Tigers advance in tournament play

The Tiefel Tigers rolled into the post-season single-elimination tournament with momentum from the previous week's double-header. Their undefeated record in the regular season earned them a first round bye.

As the Tigers' players showed up to the field a few at a time, they witnessed the first round game between Wisconsin Metal Fab and A.H. Bennett with interest. Wisconsin Metal Fab pulled away with a victory and the Tigers were set to face them for the third time in two weeks.

As the home team, the Tigers took the field. Veteran pitcher Paul Tiefel Jr. started for the team, with Eileen Tiefel behind the plate. Lefty sisters Elizabeth Plath and Rebekah Carstensen were the first and second basemen, respectively. Jer Gurgel was back at shortstop and Tim Burns at third. Paul Tiefel III returned to left field, Jill Tiefel in left-center, Jarrod Lentz in right-center and Emily Tiefel in right.

Wisconsin Metal Fab was warmed up and ready to go in the first inning. A combination of hits, four walks and an error in left-center found the Tigers behind the eight-ball and behind by 8 runs in the first half inning.   The Tigers gained two runs back in the bottom of the inning. Relief pitcher Jill Tiefel took over in the middle of the second inning, as Paul Tiefel Jr. pulled himself from the game. WMF scored one run in the second inning, but it was the Tigers' bats that made some noise. The team put together a 13 run rally. The highlight of the inning was Jer Gurgel's in-the-park home run, where he slowed down lest he pass Mom on the base paths. The Tigers lead 15-9 at the end of two.

The team's defense proved to be key during the rest of the game, as left-fielder Paul Tiefel III tallied up several outs and left-center fielder Paul Tiefel Jr. made several semi-routine catches look exciting. In the final inning, Tim Burns helped ensure victory by fielding back-to-back ground balls and threw them to second baseman Rebekah Carstensen for the outs. The final score was 20-12.

Noteworthy on the night:

• Emily's on base percentage was 100% (4-4); on the bases, she had a textbook slide into third base (she was out, but she looked smooth!).
• Mom played her first complete game of the season, sans rhinestone belt.
• Paul III stated how much he loved the new softball jerseys. "I'm ready to wear them for the next 9 years," he reported.

BOX SCORE: Jer Gurgel (HR, 3 1B), Elizabeth Plath (3 BB), Paul Tiefel III (2B, 1B), Rebekah Carstensen (1B, BB), Paul Tiefel Jr. (1B, BB), Jill Tiefel (BB), Jarrod Lentz (2B, 1B, 2 BB), Emily Tiefel (4 BB), Tim Burns (2 1B, BB), Eileen Tiefel (1B, 2 BB)

The Tigers are scheduled to play in the championship game on Wednesday on field 10. See you there!