By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

THE Sigma Wildcats saw the return of Linda Knowles in their line-up and now they are starting to live up to the hype as one of the female teams to watch in the New Providence Softball Association.

Knowles tossed a seven-hitter with five strike outs to lead Sigma to a 13-5 abbreviated five-inning victory over the hapless 0-2 defending champions Bommer G Operators.

The game on Saturday night at Banker’s Field atinethe Baillou Hills Sporting Complex was resumed after the heavy rain had forced a postponement.

In the men’s feature contest, last year’s runners-up Arnette’s Sporting Lounge Hitmen knocked off the Andre Gardiner Construction Buccaneers 8-4 to recover from their opening night loss.

Wildcats 13, Operators 5: With Knowles taking control on the mound, Sigma only managed to get eight hits, but they took advantage of a number lf costly errors committed by the youthful Bommer G to seal the victory.

The Wildcats came up with two big innings - the first in the second, highlighted by Dornette Edwards’ two-run single, scoring on Candice Smith’s RBI single.

The other was in the fourth when they batted around the clock, scoring six of their seven runs to chase Diva Burrows off the mound, forcing the Operators to bring in Tyrice Curry from third.

In the latter rally, the Wildcats only had three hits, one of which was another RBI single from Smith and an RBI single from pinch hitter Jeanette Hilton as she greeted Curry on the mound. What their bats didn’t do offensively, Knowles made up for on the mound.

“It was good. First game out, it was a good start for me,” said Knowles, who refused to take all of the credit. “As the season progresses, I think we will only get better.”

The Operators, managed by Anthony Bullard, had built an 11-0 lead and seemed posied to stop the Operators in four innings.

But Bommer G got a lead off double from Curry and scored on Akia Rose’s RBI single before Jelice Darling and Deandra Hart came across the plate on two consecutive wild pitches from Knowles to at least extend the game to one more inning.

“We just got a little bit complacent,” Knowles said of their mental lapse in the inning.

However, the Wildcats added one more run in the fifth to go along with the seven in the fourth, four in the second and one in the third to push their lead to 13-3. But after Latonia Simmons led off the bottom of the inning with a single, Knowles went on to strike out Jodie Clarke and Curry.

Michelle Thompson then got on base on an error that enabled Simmons to score. And an RBI single from Rose pushed Thompson home for their final run.

The Operators got the bases loaded with Rose on third, Darling on second and Hart on first after the latter two walked. All Knowles did was work on Antigue Linden, striking her out to end the game as the Wildcats celebrated.

“We’re going to start from here,” Knowles said. “Our aim right now is to get through this season and win the championship title.”

Gregory ‘Motts’ Mortimer, the new manager of the Operators, said the rain had a big effect on their team because they coulsn’t get in any practice.

“Everybody was just sluggish,” he said. “We just have to get to practice because right now everybody is out of warp. But I have no doubt that once we get in a practice, we will make a better showing the next game.”

Hitmen 8, Buccaneers 4: Richard Bain, playing for the first time against the Buccaneers, got the starting nod on the mound and he picked up the win even though he only lasted through the second inning.

Alcott Forbes, the loser in the opener, came in and closed the door as he finished the final five innings on a three-hitter with 14 strike outs for the save.

Deval Storr was tagged with the loss after he gave up seven hits and struck out 10.

The Hitmen scored three runs off Storr in the top of the first inning to give Bain a cushion to work with. The Buccaneers got two runs off Bain in the bottom and they greeted Forbes with another in the third to tie the score.

However, the Hitmen finally broke the game open in the seventh when they scored five times.

The Buccaneers could only respond with one.

Bain also had a good night at the plate, leading Arnette’s Sporting Lounge offensive attack with a 2-for-4 appearance - both singles - driving in a run and scoring twice. Martin Burrows Jr had a perfect 2-for-2 trip with two runs scored.

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