It was huge weekend for the Pakenham Pumas Baseball Club with the women’s team qualifying for the grand final and State 4 and Regional Black both still in the hunt after fluctuating finals results on the weekend.
Pumas Big League also enjoyed their last game for the season, while the Pumas senior men’s team had a hard-fought win over Preston.
Here’s a recap of the weekly action.
SENIORS
Pakenham Pumas and Preston had their offences going on Thursday, but Pakenham Firsts eventually prevailed 13-9. Pakenham collected 15 hits, while Preston had eight. Jesse Hunter collected three hits in three at-bats in the win. Jesse Hunter tripled in the first inning, doubled in the fifth inning, and singled in the fourth inning. Pakenham jumped out to the lead in the top of the first inning after Hiroke Goke doubled, scoring one run, an error scored one run, Jesse Hunter tripled, scoring two runs, and Max Vetter singled, scoring one run. Pakenham added to its early lead in the top of the second inning after Preston committed an error. Jesse Hunter hit a sacrifice fly and Max Vetter doubled to centerfield, each scoring one run. Pakenham scored five runs on five hits in the top of the fourth inning. Darren Reeves grounded out, scoring one run, one run scored on another play, Daniel Hussein doubled, scoring one run, Kyler Rinehart singled, scoring one run, and Hiroke Goke doubled, scoring one run. Preston scored eight runs on six hits in the bottom of the sixth inning. Max Hunter began the game for Pakenham. The hurler gave up two hits and one run over five innings, striking out six and walking five. Tim Bellerby and Darren Reeves each appeared in relief for Pakenham. Pakenham tallied 15 hits in the game, with Kyler Rinehart, Jesse Hunter, and Daniel Hussein each collecting three. Hiroke Goke and Max Vetter each collected multiple hits for Pakenham. The Pumas had a strong eye at the plate, piling up six walks for the game. Hiroke Goke and Danny Cannizaro led the team with two bases on balls each. Kyler Rinehart stole two bases. Jason Bianco went 1-for-3 at the plate and led the team with three runs batted in. Overall, the team had patience at the plate, collecting seven walks for the game.
STATE 4
This weekend, Pakenham Pumas State 4 hosted Bonbeach in a first v second final with the winner advancing directly to the grand final. Bonbeach quickly took control, scoring five runs in the top of the first inning on two walks, a sacrifice fly, and two hits. Following a rain delay, Pakenham attempted to rally, loading the bases with no outs, but failed to capitalise on the opportunity, ending the inning with a force play at home and a double play. A thunderstorm then caused another delay, and upon resuming play, Pakenham had just over an hour to try and overcome the five-run deficit. Unfortunately, Pakenham was unable to get its bats going, and Bonbeach emerged victorious with a 7-1 win. However, thanks to their strong regular season performance, Pakenham has earned a second chance in the finals and will face Chelsea in the elimination final this week, with another opportunity to advance to the grand final in two weeks’ time.
REGIONAL BLACK
Pakenham secured a crucial 7-2 victory over Mulgrave/Berwick in Sunday’s elimination final to advance further into its finals campaign. Hosting the matchup as the third-placed side, Pakenham took on fourth-placed Mulgrave/Berwick in a tense contest that featured dramatic weather delays. The game started with an electric opening sequence, as Pakenham’s defence recorded two outs on the first two pitches. Centerfielder Luis Mayo sprinted to make a full-speed catch on a fly ball for the first out, followed by pitcher Brad Jones recovering from a hard come-backer off his chest to make the play at first. With just one pitch thrown to the third batter, play was suddenly halted due to rain, thunder, and lightning. After a brief pause, play resumed long enough for Pakenham to record the third out. They then put a runner on third before Gregg Duncan battled to a full count, but another lengthy 30-minute weather delay interrupted the game. Once play resumed for good, Pakenham began to build their lead. Duncan stepped back into the box and delivered an RBI single to give Pakenham an early 1-0 advantage. In the second inning, an error allowed one run to score before Dylan Eldridge ripped a key two-run triple. The third inning saw Liam drive a single down the right-field line and Tristan double to right, each adding to the tally. Brad Jones took the mound for Pakenham, allowing three hits and two runs (one earned) over four innings while striking out one and walking one. The opposing starter surrendered seven runs (one earned) on seven hits over four innings, striking out two and walking four. Dylan Eldridge led the Pumas’ offence with two RBIs, finishing 1-for-1 on the day. Luis Mayo went 2-for-2, while Gregg Duncan, Mayo, and Eldridge each swiped multiple bases as part of Pakenham’s aggressive nine-stolen-base performance. The defence remained flawless, committing no errors, with Duncan leading the way with eight defensive plays. With the elimination final win, Pakenham moves forward, keeping their premiership hopes alive as they look to continue their strong postseason run with a return matchup against regular season ladder leaders Waverley Red.
WOMEN
Pakenham Pumas were just too strong for the Moorabbin Panthers to handle over the weekend. Pakenham came out strong at the beginning of the semi-final with smart batting earning them a few runs in. It wasn’t until the next inning, where the ladies jumped in front with an amazing seven-run inning, which would play a crucial role in them holding onto the lead for the duration of the game. The Pumas put on a show for all spectators, with their strong batting and fielding only allowing two errors for the whole game. Pitchers Emily Williams with four innings and Olivia Garcia with her relief for an inning saw the Pakenham Pumas take out the top team for the summer season. Pakenham’s fielding all around was on fire for the ladies, with crack of the bats sending them into the 2025 Grand final! The final score for the Pumas rested at 15-4; after dominating the Panthers and proving who the best cat of the day was. The grand final for our ladies will be held on Saturday 1 March at Melbourne Ballpark, Altona at 3pm
JUNIORS
Pumas Big League had their last game of the season with a trek out to top-four team Waverley. Rhys got the start and threw well keeping their bats quiet for the first couple of innings backed by solid defence. We continued and got base runners on but failed to convert when it mattered and Waverley took their chances on the later innings to run away with the game. Cooper was great in relief and the boys were outstanding in the field. The fairly young team competed during the season in our first year at state level and will continue to improve as they develop. Thanks to everyone involved in the season. Zander and Flynn from our Little League team had an impressive game on the mound and everyone had a great game in the box. Both Flynn and Hudson hit inside-the-park home runs and a big shout out to all the parents for all the support and to see all that the kids that were having the best Sunday.
-Jessica Moulding-
