Giants are proving to be the form team of the Hutt Valley under-13 softball competition, having won all eight of their matches to date.
Saturday's clash with Hutt City United Tattoo Art was expected to be a thriller, as both teams had won four from four in the top six section.It was HCU who made the early running, racing out to a 3-0 advantage after three completed innings.
Giants, however, rallied at the top of the fourth to score four runs and take a 4-3 lead but HCU were quick to respond with a further two runs putting them 5-4 up and each side having only one turn left at bat.
It was then the resolve of the Giants team shone through with a combination of excellent hitting and base running in their last turn at bat enabling them to add five runs to their tally, meaning HCU found themselves trailing 5-10 going into their final innings.
It was pressure stuff and with the Giants' infield defending brilliantly they were kept scoreless to give Giants a 10-5 win. Coach Russell Thompson was delighted at the form shown by his players after a two-month break from the game.
Their batters had 30 trips to the plate and no strike outs were recorded against them by Hutt Valley under-13 pitcher Tommy Downs. Vincent Aspinall was the top Giants batter with two safe hits while Herewini Ammunson, Griffin Pauling and Jordan Galyer also starred in that department. Debutant Galyer made base in each of his three turns at bat to earn the player of the day award.
Di-Vante Hill-Wiremu did a splendid job on the pitching mound for Giants, conceding just three safe hits and giving up only four walks from the 24 batters he faced. This victory gives Giants an excellent chance of making the top four playoffs scheduled for late next month.
The points table in section one of the top six series is: Giants 10, HCU Tattoo Art 8, Te Aroha Pukeko 6, Totara Park Gold 4, Te Aroha Wekas 2, Cardinals 0.
