Rain Halts Margin of Terror’s Run Through Losers’ Bracket
September 28, 12:09 pm by kateackley
Only the rain, it seemed, could stop Margin of Terror on Saturday as the squad went on a rampage, beating three straight opponents to climb out of the losers’ bracket and gain a shot at the title in the Congressional Softball League’s 31st annual tournament.
Margin of Terror, made up mostly of employees of the Democratic polling firm Greenberg Quinlan Rosner, was even beating the reigning back-to-back champions, the No Talent AZ Clowns, 5-3 when officials halted play for rain. The winner of the game, to be completed this weekend, will play for the championship Saturday.
The Clowns, who were favored to win this year’s tournament, had already lost earlier on Saturday to Rob’s Beltway Ballers 13-12 under a steady drizzle and were working on a comeback starting with Margin of Terror.
“We have a great team and are having a lot of fun in the rain,” Margin of Terror captain Adam Slater said. “We’ve been playing as a team and been getting a lot of base hits.”
Slater also noted that his team’s pitcher, Sean Dryden, and big RBIs by Corey O’Neil had been especially helpful to the squad. “Our defense has been stellar,” Slater said.
Margin of Terror slipped by the National Republican Senatorial Committee’s Pirate Crushers 7-6 and then razed Raising Arizona 9-4. That was sweet revenge for a loss last week to Raising Arizona, one that relegated the Greenberg Quinlan squad to the losers’ bracket.
As the rain grew steadier, Margin of Terror took on the Yellow Journalists for a chance to get back into the championship mix. The Journalists, one of the league’s oldest teams and one that was started by Capitol Hill press secretaries, made it to the tournament’s Final Four by besting the Showboats 8-5 but couldn’t get a favorable margin against Margin of Terror, which prevailed 9-8.
There was much discussion on and off the field about the effect the rain was having on the games’ outcomes. “In the rain, the ball slows down in the outfield,” said Gary Caruso, who plays on the Yellow Journalists and is also the league’s commissioner. “You think you’re going to hit a home run, but the ball ends up wet and heavy.”
One thing was clear, though: The players were soaked and the dugouts at Beulah Field in Alexandria, Va., were filled with muddy puddles. “We should mud wrestle,” suggested one of the Clowns.
The Clowns, whose top hitters will step up to the plate when play resumes Saturday, are hoping the weather doesn’t interfere again. If it’s another rainout and the tournament is postponed until the weekend of Oct. 10, the Clowns will not be able to field a team, explained second baseman Katie Vlietstra. That’s because one of the Clowns’ former teammates is getting married in Arizona, and several members of the team are part of the wedding party or attending as guests.
The Clowns’ pitcher, southpaw Stephen Burns, said his team is looking forward to resuming its game against Margin of Terror and then hopefully taking on the Beltway Ballers for the title.
“I’d like another chance to play Rob’s Beltway Ballers,” Burns said, soaked as he packed up his team’s muddy gear and headed for the parking lot.
The Ballers, a team made up mainly of Homeland Security Department employees, made it safely to the championship round after first beating the Yellow Journalists 13-5 then defeating the Clowns by a run. Then the team had to hang out in the rain for a shot at the winner of the Margin of Terror versus Clowns game, which was ultimately stopped due to rain.
“We like our position,” said Arnie Russo, manager of Rob’s Beltway Ballers. “I think the championship is best played on a fair field in good weather, so no outside factors affect it.
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