Senators vs Wuppertal Stingrays
“It was extremely important that our girls got the unfortunate game against the Ratingen Goose-Necks out of their heads as quickly as possible,” says head coach Frank Mohr. “And then at the beginning of the week one piece of bad news came in after another.”
Talking about the fact that the home game against the Wuppertal Stingrays was suddenly in the balance. The DBV’s (German Baseball & Softball Association) changed schedule resulted in a short-term postponements, which also affected the ladies of the Senators.
“In my opinion, the DBV has positioned itself clearly and has applied the principle of superior to inferior,” said Mohr, who was visibly disappointed by the approach. “Willingness to compromise looks different.”
In the end, an agreement was reached with the Wuppertal Stingrays to let the game start earlier than planned. The start time was brought forward from 3 p.m. to 10 a.m.
“The prospect of finding a suitable date, should the game have been postponed, does not get any easier at the end of the season and, since the playoffs and playdowns of the Bundesliga have priority, it will be almost impossible. Once again, many people did a great job off the field. Thank you everyone for your efforts.”
The coaches were all the happier to be able to bring a competitive team onto the field that day, as some personnel complications once again made planning difficult.
However, once the ball was put in play, this was all forgotten.
The Stingrays started the game aggressively and didn’t give the defense any time to get into the game. Every ball that came close to the strike zone was brought into play and presented the Senators ladies with enormous difficulties, especially in the first two innings.
“We were a little at a loss for words and needed a little time to adjust to the brave game of the ladies from Wuppertal. From the third inning onwards we did a lot better.”
Going into the third inning with a 7-2 deficit, the knot seemed to have burst. On offense they were able to get the first three batters on base before Lauren was able to shorten the Wuppertal team’s lead to 2 runs with a double into left field and a subsequent single from Johanna. The defense, which had previously shown some sloppiness, was now better and helped the starter Katja get into the game better and better.
“Three hits in 6 innings speak for themselves.”
In addition, the rising form curve comes at the right time, as the regular starter had to sit out the last game due to injury as well.
“After the third inning, we didn’t allow much defensively and pulled the sting out of the Rays with some spectacular plays.”
The guests from Wuppertal only managed one more run by the end of the game, whereas the Senators ladies were able to add 13 more to the scoresheet and end the game early with a walk off hit in the 6th inning.
“This game and the associated victory were extremely important,” explains a visibly relieved head coach. “And it wasn’t about the final score of 18:8 or a better position in the division, but solely about the team rewarding itself for a great season.”
It is now important to preserve this performance and take it into the last game of the season, where the Ratingen Goose-Necks will be guests at Südallee.
