and Shames went a combined 8 for 9 to spark the bottom of the lineup.

With the game easily in hand Shames told Greg Roll that if he hit a homerun in his next at bat that he could chose where he wanted to play defensively. However, when Zafonte used the Gamers second homerun on his three run shot that was no longer possible. So Greg went out and hit a shot to left center that went off the top of the fence coming as close to hitting a homerun as you could without actually hitting a homerun. That was good enough to allow for Shames to make good on his promise so the Gamers mixed things up defensively in the middle innings with Greg Roll making his season debut on the mound. He served up a solo homerun but otherwise pitched brilliantly over 2 innings, including turning the rare 1-6-3 double play, before giving way to Dundon for the save. The revamped defense also saw Rob Roll, Zafonte and Goldberg make their first appearances of the year in the outfield although in Zafonte's case it wasn't by choice as he lost a hard fought contest of Rock, Paper, Scissors with Greg Roll prior to the 7th inning.

The Gamers will now await word of their playoff opponent. Pending the outcome of the Game Face game today the Gamers will either be the first or second seed for the post season.