Amherst Autoworks 8, M&N Sports 7

This was a great game between the first and second place teams, Amherst and M&N respectively, and as you might expect, it wasn’t decided until shortstop and manager Geoff Geoffrion made a back-hand play on a Texas-leaguer for the third out in the seventh. M&N loaded the bases in the top of the last on three straight singles and it looked like they would at least tie it up until the ball magnet that was Geoffrion’s glove kicked in. Two M&N batters hit pop-ups to him before he made the fine play to end it, giving him all the putouts in the inning and leaving his charges on top of the game and the league. Amherst’s Gary Boyle and Dan Walsh had perfect days at the plate with 3 hits in 3 at-bats while lead-off hitter Bob Lamontagne had 3 in 4. Geoffrion, Thom Riley and John Ogrodowczyk contributed 2 hits each to the line score. M&N’s Dennis Cassily managed a 4 for 4 day and Paul Archer, Frank Sommer, Gary Royal and Fred Mapplebeck helped out with 2 hits apiece for skipper George Mosnicka’s game eleven.

Dr. Dionne’s Seniors 7, Calvary Lock & Key 6

Calvary outhit the Seniors 17 to 14 and scored 5 runs in the second to take a 6 to 2 lead but they couldn’t plate even one more runner in the next five innings. Dr. Dionne’s could, however, and a Bert Guimond two-run triple in the sixth proved to be the game-winner. Calvary threatened in the top of the seventh with the bases loaded and one out but a 6-4-3 double play ended the game. Harry Doutt led the winners with 3 hits in 3 at-bats and Wally Hedlund, Guimond, Leo Melanson and Steve Morgan stroked 2 hits apiece in a winning cause. Calvary’s John Chase managed a 4 for 4 day and 5 others had 2 hits: John Poulos, Steve Stitt, Rod Robuccio, Bill Moccia (returning from a long stint on the DL), and Steve Brzozowski.

IMEC 17, Hanson’s Automotive 14

Whatever offense was lacking in the first two games was made up for in this slugfest as the teams combined for 53 hits in 84 at-bats, a .630 average. The biggest difference between the two teams shows up in the extra base hit category as the winners banged out 10 to only 3 for Hanson’s. Paul Valdanbrini’s solo homer in the second started IMEC on the way to a 5-run inning which they duplicated in the fourth. Not to be outdone, Woody Woodward’s mechanics plated 5 in both the second and the seventh but they needed a few more in the last to catch up and weren’t able to produce them. Jim Edwards and Ron Lewis had 4 for 4 days for the winners and Charlie Howe, Alan Ross, Valdanbrini, Joe D’Ambrosio and Donnie Smith stroked 3 each in a winning cause. Hanson’ best were Zeke Zarakotas, Gerry Moore, Mike Reilly and sub Thom Riley, each with 3 hits. Riley and Don Kasper didn’t make an out for Hanson’s, with Kasper having 2 hits and a walk in his 3 at-bats.

Jok’s Auto Sales 12, Art’s Painting 6

Jok’s scored more runs in this game than they had in their last two as they won going away through some strong bat work in the latter innings. Sub Bob Lamontagne’s homer in the sixth and a bases-clearing triple by Rick Latham helped to push 5 across and that turned out to be Katy-bar-the-door for the Painters. Webster and Ron Monteiro were perfect with 4 for 4 days, Les Johnson managed 3 hits in 4 at-bats and Don Fusco, Latham, Eddie Jaracz, Joe DeLuca and Lamontagne all had 2 hits for the sales guys. Jerry Ferullo and Murph Albert stayed hot for Art’s with 3 for 4 days and two hits each were had by Steve Coco, Dick Gillespie, Mitch Milewski, Bob Larose and Chick Hamel.

Amherst Automotive 13, Dr. Dionne’s Seniors 5

Even a rejuvenated Seniors team couldn’t slow the league-leading juggernaut that is Amherst Automotive. The fact that there’s not a weak bat in their lineup was reinforced by the line score which shows that eight of the eleven on the mechanics’ lineup card had at least 2 hits with Bob Lamontagne’s 4 for 4 leading the way and Gary Boyle and Paul Poisson close behind with 3 hits in 4 at bats. Pat Cassier, Dan Walsh, Bob Liscio, Dave Krumenacker and Al Abele were the 2-hit guys for the winners. Only half as many batters for Dr. Dionne’s managed multi-hit games; Harry Doutt’s perfect 4 for 4 was followed by Harold Murphy, Peter Monaco and sub John Poulos, each with 2 hits.

Pine Street Eatery 12, IMEC 10

This one turned into a real nail-biter when an IMEC four-run rally in the top of the seventh with two outs, fueled by 6 hits in 7 at-bats, fell just short of a win. The Eatery’s Danny Birck stayed on fire and reached base four times with two triples, a homer and a walk. Boh Buczynski, Kip Ferguson and Charlie Mooradian weren’t far behind as they each managed 3 hits in 4 at-bats and steady Dick Moushegian helped out with 2 bingles for the winners. The engineers had nine men with at least two hits: Jim Edwards, Ron Lewis, Paul Nickerson, Frank Twardosky, Al Ross, Paul Valdanbrini, Joe D’Ambrosio, Don Smith and sub John Chase. Valdanbrini was their high bat with 3 hits in 4 at-bats. Their problem was an inability to string them together until the last and it cost them.

Calvary Lock & Key 11, Jok’s Auto Sales 6

Calvary started off hot with 7 runs in the first two innings combined while Jok’s managed goose eggs in both and the locksmiths never looked back. The car guys looked to stage a rally with 5 across in the third but that’s the closest they got as Calvary plated two each in the last two to seal the win. Leading the winners with perfect 3 for 3 days were: John Chase, John Poulos and Steve Meltzer. Bill Moccia, Rod Robuccio, Ken Rousseau and Bob Lavoie contributed with two hits each as everyone in the locksmith’s lineup reached at least once. Jok’s best were Don Fusco with 3 for 4 and Lester Johnson with a 3 for 3 day. Two hits each were had by Hap Webster, Rick Latham, Ben Tosi and subs Dale Stearns and Jim Edwards.

Hanson’s Automotive 8, Art’s Painting 3

Both teams managed 15 hits but the winners clustered theirs with 12 coming in the last three innings which pushed across 7 of their runs while Art’s could only come up with single runs in the second, fifth and sixth. Roger Neild led Hanson’s with three hits in three at bats, a triple, double and a single. Zeke Zarakotas, Mike Reilly and Clarence Farwell stroked two hits apiece to help the victors to a “W”. Art’s pitcher Chick Hamel helped his cause with a perfect 3 for 3 and Dick Gillespie also stroked three hits but in four at bats. Steve Coco, Mitch Milewski and Rod Wood contributed with 2 hits each but in a losing cause. Art’s Bob Larose and Jay McNay played some fine “D” with Larose making a catch falling down but managing a great throw from the ground to nip a runner at second and McNay snared a one-handed tip of a hot foul ball.