TINKER AIR FORCE BASE, Okla. --
The
507th Okies and 513th Thumpers traded wins in one of the latest doubleheader
battles in the 20-year-old Okie/Thumper War.
The
Okies set a series record with their first at bat of the kickoff game. They
knocked in 17 runs, the most scored in a single inning when the teams have
played each other, according to the Okie/Thumper War historian Ralph Hawkins.
The
feat included two out-of-the-park homers by Aaron Jones and one by Darren
Massey. Massey’s boomer emptied the bases for the games’ first grand slam. The
Thumpers responded with four runs.
The
Okies’ heat cooled down in the top of the second, only adding four runs for 21.
Jones launched his second over-the-fence moon shot, with two RBIs, before the
game ended in the third inning. The Okies run-ruled the opposition, 23-6.
The
action slowed down considerably in Game 2. Both teams sputtered through the
first three innings to muster up a 1-1 tie. The fourth was all Thumpers.
A
single and double led to an RBI off an Okies error. Two more doubles brought in
four runs and a 5-1 Thumpers lead. They were hot on defense, too, holding the
Okies to one score despite loaded bases on the third out.
Thumpers
stretched their lead 9-2 in the fifth. That’s also when the Okies decided to
repeat their hitting pace of the first game.
The
Okies filled the bases twice to tie 9-9 when the inning closed. Robert Mills
provided a big chunk of that blitz, banging in a grand slam off a right-field
error.
In
the sixth, a Thumpers batter pelted a fast line drive to Jones, the Okies’
third baseman, who stopped it for an out and a double play. Nonetheless, the
Thumpers slipped in two runs.
The
Okies had the last chance at bat, scored a run, but fell short 11-9 as allotted
time ran out.
Okies
captain Dustin Staude said the team had waited a long time to put that many
runs on the Thumpers in the first game.
“We
have been in a slump for a few years against that team and we were due for a
big win,” he said. But the thumping also
“poked a sleeping bear” for the second game.
“The
Thumpers woke up and found out they had a game on their hands,” Staude said.
“They were going to have to muster up whatever energy they had left in the tank
from the butt whooping before.”
Thumpers
coach Joe Brown said a month off from playing games probably hurt them, but the
Okies were on a “hot streak” in the first match.
“We
settled in a bit during the second game and got more comfortable playing,”
Brown said. “We also changed the lineup a little, putting guys in better spots.
Missing both our pitchers hurt and we had to shuffle the positions quite a bit
to make it work.”
The
games were the teams’ 101st and 102nd meetings in the war, Hawkins said. As of
Aug. 11, the Thumpers led the series 56-46.