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Belle Plaine Lefty Mike Zellman bested Eden Prairie Lions Tap’s Randy Walsh in an old fashioned pitching duel of five-hitters, 3-1, by driving in the tie-breaking run with a sharp single in the sixth inning and also working out of a one-out bases-loaded jam in the sixth inning.  Tap, which has come back all year, sent its career home run leader, Dave Fuecker , and career leading hitter, Carlos Ubiera, to try to beat Zellman with the bases jammed in that fatal sixth.  Zellman got Fuecker on a pop fly to third base and frustrated Carlos by inducing slow bleeder to the mound that Zellman picked up and lobbed home for the biggest out of the game.  

Tony Krick, who made a diving catch in center in the first inning, had two hits for Lions Tap.   Walsh scored his team’s lone run, reaching second base on a throwing error and later scoring on Ubiera’s run-scoring single.  

Lions Tap finished 9-6 in the River Valley for the second straight season and fell to 12-6 for the season. 

Dave Sobiech gave up three scratch hits and hurled Eden Prairie Lions Tap to its sixth straight victory and seventh in its last eight games – an 8-0 masterpiece over the Jordan Alers for his 84^th career win.  

Sobiech got all the support he needed in a four-run Lions Tap first inning that included three straight walks, a run-scoring single from Ron Saatzer and a two-run single from Carlos Ubiera, who led off a four-run fourth with a double. Scott Cote had a two-run single in the fourth.  

Sobiech faced only 23  batters, helped by one double play and catcher Mark Weber’s perfect throw cutting a runner trying to steal in the first inning.  

Darrell Bevell triggered a two-out, six-run Eden Prairie Lions Tap outburst in the third inning with a sharp two-run single – helping his own cause en route to hurling a six-hit  6-3 victory over the Jordan Millers at Eden Prairie’s Miller Park. Ron Saatzer added a two-run  double and Carlos Ubiera a two-run triple, his 29^th career three-bagger in the outburst that set up Lion Tap’s fifth straight victory.  

Troy Mahoney pitched a strong game for the Millers, who had led 1-0 on a delayed double steal in the first inning. Mahoney allowed seven hits (four plus three walks in the big inning). Chris Rook had a two-run single in the sixth inning to round the Miller scoring.  

Both teams played errorless baseball with sparkling plays galore by both teams.

For almost six innings, Jon Grant of Eden Prairie Lions Tap and John Bode of Braemar were locked in a tense pitcher’s duel.   Grant had allowed three runs and only four hits with seven strikeouts – only two earned runs and one delivered on a balk.   Bode had given up four runs for six innings, three unearned with only five hits allowed and five Ks.  

Eden Prairie , once trailing 3-0, took a 4-3 lead in the sixth  on Tony Kricke’s sharp RBI single.  But the Bees touched reliever Dave Fuecker for a pair of runs to regain a 5-4 lead.  

The world caved in on Bode and the Bees as Tap sent 12 men to the plate in the seventh inning – Fuecker started the avalanche with a single and capping it with a bases-clearing double to the fence in left. When the dust cleared, eight runs had scored, enough to withstand three unearned runs in the Braemar seventh. Fuecker, in relief, used strikeouts to record all six outs, despite blurred vision from steamy glasses.  

Lions Tap has won five of  its last six games and has scored the winning runs in its last ups in each of  four straight victories.

Dave Sobiech, winningest active Over-35 pitcher in Minnesota,  held Eden Prairie Lions Tap in the game by limiting Lonsdale to four earned runs until EP ultimately scored the tying and winning runs on a wild pitch and a walk for an 8-7 victory over the Jokers. It was the third straight game Lions Tap has scored in its final at-bat to claim a victory.  

For the 60-year-old Sobiech, it was career victory No. 83 against 32 loss – a .722 winning percentage.  

The Jokers, led by Steve Ceplecha’s three hits, could not overcome their three pitchers walking 12 batters and hitting three others with pitches.  Even so, EP stranded 16 runners for the game and never led until the fateful bases-loaded walk to Sobiech produced the winning run.    Ron Saatzer had Eden Prairie’s biggest hit with a two-run double in the fifth inning.  

(Sobiech pitched a state tournament no-hitter in a Class A championship game in the 1990s and also hurled Eden Prairie to a 1-0 win over the St. Paul Saints for the state championship in 1987.)

Dave Fuecker did not allow an earned run in 6 1/3 innings and hit a bases-empty homer but Eden Prairie Lions Tap needed Jon Grant’s two-run single in the ninth inning to provide a 7-6 victory over the scrappy Minneapolis Bombers, who had taken a 6-5 lead on two singles, sacrifice bunt and an error.  

Ron Saatzer had a blue-ribbon game for Lions with three hits, including a double and triple and a stolen base, plus throwing out a runner at first base (!) from center field.  

Bill Donley pitched good enough to win for the Bombers, victimized by two fielding errors in the final inning before Grant’s big hit.  Dennis Doas had three hits and an intentional walk to pace the Bombers at bat.

Lions Tap broke a 5-5 tie with a four-run outburst in the top of the seventh, making a winner of rookie reliever Jon Grant, who pitched the final two innings for the 9-5 victory over Veseli in annual Veseli Steak Fry game. He helped Tap break out of a season long slump with four of his team’s 14 hits.

Grant keyed the big outburst with a bloop double after Doug Walsh collected his third hit, a single. From there, Scott Anderson drove in the winning run with a single, Chris Millard two more with a single and Steve Brown (who walked three times) the final RBI with a single.

Scott Bobbitt pitched five strong innings, allowing only two earned runs and also provided a key RBI double off the fence.  

Tap recorded three double plays, two on outfield assists. Left fielder Eric Loper threw out a runner at home from left field on the fly and center fielder Ron Saatzer had an assist as a runner was doubled off first.

Dave Fuecker struck out the side in the seventh inning, the final one coming with Union Hill runners at second and third to close out a pitching gem by Darrell Bevell, who allowed only one  hit and no unearned runs with six strikeouts as Eden Prairie Lions Tap took a  4-2 victory.  

Dave Hagene was brilliant as the losing pitcher with 11 strikeouts.  

Lions Tap scored the decisive runs on Eric Loper’s bases-clearing double in the first inning. Bevell helped his own cause with a run-scoring single in the second inning.

Kirk Vergin scattered seven hits and had two hits of his own in pitching Waconia to an 11-2 cakewalk over sleepwalking Eden Prairie Lions Tap.  Chuck Stevenson had two doubles and a single to pace the Islanders’ 10-hit attack.  

Ron Saatzer had Eden Prairie’s only RBI.  Rod Helling gave Tap a stellar pitching job with four scoreless in relief with four strikeouts.

Scott Zeiher, 4 innings with an unearned run, and John Landkamer, 3 hitless innings, set down Eden Prairie Lions Tap on six hits to spearhead the defending state champion St. Peter Saints to a 9-1 victory. Seven of the runs were unearned and five of those came in the second when the EP shortstop threw wildly after a St. Peter runner ran into him to set up the big inning.  

Jeff Welp keyed St. Peter’s offensive with two hits and two big RBI in that second inning, also scoring a run after slyly stealing second in the sixth inning with the score 8-1.  

Ron Saatzer and Scott Bobbitt each had two hits for Eden Prairie.  Saatzer’s first hit drove in the EP run.

Dave Fuecker sprinkled gold dust on his glove and Rod Helling some lightning in his bat as Eden Prairie Lions Tap took a 6-4 victory over New Hope at Miller Park in Eden Prairie. After EP starter Todd Groves gave up five seeing-eye hits and a walk in the first inning in falling behind 3-0, Fuecker made the key defensive plays to keep his team in the game.  First, in the second inning, he dove to his left, parallel to the ground and intercepted a vicious  shot to stop  would-be rally.   

Fuecker also put the tag in a runner after a runner was trapped off second on a grounder in the third.  Then the same inning, he took a relay from center field and cut down a runner trying to score from second on a single. Finally, he took the throw in the top of the seventh for the final out as a runner tried to advance on a bad throw back to the pitcher.

Groves slammed the door and allowed only four hits the rest of the way.  In the fourth inning, Tap pulled within  3-2 with a bases loaded walk to Eric Loper. Helling,  in his 14^th season, walked up the plate in to pinch hit and promptly blasted the ball over the left fielder’s head to clear the bases and give EP a 5-3 lead, enough for the winning margin. That was 39^th career double for Rod and career RBIs 119, 120 and 121.  

Rookie Scott Anderson replaced injured Scott Bobbitt who jammed a thumb tagging out the runner on Fuecker’s peg home, collected two hits and scored two runs.

Tap rookie Mike Fair was much better than his namesake with a win in his first career start, a gem with seven strikeouts and only three hits as Lions Tap defeated the Faribault Flames 4-1 in an exhibition game. A passed ball gave Faribault its only run without a hit in the first inning. Fair tired in the sixth and Dave Fuecker came into get a bases-loaded strikeout to end the last Flame threat.  

Darrell Bevell pitched the seventh for the save with two strikeouts and also stroked a single to tie the game 1-1 in the sixth and scored the tie-breaking run on Scott Bobbitt’s single. An infield hit by Chris Millard and a throwing error capped the four-run rally  

Hats off to the first-year Flames and Manager  Rick Vogel, who spent several hours preparing Bell Field after heavy rains.  The field was pristine by game time. The Flames got an excellent pitching job from Dave Custer before he ran out of gas in the sixth inning, but stranded 11 runners.

Brad Van Bergen made his Shakopee managerial debut by spinning a five-hitter for five innings and receiving a spree of extra base hit support as the Chiefs overwhelmed Eden Prairie Lions Tap 11-1 in 6 innings at Eden Prairie Miller Park.

Shakopee staggered EP with a seven-run explosion in the third inning: Tim Holtzhueter keying it all with a bases-clearing triple.  Also raining two-run doubles in that inning were Mike Boegeman and crusty veteran Steve O’Neill.  The only run Van Bergen allowed was unearned.  

Rod Helling actually pitched well in relief for Lions Tap, his rainbow curve ball frustrating the Chiefs until they got three runs on a wind blown double in the sixth inning. Scott Anderson made some fine defensive plays from third base for EP as well.  

“The Chiefs were smashing the ball with such authority I thought the Civil Air Patrol was going to scramble from nearby Flying Cloud Field,” EP Manager Pat Thompson said. “For sure, small puppies had to take cover.”  

Shakopee certainly looks like a powerhouse to be reckoned with, Thompson said. They have added several dynamite newcomers this year and last season but their tried and true veterans like O’Neill, Bob Britz (two hits) and Joe Comer (one hit and one RBI) are also coming through.

Rightfielder Tom Steinbach had two assists in the first inning cutting down runners at third and home when Eden Prairie led 1-0 and came on in relief to escape two bases-loaded jams and preserve Searles 6-4 nine-inning wild and wooly victory over Lions Tap at beautiful Walsh Field in Gaylord.

The winning runs in the top of the ninth were both unearned, batters reaching on a strikeout and a throw from third lost in the lights. Dave Fauth, who had three hits, drove in the tie-breaking run for the Bullheads.  

Lions Tap rocked the bullheads with a three-run sixth inning spiced by Doug Walsh’s screaming two-run double and Darrell Bevell’s tie-breaking single for a 4-3 lead going into the seventh.   The Bullheads had two outs and a runner on second after a fabulous catch by the Tap’s Ron Saatzer slamming into the center field fence  for the first out. A flyout left Tap one out away from victory, but Dean Marquardt doubled over the leftfielder to tie the game.

Eden Prairie pitchers Todd Groves, Dave Fuecker and Rod Helling fanned 10 Edina batters as Lions Tap  defeated the Grays 6-3 in a controversial ending at Eden Prairie’s Miller Park.  On a full count and the bases loaded with two out, the umpire ruled Dan Quinlan was hit on the arm by a pitch in the strike zone and that Quinlan leaned across the plate, not avoiding the pitch and ending the game.  Quinlan claimed the pitch was not in the zone, but the Lions Tap catcher and the ump differed.

Lions Tap scored its winning runs on a four-run second inning keyed on the 28^th career triple from Carlos Ubiera driving in two of the runs.  Steve Brown and Eric Loper, with singles, and Scott Bobbitt on a fielder’s choice drove in the other runs.  

Groves got the win with four strong innings allowing one run. Fuecker pitched two scoreless innings and Helling survived a two –run rally in the seventh inning.  Quinlan settled down to take the tough loss with Bob Barghini hurling a scoreless sixth.