There’s an old saying: ‘good things come to those who wait.’
That was certainly the scenario that played out for John Haynes and the Kenmore West Blue Devils. Having taken a three-run lead on Thursday over the North Tonawanda Lumberjacks, the game was delayed until Sunday due to rain and the team had to wait a few days to try and clinch at least a share of the Niagara Frontier League title.
Their patience paid off in a 12-3 victory, and Haynes was ecstatic in his roster’s performance.
“Given that we hadn’t played since Thursday, we had a lot of energy coming out of the gate,” Haynes said. “It was really nice to see us clicking in every aspect of the game today.”
With the 3-0 lead staked out in the first inning, the Blue Devils took advantage of their head start by exploding offensively in the second. The trio of Zach LaPlante, Rafael Smith and Zac Boyes paced the team throughout the day. LaPlante finished with two doubles, two RBIs, and a pair of runs scored. Smith had three hits and three RBIs, and Boyes notched two hits, a pair of stolen bases, and scored three runs.
Will Hudson pitched a strong game on the mound as well, not allowing the Lumberjacks to get on the board until Adam Steingasser and senior captain Bryan Toth drove in runs of their own late in the contest.
“To be honest, it’s kind of been like this all year long,” Haynes said. “It’s sort of contagious. One kid does something great and then the next kid does it too and they feed off of each other. It’s just a wonderful team atmosphere and they’ve bonded so well.”
With a matchup against Lockport on the horizon – and an opportunity to win the NFL title outright – Haynes knew that his team shouldn’t rest on their laurels with what they’ve done up until this point.
“We’ve accomplished some goals, yes, but we’re still not finished,” Haynes said. “We’ve got some unfinished business to take care of first – namely Lockport and the playoffs – and then hopefully we can celebrate when it’s all said and done.”
