Cricket: Round 1, Game 6s

Only four of the eight first-round series made it this far, but the four that did promise to be pretty competitive in this set of games. We begin in...

Todavía, as the Stills host the Southridge Defenders at Apple Park. Boots tripped up again at the unfriendly grounds, hitting only 63 for Southridge to open the evening. Easter made the misstep look not so bad, as she had her own for Todavía with a contribution of 32 points. J. Garcia continued a recent run of strong play, hitting 575 to get the Defenders on track. Sierra also had only 32 for the Stills, making their chances of surviving look very slim. Debby Ryan crushed an additional 866 for Southridge, solidifying an already-strong lead. Sparkles chipped a disappointing 52 for Todavía, almost certainly sealing their fate. Shaggy supplied 115 to give the Defenders 1619 total. Leonardo scored 200 for the Stills after earning a voluntary, non-penalized replay, but this only put the hosts at 316 in a demoralizing home defeat for elimination. The Defenders take the series 4-2, winning three straight after dropping to 2-1 following Game 3. Southridge, as if they hadn't battled hard enough already, are tasked with opposing the Whitewater Shores in the quarterfinals.

To the east, the Royal Crowns welcome the Boston Swifts to Kraft Crowns Park. Patches was stalled at 240 for Boston after a bad deflection she had no control over ended her efforts. Frosty continued her mammoth efforts for Royal, this time clocking in with 1326 for the hosts, establishing a massive lead. Puff II wiped all of it away, and then some, by posting a resilient 1496 for the Swifts, turning this regional battle into an all-out war. Sydnee made the game virtually tied by hitting 408 for the Crowns. Gradley batted 230 for Boston, giving his team a little breathing room. Jake slapped 434 for Royal, reestablishing a lead for the hosts. Sweetheart sliced 193 for the Swifts, and it cost them the game, as they ended at 2159. Nightfur took a 50% penalty, but the Crowns secured the series anyway with a final score of 2265. Royal advances to face the Maplewood Lumberjacks in the quarterfinals after a 4-2 series victory. The road-proven #13 Crowns will begin their next series on the road against the #12 ranked Lumberjacks.

We now head north, where the Web City Spiders bring in the Central Warriors to the Home Depot Forum with the chance to advance. Twilight stepped up with 474 for Central, flashing a sign of leadership in the process. Shadow couldn't get set up for Web City, taking 23 after the pitch got sloppy in front of him. Gizmo had just 128 for the Warriors after a bad bounce squandered what appeared to be a promising effort. Rainmane suffered through hitting 65 for the Spiders. The hosts do not look comfortable in this game at the midpoint. Noelle ended up with 154 for Central after she was assessed a 50% penalty for her false start. Sugar grabbed 208 for Web City to pull them a little closer in the game. Dustin's 336 gave the Warriors a final of 1092, which looks set to hold up. Dominic faltered with 96 for the Spiders, confirming victory for the visitors as the Spiders ended at 392. With the win, Central has rallied from two games down to tie the series at 3, forcing a Game 7 at home.

Wrapping up the slate of Game 6s, the Pronger Tridents host the Eastside Sharks at Tridents Park, sponsored by Ford. Graham belted 392 for Eastside, even after a technical glitch left his wicket out in the path of the bowled balls. Strawberry countered with an explosive 752 for Pronger, giving them a measurably large lead. Chelsea hit 368 for the Sharks, keeping the game close in the short-term situation. Hoot slipped up with just 90 points for the Tridents, leaving them a bit vulnerable. Taylor Swift grabbed 245 for Eastside, although they wouldn't have minded if she gotten a little more. Pronger was more than okay with her modest total though, as it allowed Paps' 490 to extend the lead for the hosts to a more comfortable margin. Robyn managed only 248, costing the Sharks the game as they finished behind with 1253. The Tridents iced off their victory at 1485, of which 153 points came from Precious at the end. This series too shall go to a Game 7, as Pronger tied it at 3 with their second straight win. This has proven to be quite the challenge for the #2 ranked Sharks, who did tail off a bit at the end of the regular season.

Since we have multiple games, I'll put the Game 7s in a new post soon to follow. This can be done because this is a simulator, so travel, time, and distance are not factors. Yes, that is the power of imagination at work!