The Huskies strike first! Rouen secures the opening match victory, a result that perfectly matched expectations. The numbers spoke for themselves: home advantage for the Normandy side, while Montpellier arrived with the travel still in their legs.
Coach Becquey didn’t flinch: he handed the ball to his ace JFL, Thibault Mercadier. And the pitcher delivered, crafting a masterpiece of nine full innings, over 130 pitches, and only two small breaches conceded. Six strikeouts on the board and unshakable poise, well supported by his teammates’ devastating base hits.
On the other side, the Barracudas found just one chink in the armor in the fifth inning. Tim Smith couldn’t find the solution, even after switching pitchers twice, to silence the Normandy bats. Vera, Ozanich, and Quinonez took turns on the mound for Montpellier, but each ended up suffering from the onslaught of the opposing bats. Too little, too late: the Rouen defense strung together double plays, suffocating the southern attack. Final score: 5-2.
Yet, the margin remains slim. Thirteen hits for five runs for the Huskies, seven hits for two runs for the Barracudas… the difference is thin, almost fragile. At this pace, anything can change from one match to the next. Looking closely, two men carried the entire Rouen attack and defense: Logan Flood with 5/5 and 4 RBIs, and on the mound, Thibault Mercadier.
What’s next?
A second round that promises to be scorching. Montpellier will have recharged their batteries after a calmer night and will need to line up six innings of JFL pitchers. In other words, the hunger will be there to equalize before heading home next week. But Rouen, carried by their pack and their fans, has no intention of letting go. Note that Rouen will be missing pitcher Kenny Esposito, who has returned to the USA.
You can already feel it: this duel will be decided by a thread. The final is set to be a true marathon, and the second weekend of three games promises to delight us.
