Game 1

TACOS - 10

Astros - 8

The Spring 2021 Shalom season started on a humid and wet February morning, less than two weeks after the polar vortex and temperatures in the single digits. New captain Keg Dyer welcomed his eleven other TACOS to the team, then sent his squad out onto the diamond to kick off his debut season against Eusay’s Astros. The TACOS offense got off to a good start with homers by Shalom veteran Kevin Knox, and Shalom rookie Luke Morgan. The rest of the lineup was steady and produced just enough runs to get the job done. On the defensive side of things, Jon Banta was his usual steady self on the mound, holding the loaded Astros lineup to only eight runs. In the field, the middle infield tandem of Luke Morgan and veteran Steve Johnson seamlessly turned double plays as if they’ve been teammates for years. The outfield was steady, with Matt Shwarts making the defensive play of the game with a spectacular catch at the fence (I would be remiss if I failed to mention the other awesome defensive play of the game made by Mississippi State enthusiast Clint Hathcock in left field). The true highlight of this game was watching Alicia Shwarts make history by being one of the first of two women to participate in the Temple Shalom Softball League!

Luke Morgan – 3 for 3 / HR / 3 RBIs

Kevin Knox - 1 for 2 / HR / 3 RBIs

Game 2

TACOS - 15

Brewers - 14                                   

Game two will go down in Shalom history as the first two women to play in the league (Alicia Shwarts and Spring 2020 Shalom Champion Captain Brooke Prim) faced off against each other as Dyer’s TACOS took on Prim’s Brewers. This was a very well-played game both offensively and defensively. The TACOS offense found its rhythm and put up a healthy 15 runs, with multiple hits for almost the entire lineup. Matt ‘clean shavin’ Shwarts hit his first fence bomb of the season, Cuddles Haas somehow hit a legit triple and down the RIGHT FIELD line to boot, rookie Luke Morgan had three more hits, Cesar Garza went three for three, and Alicia Shwarts got the first two hits of her Shalom career. Once again, the venerable Jon Banta kept a powerful Brewers offense fairly in check, although the ball that Brad Earls hit just landed on Mars next to the Perseverance rover. He also was stellar on defense and made the key play of the game in the bottom of the 7th, by getting the game-tying run Michael Barth in a pickle between third and home. This critical play produced the second out of the inning and allowed the TACOS to hang on for the one run, come from behind victory.

Matt Shwarts – 2 for 4 / HR / 3 RBIs

Luke Morgan - 3 for 4 / 3 RBIs

Cuddles Haas – 4 for 4 / 2 RBIs

Cesar Garza – 3 for 3 / 2 RBIs

Alicia Shwarts – 2 for 3

TACOS Impact Player of the Week  - Cuddles Haas – 6 for 6 / Triple / BB / 3 RBIs

TACOS Impact Rookie of the Week – Luke Morgan – 6 for 7 / HR / 3 Doubles / 6 RBIs