RANGERS SECURE A ROYAL VICTORY

Toowoomba closes in on finals with nail-biting win

BASEBALL: In what was earmarked as a ‘do or die’ game for Toowoomba Rangers, the side has produced in crunch time, defeating Windsor 5-4 at the weekend.

Coming up against the ladder leaders in search of a season-defining victory, the Rangers avenged a 10-0 drubbing earlier in the season against Royals.

With scores tied in the bottom of the eighth innings, Toowoomba was able to work onto the bases, before securing the game-ending run to secure victory.

“Luke Ardill got a base hit, and Isaac Neill allowed him to score from second base,” player-coach Darryl Luchterhand said.

“I said to Isaac to get it down to the third baseline, and he got the job done.”

Despite the strength of their opponent, the Rangers found themselves in a comfortable position midway through the contest, as they powered out to a 4-0 lead.

“It was actually a bit closer than it should’ve been,” Luchterhand said.

“We jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the first, then hit a home run in the third to make it 2-0.

“Brian Hipps had a base hit and then we had another two in the fifth to make it 4-0.

“We gave up a few runs on an error, before they had a tworun home run in the top of the eighth to tie it up.”

With Daniel Luchterhand unavailable for pitching duties, Sam McNeice was called on to throw for the entire game, a challenge that Darryl Luchterhand said he embraced.

“Sam was outstanding once again, especially to keep them to four runs, knowing they’re averaging 10 a game,” he said.

“He can keep us in every game, and we’re confident that it’s just a matter of the bats doing the talking for us.

“We know we’re not going to shut out the big teams often, but keeping them to four is great.

“The team has taken a lot of confidence from the game, especially with the way everyone contributed from our number one hitter through to number nine.”

The win keeps the Rangers engulfed in the top four on 12 wins for the season.

They can go close to clinching a finals berth when they face fifth-placed Surfers Paradise at Commonwealth Oval on Sunday.

Photo: Nev Madsen DESPERATION: Toowoomba Rangers player Isaac Neill safely slides into second base despite the effort of Royals player Gary Lamb at Commonwealth Oval.