“This couldn’t be more perfect,” says Len Goin, standing on third base for Jake’s Pub Old Buds with the bags loaded and nobody out in the bottom of the eighth inning in Game 1 of the men’s fastball league finals in 100 Mile House on July 21.
He was right.
Fans witnessed a stultifying pitching duel through seven and the score was tied 1-1 going into the extra inning.
Jake’s Pub pitcher Greg Parent brought the right stuff and Canim Lake pitcher Kevin Neufeld brought the hard stuff.
At the top of eight, Steven Daniels knocked a clutch two-out single for Canim Lake that scored Jerome “Stumpy” Boyce and Mark Boyce. for a 3-1 lead.
That could have been it, and some thought it was, but Jake’s Pub runners, including Goin, found their way home after that on some timely hitting for the 4-3 victory.
Game 2 goes today (July 23) at 6:30 p.m. at Lumberman’s Park.
If necessary, Game 3 is July 25.
In earlier playoff action, second-seed Jake’s Pub defeated first-seed Exeter Sporting Goods 16-5 on July 15 for a spot in the finals.
Exeter had a dramatic, bottom of the seventh-inning comeback to defeat fifth-seed Red Rock 12-11 on July 5 to reach the semifinals.
Fourth-seed Canim Lake defeated the third-seed Sanford & Dillman Hornets 13- 4 on July 16 and met Exeter in the semifinals on July 18 .
Canim Lake erased an early deficit on its way to a 13-6 victory in a game that saw impressive hurling from both pitchers – Connor Edle for Exeter and J. Boyce for Canim Lake.
