Spirit splatter Elmira

It was practically Armageddon at Fraser Field tonight - there was a near sellout crowd, Jake Mullis pitched 7 solid innings, and Yuri Sanchez got two (count 'em, TWO) hits as the Spirit romped hapless Elmira 9-2, their 3rd win in a row against the Mighty Pios. Mullis got the victory; Brian Ford got the loss for the Pios.

Rob Fischer started the party early for the Spirit. Following a 1-2-3 inning by Elmira, Rob Fischer smacked a one out homer to give the Spirit the quick 1-0 lead. Another 1-2-3 inning by the Pios set up another 1 run inning for North Shore. Brian Macchi doubled and was plated by Marcos Agramonte's RBI double.

With the score 3-0 in the top of the 6th, Jake Mullis was seriously challenged for the first (and last) time in the ballgame. With nobody out and the bases loaded, Elmira looked poised for a rally, but then Elmira did what Elmira does best: blow it. Trey Beamon did exactly what the Spirit wanted him to do : bounce into a double play. It scored a run, but the Spirit got the two outs. The next man grounded out and just like that the inning was over.

From there it was a Spirit hit parade and an Elmira comedy of errors, as the Spirit circled the bases time and time again in the bottom of the 6th, scoring 6 runs and blowing the game out of reach. Yuri got a 2 RBI single to highlight it, increasing his 2005 RBI total by about 200%. Oglesby also had a 2 RBI hit in the inning.

The Elmira Pioneers scored again in the game , but it doesn't matter because they're Elmira. Closing it out for North Shore was Gregg Pleeter, cruising through the end of the game. The Spirit's victory ups their record to 7-6 for the 2nd half while Elmira's record doesn't matter, because they're Elmira.

PLAYER OF THE GAME: Jake Mullis (WOW! Stunning..)

QUOTES and MOMENTS OF THE GAME:
-Alex Trezza hit a foul ball that smacked off of the speaker hanging over the cantileavered roof.
-I tickled Jonathan.
-"And the New York Yankees, desperate for pitching, have followed up the Alan Embree signing by signing free-agent Ryan Warpinski."
-"Rumor has it Manny Ramirez sat out from his job tonight because he tested positive for steroids. In related news, Julie Wetherbee sat out from her job tonight after testing positive for syphillis."

Late breaking news: Quebec loses to NHCC, Brockton wins over Tornadoes in 11--- Spirit trail Brockton by 4, Quebec by 2 in the standings