Challengers sweep Indians

The Challengers evened their record at 6-6 with two wins over the Lausanne Indians on Saturday, June 12 at the Heerenschürli ballpark. Tobias Siegrist tossed a three-hitter with ten strikeouts and no walks and delivered a triple and a double with three RBI’s, as the Challengers cruised to an 11-1 victory over the Indians in Game 1. Playing coach Brian Hipps and Yanik Probst delivered two hits each, while Hipps and Chris Palatinus drove in two runs apiece.
Game 2 was all Challengers, as the C’s erupted for five hits and scored six runs in the bottom of the first inning. James Sanders and Chris Palatinus combined for a two-hitter, while Brian Hipps and Yonimiler Martinez had two hits and drove in two runs apiece and Thomas Blank added two RBI’s, as the Challengers posted a 9-1 win.

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Challengers empfangen Indians

Die Challengers empfangen am Samstag, 12. Juni die Lausanne Indians im Stadion Heerenschürli. Nach zwei Niederlagen gegen die Sissach Frogs möchten die Challengers wieder auf die Siegerstrasse zurückfinden. Die Challengers und die Indians standen sich in dieser Saison bereits einmal gegenüber. Am 9. Mai gewannen die Waadtländer das erste Spiel im elften Inning mit 4-3, während die Challengers sich in Spiel zwei klar mit 12-1 durchsetzten. Die Spiele beginnen um 11.00 und 14.00 Uhr.
Das NLB-Team reist am Sonntag, 13. Juni nach Thun, wo sie gegen die Hunters antreten werden. Die Berner Oberländer besiegten die Challengers in der vergangenen Saison im best-of-three Playoff-Halbfinal in der Regionalliga, dennoch stiegen letztlich beide Teams in die NLB auf. Die Spiele beginnen um 11.00 und 14.00 Uhr auf der Thuner Allmend.
Nach zwei Siegen am vergangenen Wochenende gegen die Wil Devils werden die Softballerinnen versuchen, ihren guten Lauf am Sonntag, 13. Juni auch gegen die Bern Cardinals fortzusetzen. Da aus administrativen Gründen seitens der Stadt Zürich auf der Klopstockwiese nicht gespielt werden kann, müssen die Challengers ihr Heimspiel in Hünenberg austragen. Spielbeginn ist um 11.00 und 13.30 Uhr in Hünenberg Wartstrasse.
Die U15 Cadets reisen am Samstag, 12. Juni nach Therwil. Die Challengers treffen dabei auf das Team der Black Hawks sowie auf die Therwil Flyers. Die Spiele beginnen um 11.00 und 13.00 Uhr auf der Känelmatt I.

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NLB-Team loses Zurich derby

The NLB-Team lost twice to their cross-town rivals Zurich Barracudas on Sunday, June 6 at the Heerenschürli ballpark. The Challengers rallied for seven runs, but the Barracudas built a nine run lead again to eventually win 18-13 after 3 hours and 20 minutes in Game 1. Adrian Kämpfer led the Challengers’ offense with two hits, while Roger Burger and Daiki Sato scored three runs apiece.
Ralph Vonderschmitt outdueled the Challengers’ pitching staff, but the Barracudas needed Marcel Spring’s RBI-triple in the top of the seventh inning to knock off the Challengers in Game 2. The Barracudas opened the score in the third inning, while Lukas Krautter tied the game in the bottom of the fifth inning at 1-1. Challengers starter Jarrod Baker allowed one run and two hits with two walks and four strikeouts in three innings on his birthday, before handing over the ball to his bullpen. While Vonderschmitt kept the Challengers’ bats under control, the Barracudas scored the game-winning run on the only hit they had over the last three innings. Korey Kovac was given the loss after allowing two unearned runs and one hit with one walk and one strikeout in 2.1 innings of relief.
The Challengers are now in seventh place with a 1-7 record. They will face the Thun Hunters on Sunday, June 13 at Thun.

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Challengers verlieren gegen Sissach Frogs

Die Challengers verlieren beide Spiele des Doubleheaders vom Samstag. Thomas Burger liess im ersten Spiel früh zu viele Runs zu und die Defensive der Challengers war wiederum nicht auf der Höhe des Geschehens und verlor schliesslich 9-6. Im zweiten Spiel versuchte Patrick Maier sine gute Vorstellung von letzter Woche zu wiederholen, doch nach drei Innings war sein Arbeitstag bereits beendet. Am Schluss verloren die Challengers auch das zweite Spiel mit 14-11.

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Ladies sweep Devils

The Softball-Team swept the Wil Devils on Saturday, June 5 to improve its record to 3-5. The Challengers scored five runs in the first inning and never looked back, as the C’s posted a 9-2 win in Game 1. The blue and red had a perfect start, as they took advantage of three errors by the Devils’ defense and Andrea Wirth and Brigit Zuber drove in two more runs to make it 5-0. The Devils cut the deficit to three in the bottom of the first inning, but the C’s put this one out of reach for the Devils, adding insurance runs in each of the next three innings, while Leandra Simitovic kept the Devils’ bats silent.
Simitovic pitched five strong innings, as she allowed only two runs on five hits and two walks, while also striking out two to record her first win of the season. Karen Heimgartner went a perfect 3-for-3, while Simone Zurschmitten scored three times and Simona Cellar drove in two runs for the Challengers.
And the Challengers added a dramatic one-run victory in Game 2. It took a tie-break inning before the C’s took a 2-1 lead to win, as Celine Welti scored the game-winning run in the top of the eight inning on an error by the Devils’ defense. The Devils couldn’t cash in on their last opportunity, as Karen Heimgartner struck out Nadja Lehmann to seal the deal.
The Challengers opened the score in the first inning, as Nancy Plamondon scored on a RBI-single by Simone Zurschmitten. Both teams exchanged zeros on the scoreborad till the Devils tied the game in the bottom of the fourth inning, as Christina Saenz delivered a RBI-triple that drove in Vanessa Kitor to make it 1-1. The Challengers loaded the bases in the seventh inning, but Claire Rietmann-Grout struck out Welti to end the threat, while another scoreless inning for the Devils sent the game into extra innings.
Heimgartner was credited with her second win of the season, as she tossed a two-hitter with eleven strikeouts, while Rietmann-Grout allowed two runs and five hits with twelve strikeouts.

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Ladies edged twice by Eagles

The Softball-Team lost two tight games against the Luzern Eagles on Saturday, May 29 at Reussbühl. The Challengers rallied to tie Game 1 in the fifth, but the Eagles pushed across the game-winning run when starter Simona Cellar walked Jasmin Zihlmann with the bases loaded in the bottom of the seventh, allowing the Eagles to escape with a 7-6 win.
The Challengers opened the score with four runs in the first inning. The Eagles got three runs back in the first two frames before the C’s plated a run in the third, as Celine Welti drove in Simona Cellar to make it 5-3. Three runs in the bottom of the third put the Eagles in front for the first time. Trainilng 6-5, the C’s got a run in the fifth to deadlock the score, as Elisabete Vieira scored Cellar with a RBI-groundout, before the Eagles walked off with the win in the seventh.
Cellar (0-1) allowed seven runs – six of them earned – and four hits, while Simone Zurschmitten had a game-high two hits.
Jasmin Zihlmann’s run-scoring double in the bottom of the sixth inning proved to be enough for Kirsten Rowell and the Eagles, as they held on for 2-0 victory over the Challengers in Game 2.
Rowell tossed a one-hitter with 13 strikeouts, while Karen Heimgartner (1-2) was the hard-luck loser for allowing two unearned runs on four hits in 6 innings of work, as she struck out eight with no walks.
The games against the Therwil Flyers scheduled for Sunday, May 30 have been canceled due to heavy rain. No make-up date has been announced so far.
The Challengers are now in sixth place with a 1-5 record. They will face next the Wil Devils on Saturday, June 5 at Wil.

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Von Burg announces retirement

Challengers shortstop Ueli von Burg officially announced his retirement with immediate effect on Thursday due to personal and job-related reasons.
Von Burg, 33, appeared in 6 games with the C’s this season batting .421 with 8 hits, 6 RBI’s and 8 runs scored. Von Burg scored also the new Heerenschürli ballpark’s very first run on April 17 on Tobias Siegrist’s RBI-single in the first inning.
Von Burg started his career with the Challengers. After a short stint with the Richterswil Athletics he played more than ten seasons for the Zurich Barracudas before returning to the C’s for the 2009 season. The Challengers wish him all the best for his future.

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