Beating the elements: Fair tourney follows schedule despite rain
There was a major upset on the opening day of the 63rd annual Monroe County Fair Baseball Tournament.
The upset didn’t involve any of the teams.
What was surprising was the all of the games on the opening-day schedule were completed on a day of steady rain following a night that featured heavy downpours.
“When I looked at (the weather) last night and this morning, I thought there was no way any games were going to be played,” said Ida coach Eric Mason. “For them to get all the games in was incredible.”
Mason’s team had the final game of the day. Remarkably, it started just a few minutes after the scheduled time of 4 p.m.
That was thanks to the tireless work of grounds crew put together by tournament director Lynda Pfeiffer. All of them are Pfeiffers – Eric, Blake, Josh, and Brian.
Work on the field began nearly two hours before the scheduled first pitch and continued all day because of the relentless rain.
“The Pfeiffers do a fantastic job,” Mason said.
A heavy downpour in the early afternoon left big puddles on the field again. Seeing a break in the clouds on the weather map after 4 p.m., Lynda Pfeiffer offered Bedford Elite and Dundee a chance to delay their game until 6 p.m.
“They said, ‘Couldn’t we just play now?’” Pfeiffer said.
So, the action continued with the sloppiest game of the day.
“We were already there, the weather wasn’t too bad, the kids already had been warming up for an hour and excitement was building up,” Bedford Elite coach Dave Donovan said. “It definitely slowed the ball down with the water on the field, but overall, it didn’t take away from the excitement.”
In fact, the rain may have added a level of intrigue.
“The kids will remember this game and the parents will remember it because they have to do the laundry,” Donovan said.
Action resumes Sunday on the Fairgrounds Diamond behind the Monroe Drain Commission offices off S. Raisinville Rd. with four games.
It begins with Frenchtown vs. Summerfield at 10:45 a.m. Then it will be Monroe vs. Dundee at 12:30 p.m., Bedford North vs. Bedford Elite at 2:15, and Ash Carleton Gold vs. Ida at 4.
Summerfield 18, Monroe 3
Summerfield was nursing a 3-2 lead after two innings, then broke loose for nine runs in the third and six more in the fourth.
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Nine of the 10 starters scored runs in the third.
Eli Nevel and Collin Raymo crossed the plate three times each and Kason Lehr, Mason Trent, and Dillan Harrigan touched home plate two times.
Ian Golding had an RBI triple for Monroe and scored two runs.
Ash Carleton Gold 9, Summerfield 6
Sam Geiger didn't start for Ash Carleton but made a big impact in the game.
He doubled in his first at-bat leading off the third inning, then singled to start the fifth. He scored both times.
Roman Jacks tripled and scored three runs.
Mason Lehr and Eli Nevel each scored twice for Summerfield.
Bedford North 6, Ash Carleton Blue 0 (forfeit)
Ash Carleton was unable to field a team because it was playing in a Little League Tournament in Tecumseh.
Scheduling conflicts between the two tournaments will force Blue to forfeit again to Monroe Sunday.
“The boys are super bummed that they won’t get to play in the Fair Tournament,” said Blue coach Jeff Kemp, whose team won Saturday to advance to the District finals.
Bedford Elite 6, Dundee 2
The game was scoreless until the bottom of the third inning when Jackson Mitchell singled and came around to score for Bedford Elite.
Dundee tied the game in the top of the fourth, then Elite added three in the fourth and two in the fifth.
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Tyler Sheehan and Peyton Clawson had key hits for Elite.
Donovan is looking forward to Sunday’s game against Bedford North.
“That will be a good time,” he said.
Carter McKart went 3-for-3 with a double and scored a run for Dundee.
Ida 21, Frenchtown 0
The day concluded with a rematch of last year’s championship game. Ida came out on top this time.
“When we swing the bats aggressively and put the ball in play, good things happen,” Mason said.
Ida scored 21 times in just two trips to the plate, ringing up nine runs in the first and 12 in the second.
Sam Brandjord, Brody Lehr, Parker Mason, and Kade Uhl all went 3-for-3. Brandjord and Aiden Daniel combined on a no-hitter. Eight of the nine outs were on strikeouts.
Ryan Hayes and Logan Dorow reached base for Frenchtown on walks.
FAIR BASEBALL ROSTERS
ASH CARLETON GOLD
Players: Chris Buscetta, Julian Daniels, Jace Ryan, Dylan McDonald, Levi Cousino, Luke Wszelaki, Danny Evans, Sam Geiger, Tristan Wickenheiser, Mason Lefebvre, Roman Jacks, Chase Reisig, Weston Cosby, Gavin Metzger.
Coaches: Tom Lefebvre, Nick Cousino, Matt Wszelaki.
BEDFORD ELITE
Players: Brennen Pfeiffer, Payton Clawson, Pierce Buschmann, Bentley Depew, Jaxon Swartz, Jackson Mitchell, Brock Bates, Oliver Kemritz, Tyler Sheehan, Vincent Gallo, Parker Williams, David Donovan.
Coaches: David Donovan, Shawn Pfeiffer, Lee Kemritz, Cody Depew.
BEDFORD NORTH
Players: Caleb McMunn, Kyle Dec, Cody Hetrick, David Clare, Juan Kane, Quinn Belair, Max Johnston, Asher Zadrazil, Liam Allred, Kaine Salloum, Clay Ovall, Caleb Swartz.
Coaches: Tom Dec, Jimmy Schieb, Billy Zgorzelski.
DUNDEE
Players: Noah Bird, Gavin Goins, Ethan Lindgren, Carter McKart, Bert Nobile, Colin Ost, Christian McKeee, Harvey Richards, Toby Stamper, Adam VanDaele.
Coaches: Matt Richards, August Ost, Joey Cousino.
FRENCHTOWN
Players: Mattus Stone, Dylan Turner, Ryan Haynes, Timothy Canine, Dane Conlon, Maxwell Burt, Francis Bondy-Gerlach, Zaedyn Lanquist, Logan Darow, Jaxon Workman, Ethan Fields.
Coaches: Jeff Pierce, Terry Turner.
IDA
Players: Dylan Gies, Brayden Healy, Aiden Daniel, Brody Lehr, Sam Brandjord, Grayson Cunningham, Kade Uhl, Jacob Costello, Ryan Ashcraft, Parker Mason, Logan Hennessey.
Coaches: Eric Mason, Jordan Lehr, Ryan Click.
MONROE
Players: Patrick Virley, Jason Hatala, Ian Golding, Carson LaPrad, Rudy Jordan, Nico Pillarelli, Noah Wilson, Chris Fritz, Josh Haddad, Kyler Weiland, Joseph Medina, Jaiden Morning, Anthony Soloman.
Coaches: John Hatala, Nicholas Pillarelli, Tyler LaPrad, Matt Wszelaki.
SUMMERFIELD
Players: Dillan Harrigan, Mason Trout, Isaac Butler, Kason Lehr, Grady Miller, Willy Christunas, Jacob Horak, Kaiden Raymo, Collin Raymo, Elie Nevel, Wyatt Whiting.
Coaches: Tyler Raymo, Tommy Lehr, Andy Butler, Jimmy Nevel, Tim Trout.
This article originally appeared on The Monroe News: Beating the elements: Fair tourney follows schedule despite rain
