22/02/2026
âŸïžBASEBALL (February 21, 2026)
SPLIT FAVOURS HENLEY
By Robert Laidlaw
HENLEY & GRANGE HAVE THE division one baseball minor premiership in its control, after splitting a double header with Adelaide at Plympton, winning game one 12-4 before going down 5-3 in the late clash.
To finish top all the Rams must do is win their final minor round game against Kensington at home next Saturday.
As for the Angels, they may be destined to finish third, unless Southern Districts loses to Gawler Rangers at Karbeethan next week, as the Hawks have a head-to-head advantage with Adelaide, with both teams on 46 points â two behind Henley.
With a head-to-head advantage over the Rams, South will be hoping Henley lose next week and it wins, to grab the minor title in miraculous circumstances.
In Saturdayâs first clash against the Angels, Henley got on top early, with two runs in the first inning, after hits to Jack Partington, Wilson Lee and Cam Tilly, and a wild throw, and another three tallies in the second dig, after a pair of walks and hits to Phil Acosta and Jose Paula, for a 5-0 start.
Adelaide pulled one run back in the bottom of the third, when Max Tracey singled, stole second base and came home on Stefan Welchâs hit.
That 5-1 scoreline held up until the Rams exploded for seven runs at the top of the seventh inning, after four free passes and hits to Jet Clohessy, Shintaro Kitamura, Paula and Tilly.
In their final at bat, the Angels added some respectability to the scoreline with three tallies, after Lachlan Pace singled, Ty Forney walked, Welch had a RBI hit and Ian Heck plated two with a single, to make it 12-4.
Rolando Heredia-Bustos pitched six innings for the win, conceding three hits for three strikeouts, while Partington took six catches in centrefield for Henley.
Game two seemed to be going the Ramsâ way, as it led 3-1 going into the bottom of the sixth frame.
But Adelaide busted out the bats to score four times in the bottom of the sixth to set up the split â Ty Forney singled, Tracey doubled, Welch hit a three-run dinger, and hits to Ian Heck, Rahman Martinez and Taj Williams added an insurance run.
Earlier the Angels scored a run in the bottom of the opening dig, when Tracy singled and came home on Welchâs double.
But then Henley took control with single runs in the second (Tilly homer), fourth (hits to Paula, Lee and Tilly), and sixth (Lee dinger) innings, for a 3-1 lead, before Adelaide turned the result on its head in the bottom of the sixth.
Riley Yeatman pitched three frames for the win, conceding two hits for five strikeouts, while Jordy took the loss, after giving up just three hits in the first five digs for three K2s, before the fateful rally cost him another six hits on his record.
After taking six catches in the earlier game, Partington took another four, for 10 on the day in centrefield. [photos from this game by Paul Taeuber].
PORT ADELAIDE HAS SNEAKED INTO the coveted sixth spot after twin wins against Kensington, 10-0 and 8-4 at Semaphore, and can ensure a coveted finals spot with a victory next week against Goodwood at Mortlock Park.
Two four-run rallies was the major difference in the Magpiesâ 10-0 game one victory, with two further runs in the bottom of the fifth forcing the game to end early.
At the top of the opening inning, two-run homers by Dayton Mitchell and Tommy Bird gave Port the perfect start.
Then in the bottom of the third frame, the Magpies made it 8-0 with another four runs, after three walks and hits to Campbell Hodgetts, Wil Paech and Sammy Steigert. RBI hits to Steigert and Mitchell in the bottom of the fifth dig finished the contest.
Pitcher Joe Cedano claimed the win, conceding one hit in five frames for eight strikeouts.
The late game was a lot harder for Port but a four-run bottom of the fifth inning busted open a 4-4 ballgame,
At the top of the first frame, Jack Platten and Sean Maple hit singles to set the table for Michael Bishopâs three-run dinger, as the Cardinals took a 3-0 lead.
In the bottom of the opening dig, the Magpies responded with a pair of runs, assisted by four walks and a hit batsman, to make it 3-2.
Both teams scored a run in the second inning, Kensington on Bishopâs sac fly and Port via a Wil Paech walk and Sammy Steigertâs RBI double.
Then in the bottom of the fourth the Magpies tied the scores at 4-4, after hits to Byron Wiley and Nick Vasic, and a wild throw.
Another four walks set up Portâs four-run fifth, with Wiley and Vasic also contributing based hits.
Steigert went the distance from the mound for the win, conceding nine hits for six strikeouts.
SOUTHERN DISTRICTS MAY HAVE cost Woodville a spot in the finals with two wins at Christie Beach, especially after a come-back 4-3 game one victory, with a 7-0 second clash finishing the job.
It looked like the Senators were headed for a game one win, as it lead 3-0 going into the bottom of the fifth inning.
At the top of the second frame, Cesar Perez walked, Jose Pimentel singled, Oliver Hayes bunted, with a wild pitch scoring one run, and another coming home on Alfredo Rodriguezâs hit, to make it 2-0 Woodville.
When Perez put one out at the top of the fourth dig, Woodville looked in control, but when its ace pitcher AJ Verastegui left the game with one out in the bottom of the fourth, trouble was brewing.
The Hawks finally got untracked in the bottom of the fifth frame with three runs to tie the ballgame, on Nick Hutchingsâ RBI double and Brett Hattersleyâs two-run, two-bagger.
That 3-3 scoreline was still in place when South came to bat in the bottom of the seventh and final inning. Andrew Rodgers doubled and then scored on an errant throw, to give the Hawks a walk-off win.
Gary Grosjean went the distance for South from the mound, giving up six hits for five strikeouts on seven digs.
A four-run third inning set up the Hawks shutout win in the second contest, after two free passes and hits to Rodgers, Nick Hutchings and Riley Moore (two RBIs).
Then in the bottom of the fourth dig, a pair of hit batsmen, a walk and an infield single to Lucas Doyle saw another two runs, while in the sixth, consecutive hits to Ashton Hutchings, Hattersley and Moore made it 7-0.
Jacob Moran was on fire from the mound, conceding two hits for 13 strikeouts in seven frames.
A NO-HITTER AND TWO MULTI-HOMER games were the major highlights of West Torrens demolition of Sturt at Lockleys, with 10-0 and 6-1 twin-killings.
There were two standout performers for the Eagles in game one, pitcher Arlo Marynczak and big basher Tom McGarry.
Marynczak pitched the complete game, collecting nine strikeouts in five innings for no hits.
And McGarry visited the battersâ box three times, and three times deposited the ball well over the centrefield fence!
In the bottom of the opening frame, Sam McGarry set the stage for his brother Tomâs first blast, a two-run dinger when hit by a pitch. For an encore, Tom hit a solo shot in the bottom of the third, as West Torrens still âonlyâ led 3-0.
Then Tomâs team-mates decided to lend a helping hand in the bottom of the fourth dig, as the Eagles piled on seven runs.
Jacob Scott and Nick George hit singles to set up Austin Gallagherâs three run homer. Then Sam McGarry singled, with his sibling making it three-for-three â three blasts in one game sent into orbit!
But still there was more, as hits to the brothers Vanderlinden, Nath and Nico, gave Jasper Clark his opportunity to collected two RBIs with his hit, to make it 10-0.
Game two was a little gentler but still decisive, with Mason Clavell taking on the role of the âBambinoâ with two long flies.
Clavell started the ball rolling with a solo shot in the bottom of the third inning, then the following dig, after Oscar Weber singled and scored on Georgeâs double, Clavell smashed his second round-tripper to make it a 4-0 ballgame.
The Saints finally managed a run for the day at the top of the sixth, when âMaster-Blasterâ Jordan McArdle sent a long ball sailing over the rightfield fence.
West Torrens had the final say though, with two runs in the bottom of the sixth, on RBIs by the McGarry brothers, Sam on a hit and Tom with a sac fly.
Masa Sawada got the win for his two innings on the mound, collecting three strikeouts for no hits. Jarod Large started for the Eagles and threw three frames for one hit and five K2s.
THERE WAS NO DECISION at Karbeethan Reserve between Gawler Rangers and Golden Grove Central Districts, with two draws, 4-4 and 7-7.
Game one looked all over but the shouting when the Dodgers led 4-0 going into the bottom of the fourth inning, and Fynn Chester dominating from the mound.
Brayden Caskey hit a three-run home run at the top of the third frame, after hits to Tom Walsh and Daisuke McKibbin, while Matt Phillips extended the lead to 4-0 an inning later with his dinger.
Gawler finally broke the bats out in the bottom of the fourth to score twice, after hits to Raph Pelletier, Dylan Child and Sam Bawden, and a wild throw.
Then in bottom of the fifth, Ben Lambert walked, Aiden Prokopec singled, and with an error, two walks and a wild pitch, the game was knotted at 4-4, which held up till the end.
Chester conceded six hits for nine strikeouts in 4.1 frames, with reliever James Vaughn giving up one hit for five K2s in 2.2 digs.
For the Rangers Seb Heintze-Unger went the distance, collecting 10 strikeouts for six hits in seven innings.
The second contest was like a 15-round boxing fight, with neither side surrendering, up to when time was called after eight innings.
First it was the Rangers to take an early lead, in the bottom of the opening frame, after Prokopec walked and Child put one out for a 2-0 lead.
But then it was the Dodgers turn to punch back, with a four-run rally at the top of the third, changing the gameâs momentum.
Harry Bastian walked, Caskey singled, Nick Wallis hit a sac fly, Chester singled, Phillips hit a RBI double and Jake Shotton plated a run with his hit to rightfield.
In the bottom of the third dig, Gawler pulled one back after hits to Lambert and Prokopec, and Pelletierâs RBI ground-out, to make it 4-3.
Then it was the Dodgers who all but put Gawler on the canvas with a run at the top of the fifth (Jett Chenoweth RBI single) and two in the sixth (Chester single, error, Shotton sac fly and a wild pitch) to go 7-3 up.
But like in those famous âRockyâ movies, itâs never over until itâs over, as the Rangers rallied to score three runs in the bottom of the sixth, on Prokopecâs RBI single and Pelletierâs two-run hit up the middle, to trail by a single run, 7-6.
Hits by Nathan Schreier and Seb Heintze-Unger set up Ethan Badcockâs RBI groundout in the bottom of the seventh to tie the scores at 7-7 and force an extra inning, with neither side adding to the tallies.
From the mound both teams had two pitchers throw four innings each. For Gawler, Tyler Renken gave up six hits for two K2s, while Badcock conceded four hits for three K2s. Dodgers starter Jaryd Hardman struck out three for four hits, while Zach Tibbits gave up four hits for five K2s.
GLENELG AND GOODWOOD SPLIT AT Mortlock Park, with the Tigers winning the first encounter 6-3 and the Indians walking off the second clash, 5-4.
It looked like Goodwood was in the box seat in the first contest, leading 3-2 going into the top of the sixth inning, where Glenelg scored four runs to turn the game around, and hang on for a 6-3 win.
At the top of the first frame, Liam McCallum walked and came home on Alex Steffâs double to give the Tigers a 1-0 start.
The answer from the Indians was immediate, as Billy Sutton singled and scored on Grif Weberâs two-bagger to make it a 1-1 ballgame in the bottom of the dig.
Connor Hill had a RBI hit at the top of the third to put Glenelg 2-1 up, with Goodwood again levelling the scores in the bottom of the third, after Dylan Howarth singled and came home on Suttonâs hit.
For the first time in the game the Indians managed to wrest the lead, when in the bottom of the fourth, Henry Wiese singled, went to second on a wild pitch and scampered home on Liam Allenâs hit up the middle â 3-2 Goodwood.
But then the Tigers took control with a four-run top of the sixth, after hits to Dylan Bentley, Jacob Eldridge, Bailey Edgar (RBI) and Tom Huttunen (two RBIs).
Jayden Eldridge pitched six innings for the win, conceding nine hits for five strikeouts, while Tom Fitzgerald took the loss, giving up six hits for six K2s in 5.1 innings.
Coming on in relief for Goodwood, veteran pitcher Darren Fidge threw 1.2 frames for four hits and two strikeouts in his 700th division one game for the Indians.
Game two saw the teams mirror each other for the first five innings, with no score until the top of the fourth, where Glenelg broke through with a pair of runs, after Steff was hit by a pitch, Hill singled and a wild throw scored both runners.
In the bottom of the fourth, a Peter Paech two-run single saw the Indians answer, to keep the ballgame tied, 2-2.
The fifth frame saw one run apiece, the Tigers through hits to Oliver Alexander and McCallum, and Goodwood via a Weber sac fly.
A home run from Saxon Gibbs in the bottom of the sixth saw the Indians take the lead, 4-3, with just one more inning.
Glenelg managed to level the scores in the top of the seventh, when McCallum singled, went to second base on a wild pitch and came home on Dylan Bentleyâs hit, and with two out, Fidge came into the fray and struck out the final batter to give his side a chance for victory.
And it doesnât get more exciting, as Cooper Pratt ran out an infield hit, Heeps bunted, and after walks to Weber and Wiese, a fielderâs choice left the bases loaded and two out â and give Fidge the win in his 701st game.
Up steps Paech, and with a full count, received a ball and walked off the win with a base on balls!
EAST TORRENS MADE SURE of a finals spot with two victories against Northern Districts at Ingle Farm, winning game one 9-1 and the second contest 9-4.
Aiden Lucas hit two-run homers in the first and third frames to stake the Redsox an early 4-0 lead in game one.
Then a five-run rally at the top of the seventh dig made the game safe, which featured three hit batsmen, two walks and hits to Charlie Ashcroft and Jack Wilton. North managed a run in the bottom of the seventh, on Steve Matulicâs home run.
Harry Deliyannis pitched the complete game for the win, conceding three hits for 12 strikeouts in seven innings. Luke Barrientos pitched well for the Reds, giving up four hits for seven K2s in six frames, with his only blemish those two Lucas dingers.
The second contest was close early, with East Torrens managing to inch in front and pull away with single runs in four of the final five digs â a three-run sixth the major difference-maker.
North scored a run in the bottom of the opening inning, when Kevin Whatley singled and came home on Barrientosâ two-bagger.
At the top of the second the Redsox took the lead with a pair of runs, after hits to Wilton, Dalton Probert and Carter Powell.
But the Reds surprise by scoring twice in the bottom of the second, after consecutive hits to Nick Clifton, Dan Oswald, Tyson Lees and Whatley, to go 3-2 up.
East Torrens brought the game on even terms at the top of the third with a run, through a Deliyannis single and Braeden Ashworthâs RBI double, with Connor Yeatmanâs home run at the top of the fourth dig putting the Redsox ahead to stay, at 4-3.
In the fifth frame Lucas doubled and came home on Mark Stewartâs single, while the three-run sixth was caused by four free passes, a Probert single and a Ashcroft sac fly, to make it 8-3.
The final run at the top of the seventh scored after two hit batsmen and a pair of wild pitches.
Zac Stroud pitched three innings in relief to claim the win, conceding one hit for six strikeouts.
* * * * *
Division one baseball results.
Gawler Rangers tied Golden Grove Central Districts 4-4 (hits: Gawler â Prokopec 2, Pelletier 2, Child, Bawden, S. Heintze-Unger; GGCD â Phillips 2 (hr), Caskey (hr), Wallis, Shotton, Walsh, McKibbin).
Gawler Rangers tied Golden Grove Central Districts 7-7 (hits: Gawler â Prokopec 2, S. Heintze-Unger 2, Pelletier, Child (hr), N. Schreier, Lambert; GGCD â Caskey 2, Chester 2, Walsh 2, Wallis, Phillips, Shotton, Chenoweth).
Southern Districts d Woodville 4-3 (hits: South â N. Hutchings, Hattersley, Short, Campbell, Turner, Rodgers; Woodville â Pimentel 3, Carroll, Perez (hr), Rodriguez. WP: G. Grosjean; LP: J. Pimentel).
Southern Districts d Woodville 7-0 (hits: South â Moore 2, N. Hutchings, A. Hutchings, Hattersley, Campbell, Rodgers, Doyle; Woodville â Carroll, Rodriguez. WP: J. Moran; LP: J. Pimentel).
Henley & Grange d Adelaide 12-4 (hits: H&G â Paula 3, Partington 2, Tilly 2, Lee, J. Hodges, Clohessy, Kitamura, Acosta; Adelaide â Welch 2, Tracey, Heck, Ganley, Pace. WP: R. Heredia-Bustos; LP: H. Batchelor).
Adelaide d Henley & Grange 5-3 (hits: Adelaide â Tracey 2, Welch 2 (hr), Forney, Heck, Martinez, Williams, Pace; H&G â Lee 2 (hr), Tilly 2 (hr), Paula, J. Hodges. WP: R. Yeatman; LP: J. Grose).
West Torrens d Sturt 10-0 (hits: WT â T. McGarry 3 (3 hr), Nat, Vanderlinden 2, Clark 2, Gallagher (hr), S. McGarry, Nic. Vanderlinden, Scott, George; Sturt â none. WP: A. Marynczak; LP: A. McClure).
West Torrens d Sturt 6-1 (hits: WT â Clavell 2 (2 hr), George 2, Gallagher, Taintey, Nic. Vanderlinden, Weber, Scott; Sturt â McArdle (hr), J. Garcia. WP: M. Sawada; LP: T. Green).
East Torrens d Northern Districts 9-1 (hits: ET â Lucas 2 (2 hr), Powell, Ashcroft, Stewart, Wilton; North â J. Whelan, Matulic (hr), Dziego. WP: H. Deliyannis; LP: L. Barrientos).
East Torrens d Northern Districts 9-3 (hits: ET â Lucas 2, Probert 2, Powell, Deliyannis, Ashworth, Stewart, Wilton, Yeatman (hr); North â Whatley 2, Clifton 2, Barrientos, Matulic, Oswald, Lees. WP: Z. Stroud; LP: T. Marshall).
Port Adelaide d Kensington 10-0 (hits: Port â Steigert 4, Hodgetts 3, Mitchell 2 (hr), Arriola, Bird (hr), Paech; Kensington â Maple. WP: J. Cedano; LP: D. Filko).
Port Adelaide d Kensington 8-4 (hits: Port â Wiley 2, Vasic 2, Steigert 2; Kensington â J. Platten 2, Maple 2, South 2, Bishop (hr), Butterwick, L. Spratt. WP: S. Steigert; LP: A. Gray).
Glenelg d Goodwood 6-3 (hits: Glenelg â McCallum 2, Hill 2, Huttunen, Steff, Bentley, Monaghan, Jac. Eldridge, Edgar; Goodwood â Sutton 3, Pratt 2, Allen 2, Weber, Wiese, D. Howarth. WP: Jay. Eldridge; LP: T. Fitzgerald).
Goodwood d Glenelg 5-4 (hits: Goodwood â Pratt, Heeps, Wiese, Gibbs (hr), Paech; Glenelg â McCallum 2, Hill 2, Huttunen, Bentley, Martinella, O. Alexander. WP: D. Fidge; LP: L. McCallum).
Premiership points: Henley & Grange 48, Adelaide 46, Southern Districts 46, West Torrens 40, East Torrens 40, Port Adelaide 35, Woodville 34, Gawler Rangers 31, GGCD 23, Sturt 18, Glenelg 18, Kensington 16, Goodwood 16, Northern Districts 7.
