Staff Report

Weather delays postponed gameplay for members of the Deep River Horseshoe League as four teams continue to push for the final spots in the playoffs. Kris Toohey’s first-place Cardinals locked up the top seed after securing a 4-2 win over Pudge Goodrich’s Reds. Final standings remain up in the air for most teams as play continues.

Teams competed in game 16 on August 14, in what was described as a very good night for scoring. Two matches had each team scoring over 300 points. Teams tossed 987 ringers to tie a season-high, and recorded a season high 119 doubles. B division players averaged a season-best 92 points, 19 ringers, and two doubles. The Royals topped 1,000 ringers for the season.

Sheryl Serviss’ Tigers faced Mike Zanelli Jr.’s Braves. Serviss started the night with a 52-point game and followed it up with 41- and 43-point games. She ended her night with a 36-point game which totals up to 172 points, along with 51 ringers and 10 doubles, a personal best and the second-highest score in the league for the season. Serviss leads the A division in scoring. The Tiger’s Susan Feaster contributed 97 points and was the top C division scorer. The team totaled 347 points, 78 ringers, and 11 doubles.

Meanwhile, the Braves were doing their best to stay in the match. Zanelli’s 138-point series was the third highest for A division players, and the Braves totaled 312 points, 71 ringers, and nine doubles. The combined score of 659 points/149 ringers/20 doubles was a league high. The Tigers swept the Braves 6-0 and moved up to fourth place, while the Braves slipped to sixth.

In another match where two teams scored over 300 points, John Sciacca’s Royals were tied with the Mets for the final playoff spot. The Royals took on Joe Heery’s Rangers. The Rangers won the first two games, but then the Royals found what was missing and proceeded to win the next four games in part thanks to John Hutra, who won Game 5 with a double in the 12th for a three-point win, and a ringer in the 12th of Game 6 gave them a one-point win. He finished as the second leading B division scorer with a 118-point series.

The Ranger’s Heery’s 146-point series was a season-best and was the second-high score for the A division. The Royals totaled 314 points, their seventh time this season above 300, and the Rangers scored 301 points. With the 4-2 win, the Royals hold a half-game lead over the Mets for the eighth-place spot.

The Mets were without Bob Cifaldi, their leading scorer, as they played the third-place White Sox. The Mets won 3.5 to 2.5 and are now in ninth place, a half-game behind the Royals. Even with the loss, the White Sox moved into second thanks to the Red Sox, who shocked the second-place Giants 5-1. The Red Sox were without their leading scorer, Bill Beckwith, and with no substitute available, they were forced to use a blind. Sox’s John Durninick’s 126-point series was the leading score for the B division. The Giants slipped to third place in the standings.

Both the Pirates and the Cubs had a mathematical chance to make the playoffs, but the Dodgers dashed the Cubs’ hopes with a 3.5 to 2.5 win, while the Pirates also lost by the same score to the Angels. The Angels’ Brian Walsh was the last league player to toss a double, coming in the ninth box of the final game.

The Rockies lost four to the Marlins and have now put themselves back in the bubble with only a one-game lead over the Royals and a 1 1/2 game lead over the Mets.

The top eight teams will enter the playoffs. At press time, the top eight teams are:

1. Cardinals (65.5 - 30.5)

2. White Sox (58 - 38)

3. Giants (57.5 - 38.5)

4. Tigers (56.5 - 39.5)

5. Yankees (56 - 40)

6. Braves (52 - 44)

7. Rockies (49.5 - 46.5)

8. Royals (48.5- 47.5);

The Rockies (48-48), Mets (48-48), and Pirates (46-50) are all on the bubble.