On offense, the 11 runs scored was the Cubs highest output of the season. The hitting started in the bottom of the first inning, when the Cubs, undaunted by a 1-0 deficit, let loose the lumber ... errrr, composite aluminum. Kaden, Michael, Sean and Anon each reached base and scored, with RBIs provided by Sean, Anon and Matthew. The Cubs blew the game open in the third, with Michael, Sean, Anon and Kanade scoring -- with Kanade's run coming after his beautiful drag bunt for a hit, getting him all the way to third (and 4/5th of the way to home) on a throwing error.
In the bottom of the fourth, Brandon ripped a mighty blast, his second hard-hit ball of the game, and made his way around the bases, finishing with a slide worthy of Baryshnikov (see photo left) -- a play that the spectators all scored the same way: Home Run. Kanade and Matthew rounded out the scoring in the fifth inning -- 
with Kanade stroking a double and Matthew ripping the ball and also making his way around the bases in what was uniformly scored as a home run (see photo right). Mario, Sean, Matthew and Kanade each had two hits. Wyatt hit the ball hard in his first at bat, and Matt L and Zach put some good swings on the ball. In addition to the hitting, our baserunning was crisp, with lots of extra bases taken when the opportunity arose. A true offensive explosion.On defense, Kaden got things started with the first batter, snagging a hot line drive back to the box for the first out. Anon, Wyatt and Mario all made nice plays in the infield. Matt L., Brandon, Zach and Kanade all ran down balls in the outfield, and Matthew B. made his usual stellar plays at first base.
Of special note was a play which in the scorebook just reads "3-1" but was in fact one of the most beautiful defensive plays of the season which required three plays to know their responsibilities, communicate and execute. And all three did.
It was a softly hit ground ball to the right side -- the "Bermuda Triangle" of the baseball diamond because balls get hit there and sometimes never get out. But the Cubs executed to perfection. (See photo left)Matthew, playing first base, saw that Anon, playing second, would not be able to get to the ball in time to get the speedy runner out. So Matthew called for the ball and charged to get it.
Kaden, at pitcher, reacted instantly, knowing that once the ball got by him, his responsibility was to cover first and he sped to first, taking the proper angle. Anon, hearing that Matthew called for the ball, knew his job then was to back up the toss to first and he charged immediately to his spot behind the bag (see photo above right). And then, without missing a beat, Matthew fielded the ball, turned, made a perfect toss to 
Kaden on the run, who caught it and stepped on first for the out, with Anon right behind him (see photo below left). Major league teams work on that play for hours and hours 
in spring training and still, during the season, you see them mess it up when the pitcher forgets to cover, or the first baseman lets the ball go through, or the second baseman forgets his job. The Cubs executed that play better than the pros do. Perhaps most impressive is that the Cubs considered the play routine and thus could not understand why their coach was jumping up and down and making a scene clapping and whooping it up for just a regular 3-1 putout (see photo right).
On the mound, the combination of Kaden, Mario and Michael combined to hold the A's to just two runs, scattering three hits and striking out eight. A great effort on the mound.
Awards:
Energy: Kanade, who (1) while on second base, taking an aggressive secondary lead in first inning, drew a throw on a routine grounder to shortstop, allowing our batter to reach first; (2) made it all the way to third on a perfect bunt; and (3) ripped a double and had scored within two pitches.
Effort: Brandon: his home run was not just the result of good hitting, but more importantly, maximum effort getting around the bases.
Focus: Mario: great pitching and solid hitting.
Toughness: Sean, who took a ball off the eye in warmups and didn't miss a beat.
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