Level Up Fitness Moves into First Place Tie After Win Over Bobo’s

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With three teams having only three losses at the top of A-League Men’s Softball, first place was on the line in the Reis Park matchup between Bobo’s Cafe and Level Up Fitness. So Steve Green of Level Up Fitness gave their opponents proper do on the upper field. “They’re a great team,” he said. But the end of seven innings proved his guys weren’t bad either.

After Bobo’s put up a doughnut in the first, Level Up score five runs in the bottom of the first and went on to a 14-7 victory.

Green also got his team started with a line drive single, and added to a Chris Rios walk, a very big day began for Danny Paesano. One swing and he cleared the long right center field fence. “He crushed that ball,” said Green. “It probably went 400 feet.”

A ground out to short seemed to temper the rally, but a pair of infield errors kept Bobo’s off the level. That had Mark Xifo and Dylan McGuire singling in the 5-0 lead.

First place in the standings wasn’t coming that easy, though. After Tim Paletta flew to center, Bobo’s followed with five straight singles. John Barbagallo, Joe Fedele, Steve D’Ambrosio, Anthony Biondi and Matt Adino, and it was suddenly a 5-3 game.

But five Italians aren’t necessarily as good as one, and Paesano kept making the case. The left fielder blasted another homer to right, and Level Up took a 6-3.

Onto the third inning, Bobo’s didn’t have an answer, and Green provided the insight. “He throws strikes,” said the right fielder, and Mark Xifo’s pitching cause was helped by a pair of Bobo’s errors in the button of the inning.

Putting runners on first and third with no one out, Xifo lined what appeared to be a single to center. But the shallow ball had Chris Arita holding close to first, which led to a force at second.

Still the run scored, and after Dan Rios reached on an infield hit, John Vegliante kept it simple. “I just try to put the ball in play,” said the Somers Track Coach, and an easy bouncer up the middle extended to an 8-3 lead.

Green singled in run number nine, and Bobo’s took their turn in the fourth inning. Singles by Adino and D’Ambrosio set the table, and after Paletta moved the runners over with a sacrifice fly, Jesse Hunt cleared the dishes with a two run single to center.

Even so, Paesano was still a one course meal. Almost, he tripled this time and came home on a single. A pair of sacrifice flies made it 11-5, and Xifo returned to the circle to do his thing.

Save a single, the Level Up Fitness pitcher set up his team to put the game out of reach. Daniel Rios reached on an error, and Vegliante went up the middle again to put runners on first and second.

Nobody out, Green’s single to center looked like another run. But Hunt’s relay home cut Rios down at the plate, which only served to anger Paesano. This time he stroked a double for two more runs, and two singles later, Level Up led 14-5.

Two more runs for Bobo’s proved window dressing and left Level Up in a first place tie with Highway Hammers at 8-3.

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