Cooper paints a masterpiece

Charlie’s Angels are top notch but can’t solve Cooper Paint’s mastery

By RICHARD A. ROSS

LIBERTY, NY – As the players of Charlie’s Angels warmed up before their third game of the season against Cooper Paint on July 12, their faces were intent and serious. By contrast, across the field in the Cooper Paint dugout, the atmosphere seemed infinitely looser and much more laid back. That had everything to do with the history between the league’s top two teams this season. Cooper Paint won both of this season’s match ups, though the Angels had held leads in each.

After Charlie’s Angel pitcher, Lisa Krom, induced two quick groundouts in the top of the first, it felt as if this game was going to have a different flavor.

But then it happened.

Cooper Paint (16-0) put together five straight hits, beginning with a single by Amanda Cox and followed in succession by an RBI single from Amanda Irwin, a single by Ally McCarthy, a two-run triple by Lori Brown and an RBI single from Leyna Madison. When the dust cleared, the near-shut-out first inning had morphed into a 4-0 Cooper Paint lead. It was a lead they would never relinquish.

Speaking of leads, in this league, none is ever safe and when the Angels started off with Anna Tesseyman reaching on an E-6 and Shannon Dietrich drawing a walk in the bottom of the first, it looked like the Angels were about to send a message. Alas, it never got delivered. The next three batters went out in order, putting an end to the Angels’ inning.

In the second inning it happened again. It was as if Charlie’s Angels were hexed. After holding Cooper Paint scoreless in the top of the frame, the Angels had two on with no out behind singles by Jo Walls and Karen Fisher. But just like the previous inning, three straight outs ended the scoring opportunity and it seemed as if the dye had already been set.

In the top of the third, Cooper Paint tacked on another three runs. Denise VanKeuren led off the inning with a double, and Charish Priest drove her home with a triple. Priest’s tenure at third was short-lived as Amanda Cox notched the first of two inside the park home runs and drove her home. Amanda Irwin smacked a double but she and Lori Brown, who reached on an error, were stranded as the inning ended. The Angels got a run in the fourth on an RBI single by Cindy Ellmauer, but she was thrown out at third to end the inning. Cooper Paint got that run back in the top of the fifth when Ally McCarthy smacked the inning’s third single and drove Cox home.

Things got really interesting in the bottom of the sixth. Trailing 8-2, the Angels showed why they are one of the league’s premium teams as they battled back threatening to tie or go ahead. After Tesseyman grounded out, Dietrich reached on an error. A double by LeAnne Mangabang plated a run. That was followed by an RBI single from Tonya Ackerley. Krom singled and a third run scored on Walls’ fielder’s choice making the score 8-5. Singles by Fisher and Ellmauer put the tying run at the plate but Cooper Paint pitcher Natalie Cillis induced a harmless grounder from pinch hitter Sue Zieres to end the inning.

Priest led off the seventh with a home run for Cooper Paint and Cox followed with a triple turned home run by an errant throw. Those two insurance runs proved to be more than enough despite the fact that the Angels had last licks as a result of the pre-game coin toss. Mangabang plated the inning’s only run with an RBI single, but Ackerley’s fly out to Cox ended the game and hopes of a comeback win.

Darkening clouds and imminent rain caused the teams to quickly disperse as Cooper Paint took another step towards clinching the league title. Charlie’s Angels look to be the league runner up for the 2005 season.