FORT RUCKER, Ala. -- With less than two weeks left in the regular season, the 2017 Fort Rucker Intramural Softball Season is heating up as teams get ready for the playoffs.
The D Company, 1st Battalion, 145th Aviation Regiment, Where My Pitches At? Scorched the Fort Rucker Fire Department's Plug Uglies 13-3 in the bottom of the fifth during a bout that had the fire department team asking, "where my runs at?"
The D Co. team was off to a hot start, but the Plug Uglies couldn't seem to find their footing throughout the game with a string of errors that gave up multiple runs to their opponents, eventually leading to their downfall.
"Today we knew it was going to be a big game coming out to play the Plug Uglies because they have a really prestigious ranking in the league, so we were really excited," said Shelby Naifeh, team captain for D Co, 1-145th. "We came out really good and strong, and we had a few things going in our favor, so we just kept rolling with the momentum.
"We were hitting really well, too," she said. "We had a few plays that went in our favor and we were really aggressive on the bases."
That aggressive play style allowed the 1-145th to take an early lead as they took to the plate first and got off on the right foot with a shot to center for a double, followed up by a single to get a runner on third, set up to be brought home.
They brought the run in with a pop up to left that was heading straight into the glove of a Plug Uglies player, but it slipped through and gave D Co. the chance to bring in their first run.
The 1-145th continued their assault, and despite a strikeout giving them two outs on the board, they followed up with a triple to bring in more runs.
The D Co. team continued to find the gaps in their opponent's defense and managed to bring in five runs during their at bat before a line drive to center ended their time at the plate.
Plug Uglies needed a strong start to stay in the game, and they managed a line drive to right field for a base hit, but a string of fouls with their following batter got their first out on the board, building the pressure for the batters who followed.
D Co. kept a strong defense and didn't let the ball slip through their fingers, managing to catch two pop ups to center field to send the fire department back into the outfield, scoreless, behind 5-0 heading into the second.
The 1-145th managed a string of base hits during their time at bat to get multiple runners on base to set themselves up to bring in more runs, and they managed to do just that by keeping the ball on the ground and out of the hands of their opponents.
Although the Plug Uglies' defense managed to tighten up, a string of errors led to them falling further behind, with the 1-145th leading 9-0.
The fire department team had to step up their game if they wanted to stay in the game since they were dangerously close to the 10-run rule, which would end the game for them in the fifth inning.
They managed to get a string of base hits to get runners on base and with two outs an error allowed for the fire department team to bring in their first run. That's where their luck would end, though, as a line drive straight into the opponent's glove ended their time at the plate.
The 1-145th's advance slowed as the Plug Uglies' defense started to tighten up, and the fire department team sent their opponents packing, scoreless for the first time.
Plug Uglies came back to the plate with a string of base hits and were able to bring in a two runs during their time at the plate, managing to find the gaps in the opposing defense, but they needed a stronger offense if they planned to overtake their opponents, behind 9-3 going into the 4th.
Plug Uglies' couldn't manage to keep the 1-145th down as D Co. started off the inning with a double, followed by a string of base hits allowing them to bring in another run following an error by the Plug Uglies.
Plug Uglies took to the plate determined to close the scoring gap, but couldn't keep the ball out of their opponent's hands racking up three outs with a double play and pop fly.
Going into the fifth, if D Co. managed to increase their lead to 10 runs by the end of the inning, they could take home the win, and the pressure mounted for the fire department team as the 1-1-145th achieved their 10-point lead.
Plug Uglies had to bring in at least one run to stay in the game, but weren't able to get through the opposing defense and the game ended in the bottom of the fifth, 13-3.
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