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Momentum builds for Holyoke Giants HOLYOKE - The Holyoke Giants are gradually, if somewhat painfully, making
their way back to the .500 mark. The team suffered through a couple of shutout losses on the road before making a run lately. In the past week, a couple of come-from-behind wins have helped and Sunday night at MacKenzie Stadium the Giants, trailing at one point 7-1, chipped away at the lead held by opponents the Riverpoint Royals, caught them in the late innings and won the game 8-7 on an 11th-inning base hit by Bryan Graves. The team record stood at 10-11 after the extra-inning victory. The crowd of nearly 500 at MacKenzie may have thinned out a bit by the time the game ended but those who stuck around were treated to a fine win by the locals. In addition to the game itself, on Sunday night the Giants played host to a number of local veterans organizations that trooped the colors on the field prior to the game for the National Anthem. Veterans were also allowed into the game free of charge. Holyoke's Big Joe Westcott, who was hit fairly hard on Sunday, did manage to quell an early uprising by Riverpoint and the win eventually went to Kris Bakey, who was 2-0 at that point. The team traveled to Newport, R.I., Tuesday to play the Gulls. They return home tonight at 7 to play the Manchester Silkworms. Team officials Patrick J. Moynihan and Ben L. Sosne both said they were "more than satisfied" with the crowds. "We had about 900 for the two games and with people away and picnics and the U.S. Women's (Open) golf tournament in South Hadley, we are happy with that number. We thank the area for the support the team has received so far," Moynihan said. © 2004 The Republican Company. All rights reserved. Reprinted with permission.
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