Bielsky? Who cares his name was in print!

As posted on Cincysoftball.com.
Viox Services Ends 11 Yr Industrial Drought
Mon, 28 Jul 2008
MARK LINNEMANN

Viox Services Ends Eleven Year Drought In EMR Group-ASA Cincinnati Metro "B" Industrial; Bielsky Powers Sweep At Rumpke Park

Crosby Township, Ohio - Josh Bielski batted .750 with ten rbi's to power Viox Services to a four game sweep of the Industrial "B" Division of the EMR Group-ASA Cincinnati Metro Tournament July 18-20 at Rumpke Park.

The title ended an eleven year drought for the champions, who recorded their last title in 1997.

Viox ended the tournament with an exclamation point, overpowering runner-up CWA 4400 23-13 in six innings to complete the sweep.

"It's been a long time between tournament wins," commented veteran player-manager Mike Viox. "We have a combination of old guys who have been playing together for 30-plus years and young guys who can run and do all the things that the rest of us can no longer do. It's a good mix."

Viox credited his club's championship to being "solid at every position."

"We didn't have any questionable spots," noted Viox. "And we hit consistently. If the other team scored runs, we responded with as many or more than they did. We also played exceptional defense. We had a few throwing errors, but no more than five in our four games. We really gloved the ball well.

"We also had a good combination of pitchers in Andy Brookbank and Rick Whittle, who came in and made some key stops," remarked Viox. "If the other teams were starting to get to Andy, Rick came in and shut them down. That was especially important in the Masters RX game when Rick came in and shut them down in the 6th inning. Also in the 4th inning of the final game when he limited their run production after they had scored four runs. Rick held them to two runs the rest of the game and pretty much ended their scoring from that point on. So he was key in putting out some fires."

Josh Bielski, who paced the offense with a .750 average and ten rbi's, was named Most Valuable Player.

"He was playing with a torn tendon in his left shoulder that is going to require surgery in a couple of weeks," pointed out Viox. "But he led the team in hitting and made all the plays in the outfield and threw out some runners. He gutted his way through the whole tournament. The fact that he was injured and played through it and wanted to win, we felt like he should have been MVP."
Other hitting leaders for Viox included Eric Lucking at .714, Roy Moore at .667, Casey Callaway at .647, Mike Viox at .600 and Jack Mueller at .571.

Callaway, who also led the champions in rbi's with 13, was his club's defensive standout as well, said Viox. "He pretty much made every play at short," said Viox. "I don’t know that he made an error the whole tournament. He also turned several key double plays that shut down the opposition and shot down any kind of rally they were starting to mount."

Pitching and defense were the modus operandi as Viox knocked off Shepherd Chemical 12-3 and Duke Energy 9-6 in rounds one and two. Viox put up four in the 1st and four in the 2nd to build in 8-2 advantage, and never looked back against Shepherd. Casey Callaway had a two-run single and Josh Bielski a two-run double to account for Viox’ four runs in the 1st. Callaway also doubled in two runs in the 2nd. Viox put the game away with three in the 6th on rbi singles by Callaway and Hugh Watkins and a fielder’s choice.

Callaway collected four hits overall, Bielsky added four and Mike Viox and Jack Mueller chipped in with two apiece.

Next Viox used a five-run 5th to break open a 3-3 contest against Duke. Mike Asbach singled in the go-ahead run, and Casey Callaway followed with a two-run double and Josh Bielski a two-run single to cap off the inning. Duke answered with a three-run home run in the bottom of the 7th to close out the scoring.

Bielski banged out three more hits, and Asbach and Mike Viox each went 2-for-3 to fuel the offense.

That pitted Viox against 2007 Metro Industrial "C" champion Masters RX in the winners' bracket finals, where they took the lead for good at 7-6 on a Josh Bielski rbi single in the top of the 3rd, then broke the game open with an eight run outburst in the 4th. Casey Callaway's two-run single and a Josh Bielski two-run bomb produced half of their team's runs in the 4th. Masters RX went down swinging, as they closed the deficit to 18-13 with five in the 4th and two in the 6th. But Callaway deliverd a big two-run single in his team's three-run 7th to slam the door on Masters RX.
Bielski, Eric Lucking and Roy Moore combined for a dozen safeties, and Jack Mueller chipped in with a 3-for-4 effort.

In the finals CWA 4400 battled hard for five and a half innings until Viox exploded for eight runs in the bottom of the 6th to invoke the mercy rule. Casey Callaway launched a three-run homer to put Viox on top for good at 6-4 in the bottom of the 2nd. Viox appeared to break the game open with seven runs in the 3rd. Hugh Watkins' two-run double and an rbi double by Mike Asbach highlighted the inning. But CWA came roaring back, answering with six in the top of the 4th to cut the lead down to two at 15-13.

Unfazed, Viox erupted for eight runs in the bottom of the 6th. Jack Mueller’s two-run single was the big blow of the inning. Casey Callaway's rbi single closed out the scoring and invoked the ten-run rule.

Callaway collected five rbi's in the contest and went 4-for-5 along with Eric Lucking and Roy Moore, who drove in four runs. Mike Viox added three hits for the champions.

Viox manager Mike Viox said he was impressed with the sportsmanship that was displayed among the tournament participants.

"The teams we played were all very professional," said Viox. "We didn't have any altercations. We saw nothing but good sportsmanship throughout the tournament. Teams were very supportive. If you played a good game, they let you know it.

"We're just thrilled to win," concluded Viox. "You don't win many metro titles. Those are always fun."

EMR GROUP-ASA CINCINNATI METRO TOURN.INDUSTRIAL "B" DIVISION FINAL STANDINGS

1. Viox Services 4-0
2. CWA 4400 3-1
3. Masters RX 1-2
4. City of Norwood 2-2
5. Duke Energy 0-2
Shepherd Chemical 0-2


All in all it was a great article. They did however, miss Josh's grand slam in game 3.