Parks and recreation hit a grand slam

Swing, batter, batter, swing!

Upon traversing the painted asphalt directly in front of our Cape Cod-style home on the official first day of summer break, those were the words this rising seventh grader heard as he made his way to the rear of Northside Elementary School where a “Battle of the Playgrounds” was unfolding with a wiffle ball match between the neighborhood boys and their arch rivals from West End.

Following a very difficult school year which included saying goodbye to my little band of merrymakers and switching educational institutions before the end of the academic term, I was finally able to put it all behind me and focus on the next three months prior to entering junior high school at the gargantuan red-brick building on the other side of the Fifth Street Bridge.

Taking in a highly contentious sporting event amongst would-be warring factions within the Ellwood City municipal boundaries was the perfect diversion to kick off my time away from book learning.

Not only did it provide me with an opportunity to expel some of that excess energy by cheering exuberantly for my friends and neighbors, but it also gave this curious stripling the chance to potentially meet a few townies which he would inevitably meet in the hallowed halls of Lincoln Junior-Senior High School when the fall term began.

While walking through the parking lot directly behind the primary school, I glanced over at Miss Cathy Pletz – the Northside physical education teacher and summer program coordinator – as she had several groups of children scattered about participating in a plethora of organized activities, such as finger painting, homemade yarn potholders and mosaic art, that were offered each weekday throughout the course of the summer months.

Shortly after passing by a trio of shavers joyously swinging from the monkey bars and their female counterparts playing a competitive game of hopscotch, I expeditiously climbed the metal bleachers behind the home team’s dugout to sit next to my former sixth grade classmate Shane Spielberg as well as eight-year-old Brian Olinger whose three brothers were scattered about the baseball diamond.

Better late than never!

“I had a difficult time waking up this morning,” I admitted while shedding some light on my summer sleeping habits. “After losing more than enough sleep throughout the course of the school year, I’m taking full advantage of my time away from book learning to get in a few extra winks whenever possible.”

“I’m just yanking your chain,” revealed the strapping preteen as he gave a quick report on the highlights from the ‘Clash of the Titans.’ “Although it’s the top of the fifth, the score is tied at six all; so, unless one of these undaunted teams have a breakout moment, this little skirmish just might go into extra innings.”

Who called the cops?

“That’s the Chief of Police,” explained the rising third grader with absolute certainty before pointing out the husky man in uniform sitting amongst the spectators on the visiting bleachers. “Since his youngest son plays for West End, he shows up to every game in his patrol car; and his presence acts as a deterrence for any potential criminal activity going on in the area.”

When the Northside boys sauntered off the field to take their next turn in the batter’s box, I watched my intimate friend Jeff Olinger exchange some friendly banter with Robert “Mags” Magnifico as the black-haired Italian exchanged places with him behind home plate for the next half inning.

“Magsy is the boy who attempted to give me his gold medal during the Sixth Grade Olympics closing ceremony at Helling Stadium,” I thought to myself when FuFu Wolfe acknowledged his adoring fans – a few giddy teenage girls at the other end of the bleachers – with the wave of the hand as he took some practice swings prior to stepping into the limelight.

Once the ladies’ man stepped up to the plate leaning into the loaded stance, the beady-eyed pitcher flashed his pearly whites before purposely throwing a ball; after which the spectators in the stands began voicing their displeasure as the knuckleballer on the pitcher’s mound proceeded to throw three more balls.

Talk about your intentional walks!

Although the adolescents from the west side of town were attempting to set up a double-play situation with the next batter in line, they bit off more than they could chew after Craig Young hit a line drive into right field that allowed the Italian stallion on first to cruise past second and go all the way to third base for a stellar steal which had the home crowd on their feet cheering for the well-executed play.

Directly after Rick Joseph sent the perforated plastic sphere spiraling toward the left fielder’s position, the team manager – Tim Elliot – came running down the first baseline to warn the would-be hotshot to immediately return to third base; whereupon the top cop’s son threw off his face guard prior to catching the coveted ball from their ever-vigilant short stop.

With the bases loaded, Randy Olinger – the oldest member of the Northside boys wiffle ball team – stepped up to the plate and pointed toward center field.

Despite the umpire calling two balls followed by a pair of strikes against the rising high school junior, the cleanup hitter sent the wiffle ball sailing through the air past the swing set, thereby securing a grand slam home run that had the entire team exiting the dugout in celebration of the phenomenal feat as he rounded the bases back to home plate.

That was the catalyst which turned the tide in their favor!

By the end of the highly competitive showdown, the Northside boys wiffle ball team triumphed over their fierce competitors and walked away with a twelve to six victory.

As the teams lined up to shake hands at the end of the game, these rowdy fans in the bleachers raised their voices with a high-spirited rendition of a popular chart topper – We Are the Champions – by the British rock band Queen.