Favorites put on a show

It turned out to be a rather one-sided opening game of the CEB Cup Qualifier, with Demony Miejska Gorka (POL) falling to MGPU-SYOS #42 (RUS) on Monday morning. Although the Polish team got on the board first in the top of the first inning, thanks to a run by Michel Larkomy, they had a tough time doing any more damage against Moscow Pitcher Alexey Veshkin. Supported by a solid team effort at the plate, and helped in part by costly errors by the Poles, the Russian side took the lead in the second and didn’t look back. The Polish side managed an additional run in the 8th Inning.

                                        R  H  E

POL  1 0 0   0 0 0   0 1 0   | 2   6   4

RUS  0 2 2   1 4 0   1 0  -  | 10 10  0

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In the second game of the day, the Therwil Flyers (SUI) walked over the Oslo Pretenders (NOR) from the start, leaving no doubt that they belong among the favorites for the CEB Cup Qualifier title. Pitcher Stefan Koller went 7 innings, allowing a base hit in the fourth inning to Leif Petter Sandik for the Norwegians only hit of the game. For their part, the Swiss batters were able to control the game with a mere 6 hits, although the defensive concentration of the Pretenders seemed to waiver in the fifth inning, as some crucial errors allowed the Flyers to send more batters to the plate.

                                   R  H  E

NOR  0 0 0   0 0 0   0 |    0  1  4

SUI   3 0 0   1 3 2    - |  10  6  1

The Solingen Alligators also managed to hold their opponent to a single baserunner over seven innings, as pitchers Andre Hughes, Jens Cornelsen, Josh Rickards and Nils Hartkopf struck out 17 from the Portuguese team Academica de Coimbra. The lone base runner for the Portuguese came on a walk issued by Nils Hartkopf. "This was some impressive baseball, and a fine demonstration of how to pitch," said spokeswoman Antje Römer-Götz about the brilliant start to the tournament by the hosting team. Besides a great showing by national team player Dominik Wulf, newcomer Paul Rutgers had an extraordinary day at the plate, contributing a single, two doubles and a triple.

                                   R   H   E

POR  0 0 0   0 0 0   0   |  0   0   1

GER  5 0 0   1 1 4   -    | 11 12  0