Blackburn Orioles defeated Sunshine Eagles in game three of the VSBL Division 1 Grand Final, securing back-to-back premiership flags after a narrow 5-4 victory on Sunday afternoon at Melbourne Ballpark.
It was a back-and-forth battle between the two sides that finished first and second in the regular season. Blackburn won the first game on Tuesday night 9-1, but Sunshine was undeterred, coming out to win game two with a final score of 4-1.
The split series sent the Grand Final to game three on Sunday, and the Eagles and Orioles produced a classic ending to an already-exciting series, with Blackburn prevailing in a fight to the finish.
Blackburn faced pressure as Sunshine continued to battle in the bottom of the ninth but the Orioles remained composed until the final out.
Sunshine had the early lead after the first inning when two runs scored at the bottom of the first but the Orioles came back fighting, going ahead 4-3 after five.
The beginning of the game started positively for Blackburn, Liam Hopkins striking at the first pitch of the game, a shot that made it to the wall in right field as he stood up at second, much to the excitement of his teammates on the bench.
Unfortunately for Hopkins, his incredible feat wasn’t to be rewarded as the next three batters for the Orioles all went down, although Blackburn wasn't wasting any time in the box, striking hard at the pitches being thrown from Sunshine starter Scott Riley-Barr.
The bottom of the first started with Jeremy Young grounding out before Nikau Pouaka-Grego became the first baserunner after being hit by a pitch from Blackburn’s Andrew Jones.
Back-to-back singles from Bryce Aldridge and Rory Meddick saw the bases loaded before Adrian Lovelock entered the box and singled to right, Pouaka-Grego coming home to score the first run of the game.
Still with bases loaded, it was Adam Irons’ turn to continue the Sunshine hits and that he did, as he too targeted the right side of the field, Aldridge scoring Sunshine’s second run in as many batters. The inning ended with a double play but a handy lead to Sunshine.
Riley-Barr pitched four balls in a row to Ryan Berg to start the second inning but saw Berg remain at first as the next two batters were retired quickly. A hard ground ball from David Dicker that went into the left field corner saw him double, but more importantly for Blackburn, Berg was adamant he was going to make it home, and that he did for his side’s first run.
Sunshine found some more runners on during the second dig, however, they were left at second and third as the final out was recorded. The same could be said for Blackburn as there were runners on one and two but they were stranded as well.
Sunshine added back their run in the bottom half of the third, Lovelock singled up the middle before a bunt made by Irons wasn’t able to be collected in time by the pitcher so runners were on first and second.
Lovelock advanced to third on an error by the pitcher as Irons was caught stealing second and there were two outs during the same Jason Tutt plate appearance, Tutt grounding out too as Lovelock scored.
Two strikeouts for Riley-Barr started the fourth inning before Dicker was walked, but that was all as Blackburn saw Nick Rossell fly out in foul territory, first baseman Lovelock making the catch. The bottom of the fourth saw three consecutive Sunshine batters ground out.
Cooper Goodman was in the box with bases loaded, and a catcher error on the first pitch saw Luke Hughes scoring, Jacob Evans advancing to third and Ryan Berg to second. Goodman singled on a hard ground ball to centre field, and suddenly Blackburn had taken the lead when Evans and Berg ran home.
After a complete game thrown the day before, Jeremy Young came back out for his team, stepping in to relieve Riley Barr after that rough inning.
It was a three-up, three-down bottom fifth for the Eagles as they couldn’t gain back their lead, as was the same in their sixth after Blackburn had three outs in four batters at the top of that particular inning.
A single to Hughes saw him safe at first to start Blackburn’s seventh frame, a sacrifice bunt from Evans advancing Hughes to second. Another single to Berg saw Hughes round to third before coming home on a Cooper Goodman RBI where he was out going to first.
Sunshine’s seventh started with Joshua Bryne striking out while second up to bat Young reached on an error by shortstop Goodman but the remaining two outs were made, despite Aldridge fouling five off in his plate appearance to try to stay alive.
Sunshine kept the Blackburn hitters to a three-up, three-down top eight before trying themselves to score in the bottom. They were behind two outs as Orioles reliever Scott Mitchinson recorded his fourth strikeout of the game. Irons singled to become a runner but was out advancing home on a double from Tutt.
Hughes was the only batter to get on base in the top of the ninth as his teammates were retired either side of his spot in the lineup. Blackburn went into the bottom of the ninth with a two-run lead, and Mitchinson quickly retired two Sunshine batters as pinch hitter Daniel Wilkie struck out and Bryne grounded out to third.
However, that didn’t stop Sunshine from trying as next batter Young singled, stealing second while Pouaka-Grego was in the box. A double from Pouaka-Grego saw Young come home and bring the game to the smallest of margins, Aldridge being the winning run as he stepped up to the plate.
In an at-bat that spanned seven pitches and Pouaka-Grego advancing to third on a wild pitch, Alridge was destined to hit deep and he did just that but straight into the glove of left fielder Rossell as Blackburn celebrated grand final glory for the second straight year.
Hughes led the game with four hits for Blackburn while Young lead the way for Sunshine with two. Goodman secured three RBIs for the Orioles during the day as a number of hitters stayed in the box for a number of pitches.
Jones pitched the first five innings for Blackburn, allowing three runs and striking out two while Mitchinson got the save from his four innings, allowing one run with five strikeouts.
Riley-Barr started well for Sunshine in 4.2 innings, pitching 17 first pitch strikes with three batters striking out as a result of his pitching. He was replaced by Young for 4.1 innings as he too found the zone at times
Blackburn Manager Matthew Tayler says this win is the result of relentless determination and dedication from his side. "A real focus our whole season was a whole of club approach which built great depth throughout the entire club," Tayler said. "We consistently had 40 plus players at senior training which led to all four seniors teams making the top four."
Throughout the final series, Blackburn relied on five pitchers who all threw multiple innings, with no import necessary. "We hit well right through our lineup with the bottom of the order leading the way," Tayler said. "A full team effort got us over the line in a really tough and hard fought series."
Bringing the flag home to Blackburn means the world to the club. "Three straight grand finals appearances and two championships gives the club the rewards for a lot of hard work by a lot of people," Tayler added. "Our proudest achievement is the great strength in culture which has a great feeling around the club. The fact that four senior teams made the playoffs is a great result from the club."
Closing the chapter on this VSBL season, the Burners are hoping to continue to build on that strong club culture. "We want to be a club where every one one of our members wants to be at," We will continue to drive excellence on the field and work hard on repeating our success for many more years to come."
Blackburn faced pressure as Sunshine continued to battle in the bottom of the ninth but the Orioles remained composed until the final out.
Sunshine had the early lead after the first inning when two runs scored at the bottom of the first but the Orioles came back fighting, going ahead 4-3 after five.
The beginning of the game started positively for Blackburn, Liam Hopkins striking at the first pitch of the game, a shot that made it to the wall in right field as he stood up at second, much to the excitement of his teammates on the bench.
Unfortunately for Hopkins, his incredible feat wasn’t to be rewarded as the next three batters for the Orioles all went down, although Blackburn wasn't wasting any time in the box, striking hard at the pitches being thrown from Sunshine starter Scott Riley-Barr.
The bottom of the first started with Jeremy Young grounding out before Nikau Pouaka-Grego became the first baserunner after being hit by a pitch from Blackburn’s Andrew Jones.
Back-to-back singles from Bryce Aldridge and Rory Meddick saw the bases loaded before Adrian Lovelock entered the box and singled to right, Pouaka-Grego coming home to score the first run of the game.
Still with bases loaded, it was Adam Irons’ turn to continue the Sunshine hits and that he did, as he too targeted the right side of the field, Aldridge scoring Sunshine’s second run in as many batters. The inning ended with a double play but a handy lead to Sunshine.
Riley-Barr pitched four balls in a row to Ryan Berg to start the second inning but saw Berg remain at first as the next two batters were retired quickly. A hard ground ball from David Dicker that went into the left field corner saw him double, but more importantly for Blackburn, Berg was adamant he was going to make it home, and that he did for his side’s first run.
Sunshine found some more runners on during the second dig, however, they were left at second and third as the final out was recorded. The same could be said for Blackburn as there were runners on one and two but they were stranded as well.
Sunshine added back their run in the bottom half of the third, Lovelock singled up the middle before a bunt made by Irons wasn’t able to be collected in time by the pitcher so runners were on first and second.
Lovelock advanced to third on an error by the pitcher as Irons was caught stealing second and there were two outs during the same Jason Tutt plate appearance, Tutt grounding out too as Lovelock scored.
Two strikeouts for Riley-Barr started the fourth inning before Dicker was walked, but that was all as Blackburn saw Nick Rossell fly out in foul territory, first baseman Lovelock making the catch. The bottom of the fourth saw three consecutive Sunshine batters ground out.
Cooper Goodman was in the box with bases loaded, and a catcher error on the first pitch saw Luke Hughes scoring, Jacob Evans advancing to third and Ryan Berg to second. Goodman singled on a hard ground ball to centre field, and suddenly Blackburn had taken the lead when Evans and Berg ran home.
After a complete game thrown the day before, Jeremy Young came back out for his team, stepping in to relieve Riley Barr after that rough inning.
It was a three-up, three-down bottom fifth for the Eagles as they couldn’t gain back their lead, as was the same in their sixth after Blackburn had three outs in four batters at the top of that particular inning.
A single to Hughes saw him safe at first to start Blackburn’s seventh frame, a sacrifice bunt from Evans advancing Hughes to second. Another single to Berg saw Hughes round to third before coming home on a Cooper Goodman RBI where he was out going to first.
Sunshine’s seventh started with Joshua Bryne striking out while second up to bat Young reached on an error by shortstop Goodman but the remaining two outs were made, despite Aldridge fouling five off in his plate appearance to try to stay alive.
Sunshine kept the Blackburn hitters to a three-up, three-down top eight before trying themselves to score in the bottom. They were behind two outs as Orioles reliever Scott Mitchinson recorded his fourth strikeout of the game. Irons singled to become a runner but was out advancing home on a double from Tutt.
Hughes was the only batter to get on base in the top of the ninth as his teammates were retired either side of his spot in the lineup. Blackburn went into the bottom of the ninth with a two-run lead, and Mitchinson quickly retired two Sunshine batters as pinch hitter Daniel Wilkie struck out and Bryne grounded out to third.
However, that didn’t stop Sunshine from trying as next batter Young singled, stealing second while Pouaka-Grego was in the box. A double from Pouaka-Grego saw Young come home and bring the game to the smallest of margins, Aldridge being the winning run as he stepped up to the plate.
In an at-bat that spanned seven pitches and Pouaka-Grego advancing to third on a wild pitch, Alridge was destined to hit deep and he did just that but straight into the glove of left fielder Rossell as Blackburn celebrated grand final glory for the second straight year.
Hughes led the game with four hits for Blackburn while Young lead the way for Sunshine with two. Goodman secured three RBIs for the Orioles during the day as a number of hitters stayed in the box for a number of pitches.
Jones pitched the first five innings for Blackburn, allowing three runs and striking out two while Mitchinson got the save from his four innings, allowing one run with five strikeouts.
Riley-Barr started well for Sunshine in 4.2 innings, pitching 17 first pitch strikes with three batters striking out as a result of his pitching. He was replaced by Young for 4.1 innings as he too found the zone at times
Blackburn Manager Matthew Tayler says this win is the result of relentless determination and dedication from his side. "A real focus our whole season was a whole of club approach which built great depth throughout the entire club," Tayler said. "We consistently had 40 plus players at senior training which led to all four seniors teams making the top four."
Throughout the final series, Blackburn relied on five pitchers who all threw multiple innings, with no import necessary. "We hit well right through our lineup with the bottom of the order leading the way," Tayler said. "A full team effort got us over the line in a really tough and hard fought series."
Bringing the flag home to Blackburn means the world to the club. "Three straight grand finals appearances and two championships gives the club the rewards for a lot of hard work by a lot of people," Tayler added. "Our proudest achievement is the great strength in culture which has a great feeling around the club. The fact that four senior teams made the playoffs is a great result from the club."
Closing the chapter on this VSBL season, the Burners are hoping to continue to build on that strong club culture. "We want to be a club where every one one of our members wants to be at," We will continue to drive excellence on the field and work hard on repeating our success for many more years to come."
Throughout the final series, Blackburn relied on five pitchers who all threw multiple innings, with no import necessary. "We hit well right through our lineup with the bottom of the order leading the way," Tayler said. "A full team effort got us over the line in a really tough and hard fought series."
Bringing the flag home to Blackburn means the world to the club. "Three straight grand finals appearances and two championships gives the club the rewards for a lot of hard work by a lot of people," Tayler added. "Our proudest achievement is the great strength in culture which has a great feeling around the club. The fact that four senior teams made the playoffs is a great result from the club."
Closing the chapter on this VSBL season, the Burners are hoping to continue to build on that strong club culture. "We want to be a club where every one one of our members wants to be at," We will continue to drive excellence on the field and work hard on repeating our success for many more years to come."