Boom falls in semis to White Published Sept. 17, 2010 By John Stuart Tinker Public Affairs TINKER AIR FORCE BASE, Okla. -- They knew what needed to be done, but that still didn't make it easy. With a seven-peat intramural base championship on the line, the Leapin Lizards White knew just what was at stake. With a semi-final match against Cogito Ergo Boom, they'd have to slay one of the saltiest league rivals for a shot at the championship game later that same evening. The winner would face the cloned Leapin Lizards Blue squad for a chance for all the marbles. But it was clear which way things were going from the get-go. The Lizards ordered up an early lead and delivered it all the way to the finale as they won in two matches, 25-13 and 25-19. At 13:20 it was 4-1 in the Lizards favor. The reptiles held on with steady hitting and standout blocking, never letting CEB get close. At 6:09 it was 14-11, the closest it would get. So the Lizards just turned up the heat, closing out the first match. "We started the match pretty strong, with some good serves and strong hits and it helped us get an early lead," Lizards White captain Patrick Steelman said. "We traded points for a while, after our early lead, but the first game wasn't that close." With only five players in the lineup, CEB was short-handed for the evening. But they answered back the second game in scrappy fashion, hanging with the Lizards for most of the game. "They came on strong the second game, where they were digging a lot of our shots," Steelman said. "In the end, we were too strong for them, but they definitely proved how capable they were as a team last night." The Lizards earned a victory in the match, claiming the win and a berth to the championship game. They'd have a shot at their seventh base title after all.