 
The Selects opened the playoffs against the Smoke for the second straight year and, also for the second year in a row, the underdog Selects won the series opener. Doug Hoffman was once again brilliant, striking out 11 and falling just one out shy of a no-hitter before Chad Halstead snuck a single between third and short. But with a little help from his defence, including another sparkling defensive effort from gutsy second-baseman Brad Cleasby, Hoffman's effort was more than enough for a 7-0 win. The Selects opened the scoring in the top of the 2nd when Hoffman notched a leadoff single and came in to count on Mike Kitchen's two-out RBI single. Then, in the top of the 4th, Dan Clark led off with a rocket to CF that saw him end up on third base. After Trevor Botting singled Clark home, he came in to score on Kevin Ryrie's RBI single, extending the lead to 3-0. The Selects then blew it open in the 6th. After a leadoff walk to Clark and another single from Botting, Reed Laughlin took the first pitch he saw over the CF fence for a pinch-hit three-run home run. To round out the scoring, Ryrie singled and came around to score on a Mike Brown fielder's choice. The Selects look to close out the best-of-3 quarterfinal series on Thursday night at 9 p.m.
Game MVP: Doug Hoffman, P
Despite a probable seventh place finish in this year's parity-driven KFL standings, this year marked the Selects' most successful regular season performance in the four years that team statistics exist for, narrowly eclipsing the 11-10-1 mark set in 2006 with a 12-10-0 season. As a team, the Selects also set season bests with a collective 0.270 batting average (up from 0.259 in 2005) and 92 runs scored (up from 82 last year). On a personal level, shortstop Kevin Ryrie had a breakout year, annihilating his previous personal bests and breaking some team records in the process: 74 plate appearances (edging Mike Brown's 69 in 2005), 26 hits (beating Glen Hall's 25 in 2005) and 21 runs scored (shattering Brown's mark of 14 in 2007). Ryrie also posted an impressive 0.419 batting average, with a 0.514 on-base percentage and 7 stolen bases. Four other Selects finished the season hitting above 0.300: Glen Hall at 0.305, Doug Hoffman at 0.308, Steve Hall at 0.364 and Brown at 0.397. In his first season as a Select, Zack Anstett was 7th on the team in hitting at 0.244 and went 2-0 as a pitcher.
The Selects simply couldn't make it four in a row to end the year, falling to the Kings 1-0 in a hard-fought regular season finale. Doug Hoffman pitched a gem, throwing a complete game two-hitter while striking out 13. To complete the pitcher's duel, the Kings' duo of Nick Laurette and Fred Follings combined for a two-hitter of their own, also striking out 13. Although the Selects threatened early, with Kevin Ryrie and Reed Laughlin in scoring position in the 1st and 3rd innings respectively, they could not muster a run. On the other side of the ball, the Kings delivered the game's only run in the top of the 6th when Fred Follings hit a leadoff double, advanced to third on a groundout to first base, and scored on a wild pitch. With the loss, the Selects finish the year 12-10 and look towards a probable playoff match-up, for the third year in a row, with their friendly rivals, the Smoke.
Game MVP: Doug Hoffman, P
There's just something fun about walk-off wins. That's what the Selects seem to have learned this year, as they picked up their 12th win of the season 3-2 over the Bulldogs, and their fourth in that dramatic fashion. The Bulldogs put up runs in the 1st and 4th innings to take a 2-0 lead before the Selects could muster any offence. Then, after Zack Anstett reached second on a throwing error, Reed Laughlin rapped a timely RBI single to right field to make it 2-1. The two-out rally continued, as Kevin Ryrie and Glen Hall both registered singles, with Hall's bringing Laughlin in to tie the game. It would remain knotted until the bottom of the 7th. After Ryrie drew a leadoff walk and stole 2nd, Hall singled. Mike Brown was then given an intentional walk to load the bases with nobody out and Andy McLean lofted a single over the infield to secure the win. Brad Cleasby played a gutsy game, gritting his teeth through the final couple innings with an empty bench after coming up lame on a run to first. The Selects have now won 9 of their last 12, including three in a row, and finish their regular season Tuesday with a meeting with the Kings.
Game MVP: Doug Hoffman, P
Doug Hoffman continued to pad his strikeout stats with another solid complete game win, whiffing 12 as the Selects downed the Black Sox 10-3. With the Black Sox regular pitchers missing in action, the Selects bats roared to life to put up 10 runs in the first four innings. Offensively, four Selects had multi-hit games. Kevin Ryrie was 2-4 with a pair of stolen bases and runs scored. Dan Fogal was 2-4 with an RBI and a run. Zack Anstett was 2-3 with an RBI and two runs. And Mike Brown was 3-4 with two stolen bases, two runs scored and four RBI. Brad Cleasby also had a solid game, reaching base twice (walk, hit by pitch) and making an amazing diving play at second base. The Selects are now 11-9 and have won 8 of their last 11. They try to make it three in a row on Thursday as they meet the Bulldogs.
Game MVP: Doug Hoffman, P
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