The 2019/20 VSBL Division 4 competition continued on Sunday with some big matchups. There's five undefeated teams remaining as round four approaches: Melbourne Demons and Waverley Wildcats Black in the East, North Coburg Rebels Gold and Footscray White in the North West and Berwick City Cougars in the South.
DIVISION FOUR EAST
Malvern Braves 1 v Melbourne Demons 15
Melbourne kept their unbeaten streak alive with a strong showing against Malvern who got the first run of the game but didn’t score after.
Melbourne fought back in the bottom of the first with two runs, the second on a wild pitch, before connecting bat with ball many more times over the course of the game.
Seven runs came in the second and five in the fourth as they were strong on defense as well. Doug Miller took the loss for the Braves, allowing three hits and nine runs on two innings while Leah Trebilcock went 1-for-3 at the plate to lead Malvern in hits. Pat Cotter was the star on the hill for Melbourne.
St Kilda Saints 7 v Waverley Wildcats Black 13
The Wildcats won't go down without a fight, and their determination on the field has earned them a nice 3-0 start to the season. The Saints put in plenty of offensive efforts of their own, but it wasn't enough to overpower the Wildcats. Waverley visits Fitzroy Lions Gold on Sunday while St Kilda takes on Waverley Wildcats Red.
Fitzroy Lions Gold 11 v Monash University Farmers 11
From the outset, this was going to be close and it was proved when the teams scored two runs each in the first.
Fitzroy would’ve thought their seven runs in the second would be enough of a lead to hold onto but Monash Uni had a different idea, firstly scoring five in the third.
With the score at 9-7 the Lions way, they improved their margin with another two runs and went back into the field to contain the lead.
The Farmers though, grinded and fought hard and wouldn’t let themselves be beat, settling for a draw and splitting the points as four runs came through.
Waverley Wildcats Red 0 v Blackburn Orioles 0
Waverley forfeited the game, giving Blackburn their first "W" of the season. The Wildcats are set to face St Kilda while Blackburn visits Malvern on Sunday.
NORTH WEST
Footscray Bulldogs Blue 8 v Fitzroy Lions Blue 11
A tight affair with the breakout inning coming from Fitzroy Blue in the fourth – seven runs.
Fitzroy had the advantage on Footscray Blue deep into the game, holding an 11-2 lead heading into the sixth.
A strong fightback from Footscray Blue saw six runs be scored as they fell short of catching up to Fitzroy Blue.
Essendon Jets 4 v Mitchell Majors Yellow 13
Mitchell Majors Yellow started well with five runs in the first in response to Essendon’s one run to get proceedings underway.
Essendon helped cut the margin to a 5-4 in the second and the game still remained up for grabs in the fifth when the scoreline read 6-4 in favour of Mitchell Majors Yellow.
Essendon couldn’t find any runs in the fifth as Mitchell Majors Yellow piled on seven to show a strong victory on the scoresheet.
Footscray Bulldogs White 12 v Essendon Bombers 3
A great defensive effort from Footscray Bulldogs White didn’t allow Essendon’s offensive efforts to be too out of hand, collecting just three runs in five innings.
Footscray White on the other hand looked strong across each of their batting digs but they confirmed the result when they batted six runs in in the fifth to win comfortably and still maintain an unbeaten record.
Footscray Bulldogs Red 17 v North Coburg Rebels Maroon 0
Footscray Red were all across their opponents on Sunday, not allowing a single North Coburg Maroon run to score.
Instead, Footscray Red recorded 17 after six-run innings either side of the game in the first and fifth innings, seeing North Coburg Maroon 0-3 at the end of the round.
North Coburg Rebels Gold 17 v Mitchell Majors Black 5
North Coburg Gold got out to a 13-run lead before Mitchell Majors Black scored at the bottom of the third.
From there, each team scored a few runs in the following three innings but the result was put beyond reach already and sees North Coburg Gold on top of the ladder.
Fitzroy Lions Maroon v BYE
SOUTH
Moorabbin Panthers 2 v Monash University Farmers 19
The stage was set early for the Farmers who didn’t see the Panthers score until the last inning of the game, putting 12 on the board before that point.
Even though Moorabbin got two runs in the sixth, it wouldn’t stop Monash Uni from inflicting more pain on the Panthers, creating another dig of chances that resulted in seven runs coming across.
Monash Uni remain second without a loss while Moorabbin’s scoreline reads the other way at 0-2. With two home runs in this game, the Farmers will be looking to continue such strong efforts moving forward.
Berwick City Cougars 17 v Pakenham Pumas 3
A big lead was growing for Berwick City as a seven-run first dig and five-run fourth inning contributed to 16-run lead going into Pakenham’s fourth inning.
The Pumas brought in three runs in that inning but again, the Cougars responded with another run in the fifth and the defense stood tall at the end of the game in Pakenham’s last dig to start 3-0 while the Pumas are still without a win.
Ormond Glenhuntly v BYE