Washington Township Senators 35+

The season came to a disappointing end yesterday, as the Delco Astros eliminated the Washington Township Senators with an 8-7 win at WTHS. John DiPietro battled valiantly all morning, but the Senator defense let him down with a whopping SEVEN errors, leading to five unearned runs.

Jim McAllister had a great day both in the field and at the plate, and the Senator defense did turn three doubleplays, but it was not enough to overcome the plethora of misplays. The Nats still battled back -- with two out and no one on in the bottom of the ninth, trailing 8-4, the Senators rallied only to see the game end when McAllister was nipped at the plate on a bang-bang play to end the game and the season.

The loss was a bitter pill to swallow, and the taste of this defeat is sure to remain during the long winter. And hopefully it will remind us all that we need to improve and move forward into 2008, and regain what we all feel should have been ours here in 2007.

Senator Ace John DiPietro thought he was getting a day of rest on Sunday, but the Gods of baseball intervened.

Starter Pat Dewechter came up with a lame shoulder in the second inning of the first game of a best-of-three against the Delco Astros at Washington Township High School, and DiPietro stepped into the breech, shutting down the Astros with just two runs for the rest of the game, as the Senator managed a taut 6-4 victory. Dan Laudiso had a big two-run single, and also made a great play to tag out the Astros Vern Trice on a steal attempt of home in the eighth inning, a game-turning doubleplay that sealed the deal.

Dewechter will not know his status until later in the week, but with DiPietro to be absent on Saturday, skipper Frese will have a tough decision regarding who gets the baseball for Game #2. But somebody will get the call at Aston Vally High School, as the series resumes. Astro manager William Taylor will also have a tough decision, as Jim DeCorso's shutout, no-hit relief work certainly warrants consideration for a start.

We shall see! 

The Washington Township Senators begin the defense of their two-time 38+ Championship on Sunday in a battle against old buddies the Delco Astros at Washington Township High School. Pat Dewechter will get the baseball for his first playoff start as a Senator. John Kosmosky is expected to get the starting nod for the Astros, though Jim DeCorso could also be a factor based upon his dominance of the Nats in his last start.

The friendly rivalry between the two clubs extends back to the 28+ days, when the two (much younger) teams would square off for legendary playoff battles. And the friendships deepened when many Senators joined the Astros, nee Delco Angels, for play in Florida. There is mutual respect, there is deep back-and-forth knowledge of personnel, and there are great baseball games ahead for sure.

The Senator lineup on Sunday will look like this:

1. Mark Alessandrini-CF
2. Dale Amos-LF
3. Dan Laudisio-C
4. Frank Izzi-1B
5. Dan Barbara-EH/1B
6. Jim McAllister-SS
7. Miles Reader-RF
8. Pat Dewechter-P
9. Chris Lawrence-3B
10. Frank Rose-EH
11. Bill Trotman-2B

Manager Frese has vowed to use his entire roster going forward, and everyone will be there and ready to go on Sunday, with the exception of slugger Ken Bevenour, who is done for the year due to a knee injury.

The Senators will have BP Wednesday night at WTHS in preparation for Sunday's battle. Hope to see you there.