Giants fail to beat Porirua in tight opener

Giants P1 literally threw away the opening game of the Intercity softball competition on Saturday against a very good Porirua United.
Giants got off to a perfect start with lead off Blair Thompson getting an in-the-park homerun on an error from Porirua outfield. Leading the game for the first 3 innings 1-0, a costly error from pitcher Richie Clarke with runners on first and third cashed in two runs for Porirua for them to take a 2-1 lead, that was furthered when a base hit scored the another in the same innings.
Giants came back in the top of the 7th when Terry Waitere drove in Ryan Shannhan, closing the gap to 3-2, Giants with 2 runners on were unable to score a further run to take the game extra innings. Final result 3-2 Porirua.
Giants Play Hutt Valley Dodgers at South Park, Masterton, in a double header at noon and 2pm, the Giants Presidents will also be in action at home against Hutt Valley Dodgers at noon.
Good start for the Major B women, winning 7-5 in their first competition game, win of the Dodgers Diva's, score was not a fair indication with some poor umpiring the Giants ladies were forced to get 4 outs in 2 innings, both times that extra out costing runs. Good hitting from Giants kept them in control throughout the game, Nicole Clarke hit two triples and lead off Margaret Marsh batted well. Solid pitching performance from Cherie Paku.
The Giants under-13 team scored the first win of their campaign. They are a new team to the club this season and went out comfortable winners against Te Aroha 7-3.
The NZCU Giants under-15 lost their opener going down to Totara Park 12-5, The Under-15s played very well and a couple of hits at the right time could have made the score a lot closer. Sam Allen had a great day with the bat, and pitcher Henry Smith had an good first game for Giants.
The Giants Vets ran in big winners on Saturday against Wainui, winning 14-6 with a comprehensive batting display and good defence. The Vets will be at home next week against arch rivals Hutt Valley Dodgers.