It was another cool, breezy Thursday night at Latrobe Field.  But this Thursday was different than prior Thursdays; the play-off atmosphere was in the air.  Win, and you advance to the next round; lose, and you’re left anxiously awaiting the next season.  A Bunch of Mugs and A Pitcher (7-3) knew the stakes and was prepared to give it their all.  In the first round, the 7^th seeded Mugs literally knocked out the Naptown Barflies (4-5), bludgeoning the 10^th seeded visitors in an injury shortened 6 to 4 contest.  In the nightcap, however, the Mugs dropped a 2 to 1 extra inning thriller to the 2^nd seed, At Your Cervix (9-1).

In the opener, the Mugs faced off against the Naptown Barflies, an unfamiliar foe many labeled the sleeper pick in this season’s bracket.  The upset minded Barflies caught the Mug defense napping in the top of the first, opening the game with two quick runs.  The Mugs quickly responded in the bottom half, splashing three runs on the board to take the lead.  Providing himself some much needed run support, pitcher Mike Randolph navigated the base paths in the second to cushion the lead.  But the pesky Barflies hung around, making things interesting by closing the gap to one the very next inning.  After trading scores, the Mugs found themselves in a base loaded, one out jam in the top of the sixth.  Fortunately for the Mugs, their defense awoke and rose to the occasion.  Sure handed Jen Karcher cradled a fly at short and left fielder Matt Frese battled the MFing sun in right, hauling in the third out to swat the threat.  Looking for some insurance, opportunist Cathy Strong led off the bottom of the sixth with some aggressive base running, eventually scoring the games final run on a Suketu Sonecha double that caused two Barflies to collide head on.  Regrettably, the resulting injuries left the Barlfies roster in shambles and the game ended, advancing the Mugs to the second round.

In the next game, the Mugs wasted little time feeling Your Cervix out.  Speedster Brian Pietryka led off the match, penetrating Your Cervix’s defense to provide the Mugs the early one run lead.  But Your Cervix tightened, and the Mugs had trouble sticking anything in the rest of the game.  Twice, brawny Dave Packer was able to reach third, only to have the defense of Your Cervix come to their rescue and keep Packer feeling blue.  Fortunately, the Mugs defense wasn’t screwing around either.  Slick fielding Morgan Carter provided a highlight, snaring a line drive up the middle to snuff out a rally.  But by the bottom of the sixth, Your Cervix finally managed to slip one across, knotting the game and eventually sending it to extra innings.  Putting forth another valiant effort on the mound, Randolph kept Your Cervix from mounting any substantial threats for most of the game.  In fact, Your Cervix produced so little action offensively, the Mugs held them without a base runner for five total innings in the game.  Unfortunately, the Mugs were unable to produce offensively as well, and in the bottom of the 10^th, Your Cervix scored the winning run to claim the victory.

The loss marks the end of another successful season for the Mugs.  Stay tuned next Fall when they return to action in their quest for the coveted KLOB Championship.