STEALING HOME – SIATAGA’S SLIDE SECURES SYDENHAM-KERERU’S DRAMATIC WIN

Premier Softball Report

Friday 18th & Saturday 19th February 2022

By Tony Smith

Canterbury Red Sox shortstop Cassie Siataga completed a rare softball feat – stealing home to win a tight ball game for her Sydenham Kereru team against the Kaiapoi Queens.

Stealing from third base to home on the pitcher’s release is only sparingly seen in softball, or baseball for that matter. Hall of Famer Ty Cobb did it 54 times between 1905 and 1928 (thank you, Bleacher Report) and the Oakland A’s Man of Steal, Rickey Henderson, pulled it off a bunch of times in the 1980s.

On the softball scene, ex-Papanui, Canterbury, Southland and New Zealand outfielder Chris McDonald is still regarded a living legend south of the Waitaki River for stealing home when Otago-Southland beat American aces Peterbilt Western in the early 80s.

So Siataga – former White Sox infielder and representative rugby and league player – is in august company after her sneaky steal at Mizuno Ballpark last Saturday.

How did it unfold?

Well, Sydenham Kereru (SK for short) and Kaiapoi were locked at 5-5 going into the bottom of the sixth inning.

Up stepped Cassie in the leadoff spot. She drilled a single, and a subsequent error and a fielder’s soon saw her hugging third.

Into the batter’s box, with one-down, came catcher Carly Werahiko, who was calling the shots in head coach Ramon Roberts’ absence.

She fouled off a pitch to give Kaiapoi pitcher Lauren Sutherland a 0 and 1 head-start.

Then came a ‘suicide squeeze’ call. As Lauren was at the point of release, Cassie started stealing home. The pitch came down, Carly shaped to bunt but missed, and the ball hit the deck near catcher Layla Bailey-McDowell’s feet.  Siataga – displaying the speed that saw her play NPC rugby in the inside backs – streaked home and scored with a copybook slide.

While it may have been a squeeze play, the fact Werahiko’s bat did not connect with the ball meant official scorer Vicky Griffiths inked in a SB slogan – Stolen Base.

SK led 7-6 and kept their slender lead to the end to provide the talking point of the softball weekend.

The women’s championship race is too tight to call with just four points separating the top three teams – leaders Halswell, Kaiapoi and SK.

In the men’s competition, big guns ELE Papanui Tigers and PCU Devils both scored comfortable wins to embellish their places at the pointy end of the points table. The Tigers lead by four points from the Devils, who are 15 clear of third-placed Richmond Keas Blinders.

WOMEN’S GAMES

SYDENHAM KERERU 6 KAIAPOI QUEENS 5

This encounter was neck and neck, worth double the price of admission (free, plus a vaccine pass and a mask).  

Kaiapoi led 2-0 in the top of the third inning when Caitlin Kennett picked a walk and scored on a double by McKenzie Bailey-McDowell, who, in turn, was batted in by Lauren Sutherland.

SK struck straight back when Siataga tripled and scored on Robyn Hall’s second safe hit of the game. Mikayla Werahiko then batted in Hall to make it 2-2.

Kaiapoi edged ahead again in the fourth when Oriana Connell drew a walk and scored on Kennett’s left field single.

Mike McDowell’s Riversiders extended their lead to 5-2 in the fifth after Lyndsay Thomas singled and crossed on Layla Bailey-McDowell’s triple, with Layla later scoring on a wild pitch.

SK instantly levelled in the bottom of the fifth when Carly and Mikayla Werahiko and Cheyann Whyte (who had a left field single) all plated.

Then came Siataga’s storybook steal of home in the sixth to put SK up 6-5, going into Kaiapoi’s final bat.

It got a little nervy when Thomas doubled to leftfield with two-down, but the star American was left high and two at second base when Layla offered up a catch in left field for the final out.

SK won the batting duel 12 hit to eight, with experienced infielder Cassandra McLeod leading with 3 from 3 for a perfect 1.000 in the No 8 slot. Siataga and Mikayla Werahiko went two from three and Hall two from four.

Thomas and Layla Bailey-McDowell, batting in the 3 and 4 roles, had two hits from four at-bats for the Queens.

HALSWELL HORNETS 2 KAIAPOI QUEENS 1

Kaiapoi again started brightly in the top of the first inning when leadoff McKenzie Bailey-McDowell doubled to left-centre field and scored after sacrifices by Lauren Sutherland and Lyndsay Thomas.

Competition leaders Halswell were held scoreless until the sixth when Lucy McIntyre walked, advanced on Melissa Chapman’s sacrifice bunt and scored when Rebecca James smote a right field single.

James scurried home for the game-winning run after Cherie Inwood’s safe hit was errored in the outfield.

Inwood was Halswell’s top hitter with two of the Hornets’ six safe hits.

Halswell hurler Amy Begg took four strikeouts but held Kaiapoi to two hits – two from McKenzie Bailey-McDowell and another to Bohemian Quinn.

SYDENHAM KERERU 5 PAPANUI TIGERS 3

Elizabeth Rice gave Papanui a dream start when she drove in Aimee Metuatini and Simone Salter for a 2-0 lead in the top of the first.

But, just as they’d done in the cliffhanger with Kaiapoi, SK hit straight back, Carly and Mikayla Werahiko scoring in the bottom of the first on infield errors.

SK grabbed the lead in the fourth when Cheyann Whyte got aboard after an error and scored on Naia Elisara’s hit.

They added two more runs in the fifth. Cassie Siataga beat out a base-hit bunt and Carly Werahiko singled. Siataga scored after Mikayla Werahiko put down a squeeze play bunt and Carly cantered in on a fielder’s choice.

Papanui had a great opportunity to apply some pressure in the top of the sixth after Salter singled, moved around on Rice’s second hit of the game and scored on catcher Mya Pouaka’s bunt.

The Tigers then had loaded bases with just one -down after Gemma Taylor won a walk, but SK got the next last two outs to avoid any more collateral damage.

Papanui shaded SK in the hits count, 6-5. Centrefielder Salter went 3 from 4 and Rice 2 from 4.

PCU ANGELS 8 PAPANUI 0 (5 innings)

The game was all over after the first inning when the PCU Angels sent 13 batters to the plate, resulting in eight runs.

Highlights included a bases-loaded double by catcher Manaia Makiri, which produced three runs.

There was more good hitting later by pitcher Trinity Mackley and Caitlin Davidson and Red Hawks and Junior White Sox squad member Kaiyah Ratu rapped a double.

Mackley crowned a fine game by throwing a no-hitter, registering four strikeouts and four walks.

RESULTS

PCU Angels 8 Papanui 0, Sydenham Kereru 6 Kaiapoi Queens 5, Sydenham Kereru 5 Papanui 3, Halswell 2 Kaiapoi 1.

Standings

Halswell 42, Kaiapoi 39, Sydenham Kereru 38, PCU 29, Papanui 19.

MEN’S GAMES

PCU DEVILS 7 HALSWELL HORNETS 0 (5 INNINGS)

The Devils did not dally before stamping their mark on this mercy-rule game at Mizuno Ballpark on Friday February 19.

DP Quinn Wickens tripled in the bottom of the first to score Bailey Hamilton and Leon Lumb.

Craig Nelson, who batted 2 from 3, scoed in the second inning on Curtis Dove’s centrefield single.

Lumb collected his second hit in the third, later plating after a pair of sacrifices.

PCU piled on three more runs later when Wickens, Andy Verheul and Nelson all had back-to-back hits.

Starter Ryan Britt fanned five of the 13 batters he faced and reliever Liam Potts struck out two. Halswell’s two hits (one apiece ofF each PCU pitcher) were split by veterans Marty Warren and Aaron Collier.

ALBION ANTEATERS 8 RICHMOND KEAS BLINDERS 7

Fourth-placed Albion pipped third-ranked RKS in a see-saw Friday night encounter.

Promising Albion infielder Cortia Holmes-Hurst tripled and scored on a wild pitch in the top of the first, but RKS starting pitcher Jacob Neale and Matt Baxter instantly replied for a 2-1 lead to the Blinders.

It was tit-for-tat for a while till Albion amassed a big inning in the fourth with a five-run spree that saw Holmes-Hurst, Lopeti Sumner, Hunter Martin, Ben Forbes and Caleb Parsons score.

It was sweaty palms times for Anteaters fans when Blinders player-coach Penese Iosefo-Harris made base on an error in the seventh and scored on Zach Graham’s three-bagger. Graham cut the deficit to 8-7 on Finn Mounty’s second hit of the game from the No 9 slot.

But by now Albion had brought the seasoned Kevin Papuni onto the pitching mound, and he held his nerve, striking out Neale and Baxter to strand a potential tying run at second base.

PAPANUI TIGERS 10 ALBION 2 (5 innings)

Jayden Britt seems to be thriving from more game-time at shortstop for competition leaders Papanui and he sparked the Tigers’ win over Albion at Kaiapoi’s Norman Kirk Park on Saturday.

Britt banged a three-run homer, with Josh Glading and Callum Bishop aboard, in the top of the second inning.

Tyron Bartorillo blasted two triples for the Tigers, who at one point produced three consecutive hits – to Bartorillo, Callum Muir and Glading.

Josh Dickson slammed a solo shot homer in the fourth, which also saw a RBI triple from Bartorillo’s flashing bat.

Britt wrapped it up with the 10^th and last run in the fifth.

Albion had started well, with leadoff Caleb Parsons scoring after a triple and a fielder’s choice in the bottom of the first. Kev Papuni came off the bench to score their only other run, singling before plating on a throwing error. Ben Forbes was the only other Anteater to get a safe hit off Ben Watts, who hurled nine strikeouts.

RICHMOND KEAS 2 HALSWELL HORNETS 0

Penese Iosefo-Harris racked up six strikeouts for five hits and three walks as the Blinders consolidated third place with a shutout win.

James Gapper drove in Zach Graham and Brandie Reihana for the only runs in the fifth.

Catcher and leadoff Marty Warren and first baseman Fletcher Due both had two from four for the Hornets.

PAPANUI 7 KAIAPOI KINGS 0 (5 INNINGS)

Papanui made short work of the home team at Kaiapoi with pitcher Ben Watts conceding just two hits, a first inning double from Ben Easdown and a fifth frame single to Scott MacDonald.

Callum Muir led the Papanui hits parade with three doubles, while Caleb Stewart went two from two for a 1.000 average at No 9.

Black Sox outfielder Jackson Watt clouted a home run and Ty Bartorillo had two doubles from three at-bats.

PCU 10 KAIAPOI 2 (5 INNINGS)

 The Devils dined out on eight runs off seven hits in the first frame, which featured home runs by Josh Harbrow and Curtis Dove (a two-run shot off his second at-bat of the inning).

 PCU piled on five back-to-back hits, from Andy Verheul, Craig Nelson, Jacob Davidson (double), Scott Tansley and Dove.                              

Catcher Davidson clubbed a two-run homer in the third inning. He and Nelson batted two from two for a perfect day at the plate.

Brad Warman scored for Kaiapoi after a double in the second inning and Mike Sands got the second run in the third after a walk and some Devils errors. Catcher Scott Barker got the only other Kaiapoi hit in the fourth.

RESULTS

Friday

PCU 7 Halswell 0, Albion 8 Richmond Keas 7.

Saturday

PCU 10 Kaiapoi 2, Papanui 10 Albion 2, Papanui 7 Kaiapoi 0, Richmond Keas 2 Halswell 0.

Standings

Papanui 53, PCU 49, RKS 34, Albion 22, Halswell 14, Kaiapoi 14.

Article added: Monday 28 February 2022