VSBL Division 2 teams are racing towards finals with Newport, Moorabbin, Mulgrave, Doncaster, and Werribee rounding out the top five after 15 rounds.
Read full season fixtures, results, and ladders HERE and check out the latest recaps below.
Division 2 Firsts
Mulgrave Rebels 2 v Newport Rams 0
Two quick runs off the bat of Nicholas Thompson in the first inning proved to be the deciding factor in this game as the Rebels earned their tenth win of the year.
Thompson had Mulgrave's only extra-base hit of the day while Paul Rutgers had a pair of base hits as Jayson Arthur, Riley O'Shea, and Caleb Poole also singled. Poole threw the whole game, striking out four and keeping things scoreless even with eight hits.
Newport's Tyler Comben also pitched the full game, settling in after those two early runs with six hits and eight strikeouts. The Rams' efforts to break through at the plate were led by Aaron Robson with three singles, as well as base hits for Nathan Smith, Connor Schibeci, Cameron Lyons, David Gregurke, and Jared Berman.
Now 10-4, Mulgrave visits St Kilda next while ladder leaders Newport look to improve on a 12-3 record with an away game at Doncaster.
Moorabbin Panthers 5 v Doncaster Dragons 7
Doncaster got the better of second-place Moorabbin, coming back with three runs in the third and four in the eighth to keep up the pressure. The game was 7-4 going into the top of the ninth, and although Moorabbin got one back, they were stopped there.
Angus Stals threw five innings for the Dragons with six hits, five walks, four runs, and four strikeouts. Simon Fitzmaurice and Marcel Davoine both contributed two solid innings in relief.
Doncaster's Billy Findlay had two RBIs on three singles as Brian Chen, Nicolaas Unland, and Davoine had RBI singles, too. Luke Utting doubled while Brendan McDonald and Marc Sandy had base hits.
Nicholas Veale threw five innings for Moorabbin with seven hits, two walks, three runs (one unearned), and five strikeouts. Mitch Sheldon-Collins handled three innings with two hits, five walks, four runs, and three strikeouts.
Felix Brunner and Ben Laux both had RBI doubles for Moorabbin while Veale had a pair of RBIs with three singles. Nick Bertucci, Matt Hardie, and Angelo Reale Rontos also had hits.
Moorabbin is 11-4 just behind Newport at 12-3 as Doncaster sits fourth at 9-5-1. The Panthers host Preston and the Dragons play Newport at home next.
Williamstown Wolves 6 v Preston Pirates 7
Preston came back to win after a flurry of five runs in the seventh. Williamstown pulled in front with three runs across the first four innings, followed by three runs in the fifth for a 6-0 lead.
The Pirates stirred things up in the sixth, scoring one before bringing home five in the next frame. A final run in the bottom of the ninth sealed the deal on Preston's fifth win while Williamstown is now 8-6-1.
Logan O'Brien got the win on the mound with two strong scoreless innings, striking out four in relief of Gabriel Valderrama, who led the team offensively with two RBIs on a big double.
Luke Williams, Jaycob Pascuzzi, and Darcy Byrne-Connell also knocked in runs for Preston while Adrian Fittock and O'Brien both had doubles. Glenn Farrell, Ryan Golledge, and Mitch Legge also made it on base.
Williamstown had Dennis Neal on the mound for five scoreless innings. He gave up just two hits and two walks with seven strikeouts before Aaron Green took over.
Cooper Carrison had two singles and an RBI while Justin Gourlay also knocked in a run with two singles and a double. Hiroshi Narasaki and Jason McDonald batted runs in too.
After this intense back-and-forth competition, round 16 has Preston heading to Moorabbin and Williamstown hosting Werribee.
Ormond Glenhuntly 1 v Werribee Giants 4
The Hunters and the Giants were locked in a tight battle, with both sides scoring one run in the fourth. It wasn't until the bottom of the eighth that Werribee broke through with three runs, which proved enough to win the game as they got the final three outs in the ninth.
Ormond Glenhuntly managed five hits off Wesley de Jong who kept things under control to get the win, walking three and striking out nine throughout the entire game.
The winning side had three hits on the day, including a single and a double for Wade Balzer and a base hit for Trent Pantalleresco.
9-6 Werribee heads to Williamstown for a midweek game while Ormond Glenhuntly plays Port Melbourne at home in hopes of securing win number five.
St Kilda Saints 13 v Port Melbourne Mariners 2
The Saints and Mariners had a 1-1 tie going into the second inning, but St Kilda took the wheel from there, scoring six in the second, two in the third, one in the fifth, and three in the sixth. This flurry of runs went unanswered until the bottom of the sixth when Port Melbourne got one back, but that was it as the Saints got their fourth win of the season.
Adam Schoppe got the win on the mound, giving up three hits and two runs with three strikeouts in seven innings.
Mariano Favia, George Polley, and Millar Kuhl all batted in three runs for St Kilda as Fernando Figueroa had two doubles for a pair of RBIs. Rolando Curiel took two walks and smashed a double and Robby Lewis record three base hits.
On the bright side for Port Melbourne, Darryl George homered twice while Beau Graham connected on a hard-hit single.
For the next round, St Kilda hosts Mulgrave and Port Melbourne heads to Ormond Glenhuntly.