Snowhawks crush Lakeland Times to get back in win column

I missed playing snowshoe baseball last year due to a rainout. The Lakeland Times put together a team once again in a game that was an absolute blast.

The Snowhawks defeated the Times 21-11 on Monday in Lake Tomahawk.

“It was a lot of fun. We always have a lot of fun with you guys,” Snowhawk player-coach Jeff Smith said. “We talked about it for quite a long time at the afterglow. It’s a game that we always look forward to. We really do. We had a real good crowd. The crowd was very much into it because of your team — a bunch of nice guys on that team, and they’re a lot of fun, and they’re yelling back-and-forth which makes it a lot more fun for the crowd too.”

It was great to play snowshoe baseball for the first time in two years after having been rained out last year. The Snowhawks flexed their muscles all night with three home runs and plenty of highlight hits.

“It was really, really full still at the end, and Amy (Monday) had some really good music,” Smith said. “She brought some stuff from the 80s kinda into it, and I don’t know if that had anything to do at all, but it was a lot of fun to hear some of them songs again that really you haven’t heard in years. I think it got the crowd going in a way, and it just added to it I think. And some of the falls and some of the great catches on your team’s part and some really great hitting too. I mean a lot of shots up the middle, and it just kept everybody interested and kept everybody around.”

I thought that we got off to a good start. Braeden Walker drove in two runs with Chayce Walker and Sam Weber coming to score. We led 2-0, our only lead of the game.

It didn’t take long before the Snowhawks overtook us. Their first four batters all scored as we made plenty of mistakes in the field in the bottom half of the first.

If we had any chance of upsetting the Snowhawks, we would have to play near-perfect defense. We weren’t even close.

The Snowhawks led 4-2 after one inning.

    River News Sports Editor Jeremy Mayo advances to second base during the third inning snowshoe baseball game between the Lake Tomahawk Snowhawks and The Lakeland Times in Lake Tomahawk Monday, July 21. Mayo, whose career snowshoe batting average sits below the Mendoza Line, went a surprising 2-for-4 with a run scored and ground into one double play. (Kate Reichl/Lakeland Times)
  

We did have a chance to tie the game in the top of the third. Jeremy Mayo, myself and Adam Redman all reached base. On Redman’s hit, an error in the field moved everyone up a base, allowing Mayo to score.

I stood at third base as the tying run with no outs. Unfortunately, our next three batters all flew out.

The Snowhawks scored five runs in the bottom of the third inning, and we never came close after that.

One of the best parts of the game came on a miraculous catch by Weber in right-center field. The Snowhawks hit a high flyball towards Weber. He initially moved forward before realizing the ball was going over his head. He changed his direction, reached out his hands and made an over-the-shoulder catch blind.

“That was an over-the-shoulder catch that he was making like he had a glove on his hand, and that is very hard to do in snowshoes, especially out there where there’s a fence,” Smith said. “We all thought it was just gonna go over his head. Cole (Punches) took off from second base, and we all were yelling and watching the play and not him. All of a sudden, we had to tell him to go back.”

I had a great view of it in right field. I thought for sure it was going over Weber’s head. It was one of the best catches I’ve seen, especially in person.

“That is definitely one of the best catches,” Smith said. “I’ve seen some diving catches, but not running all out and catch the ball over your shoulder. That just doesn’t happen very often. The ball’s either hit over your shoulder, and it’s gone, or you miss it. It’s easy to miss it, and he scooped it up like he had a glove on his hand. That was an ESPN highlight reel catch, that’s for sure.”

Travis Strasburg had himself a night for the Times. He made plenty of catches in left field and reached base three times with one run scored.

Offensively, we really struggled to score runs. We put together just two runs innings four through eight. We couldn’t solve Cole Punches, the Snowhawks’ pitcher. 

Meanwhile, the Snowhawks hit a couple of bombs. Jesse Robinson powered one to deep center field that rolled all the way down a hill. A tumbling Weber gathered himself and threw it back in after Robinson had crossed home plate.

Two innings later, Robinson hit another home run, this one more toward left-center field.

“There were some really nice hits,” Smith said. “He plays for the crowd a lot cause he wants them to see the long ball, and he didn’t have to do that, but I know Jesse, and he’s all for, you know, getting the crowd going on those long balls and yeah, he got into that one.”

Gunner Dunbar delivered his own homer, sort of. He lined one to right field off a high pitch. We had trouble getting the ball to the right base and ended up throwing it to the Snowhawks’ bench. Dunbar came home to score.

“Gunner karate-chopping one over his head ... I know he likes the high pitch but not like that,” Smith said. “It was just a very all-around good, fun game.”

We used three different pitchers throughout the game — Gregg Walker, Chad Metzger and Redman. No matter what we did, the Snowhawks scored runs.

“We didn’t wanna walk so it was either you get a hit, or you don’t, and that makes the game go a little faster too without all that. The pitchers did a good job,” Smith said. “Actually, we didn’t really swing anything bad. I mean really there were a couple pitchers that we let go, but the third one was always seemed to be there.”

It came a little too late, but we did score six runs in the ninth inning.

Walker Hartman and Braeden Walker got things started by reaching base against new Snowhawk pitcher Don Moore.

Strasburg and Dick Lee kept things moving with hits of their own. Gregg Walker, who reached base all four times, and Metzger also scored in the ninth inning. 

“You guys didn’t play last year so you’re a little rusty,” Smith said. “We should’ve spotted you six, seven runs. By the end of the game that would’ve been a lot closer.”

    The Lakeland Times snowshoe baseball team fell 21-11 to the Snowhawks Monday, July 21 at Snowshoe Park in Lake Tomahawk. Team pictured, back row from left, Chayce Walker, Chad Metzger, Travis Strasburg, Braeden Walker, Dick Lee, Walker Hartman; front row, Trevor Greene, Gregg Walker, Brett LaBore, Jeremy Mayo, Sam Weber and Adam Redman. (Kate Reichl/Lakeland Times)
  

Trevor Greene and Mayo reached base to keep our rally going. I popped out for the final out of the game.

Up next, the Snowhawks (3-2) play Black Bear Bar on Monday, July 28 at 7:30 p.m. The game takes place at Snowshoe Park in Lake Tomahawk.

“They have a very good squad,” Smith said. “It’s basically their Thursday night team so Tommy Ziemba again. There’s a couple other guys too that have played before with Jesse, and they’ll be on the team. It’s a pretty good game all around. It’ll be not as much fun obviously as what we had with you guys.”

Brett LaBore may be reached at [email protected] or [email protected].