Melbourne, Malvern, Sandringham, and Waverley enjoyed midweek wins in VSBL Division 1 as the summer season continued with a month and a half to go before finals.
Read full season fixtures, results, and ladders HERE and check out the latest recaps below.
Division 1 Firsts
Melbourne Demons 7 v Berwick City Cougars 3
Berwick fell 7-3 to Melbourne on Tuesday night despite out-hitting them ten to eight.
John King grounded out to score Berwick's first run, but a five-run fifth put Melbourne in front. Both teams scored two more over the last few innings with Melbourne hanging on to the lead.
Daniel McGrath got the win on the mound with seven solid innings. He gave up two runs on seven hits, striking out ten and walking zero. Hayden Godbold threw one inning in relief out of the bullpen.
Mike McGillivray took the loss for Berwick. The pitcher went five innings, allowing five runs on six hits with three strikeouts.
Berwick scattered ten hits in the game, including three for Aidan Willis and two for Cain Bumpstead.
Ethan Scalzo, Kynan Jones, and Harvey Mitchelhill had two hits each as Melbourne collected eight total. Charlie O’Connell made the most plays with 12 in an error-free game.
Melbourne is the home team in the next matchup.
Waverley Wildcats 17 v Blackburn Orioles 5
Blackburn fell behind early and couldn't come back in a 17-5 loss to Waverley as the Wildcats opened up scoring in the first.
Mitchell Wilhite walked, Damon Hill doubled, and Finn Weichard homered in the first inning as Waverley led 6-0.
The Wildcats added another six in the second off the bats of Hill, Weichard, Shakore Bragg-Taylor, Mitch Homfray, and Jacob Sheldon-Collins.
Blackburn did get five back with RBIs from Nick Rossell, Liam Hopkins, and Tom Kerr-Chapman, but Waverley scored three in the third and two more in the fourth to put the game even further out of reach.
Darcy Longstaff got the start for Waverley, throwing three innings with five runs on five hits. Jordan Ley, Weichard, Hill, Bragg-Taylor, and Lochlan O’Connor all racked up multiple hits as the team had 17 hits total.
4-3 Waverley visits Blackburn this weekend as they try to crack the top 4.
Upwey Ferntree Gully Tigers 2 v Cheltenham Rustlers 2
Both sides pitched well as Cheltenham jumped out to an early 1-0 lead before Upwey FTG came back to score two in the fifth. The Rustlers went on to score one more in the sixth for their second draw of the season.
Max Barrett threw five innings for Cheltenham with four hits, four walks, two unearned runs, and four strikeouts. Josh Ashen struck out two and gave up one hit in a scoreless relief appearance while also hitting a home run and a single.
Andrew Gribbin hit an RBI double as Owen de Vries, Jarrod Hall and Dylan Trevorah all singled.
The Rustlers and Tigers meet again this weekend at Cheltenham.
Essendon Bombers 2 v Sunshine Eagles 2
Essendon scored first but Sunshine led 2-1 by the end of the first. It wasn't until the fifth that the Bombers tied it up, and the scores remained level through the last two innings for a draw.
This was the first draw of the season for both teams as strong pitching dominated. Despite giving up 10 hits over the course of the whole game, Sunshine starter Jeremy Young only gave up two runs - one unearned.
Young struck out seven and had no walks, plus two singles during his turn at the plate. Allan de San Miguel doubled while Joshua Byrne, Cam Deeble, and Adam Irons singled.
After Geelong's loss, Essendon moves into the top spot with six wins and a draw, while Sunshine is just out of the top five with a 4-3-1 record.
Sunshine hosts Essendon for round 9.
Geelong Baycats 0 v Malvern Braves 11
The Braves were on fire at the plate, collecting 12 hits with a seven-run first inning, plus one run in the third and three more in the fifth.
Mitch and Jon Kennedy shared pitching duties, handling three innings each for a combined no-hitter with 11 strikeouts and just two walks.
Seven unearned runs hurt the Baycats while Chris Burke was also a threat, knocking in four runs with two singles and a huge home run. Ryan Dale had a single and a double for two RBIs while Tyler Dale had three base hits. Mark Richards and James Squire also had RBIs.
Gelong hosts the next game after this midweek no-hitter as the Baycats are 7-1 and the Braves are 5-2-1.
Sandringham Royals 6 v Fitzroy Lions 2
The Royals bounced back from a 5-2 loss to Essendon over the weekend with a solid performance on Tuesday night, led by Charlie Pierson with four no-hit innings and five strikeouts. Riley Trad and Lachlan Smith backed him up as Sandringham stayed busy with the bats, collecting eight hits total.
Sandringham led 1-0 through the fourth before adding three more in the middle innings and a final two in the last frame. Fitzroy's runs came in the fourth and the seventh off the bat of Alec Smith. Danny King had the Lions' lone single of the game and also pitched five innings, giving up four runs with five hits, three walks, and five strikeouts.
Declan Ferguson, Nicholas Coy, Balin O'Callaghan, Lachlan Smith, and Will Tucker had RBIs while Joshua Meyer smashed two doubles and Sam Skinner had one.
The 4-4 Royals meet the Lions for another meeting this weekend.