Max Scherzer Makes Rehab Start in Binghamton in Front of Record-Setting Crowd, Fightins Rally Past Ponies BINGHAMTON, NY – New York Mets pitcher Max Scherzer made a rehab start Tuesday night for the Binghamton Rumble Ponies in front of a record-setting crowd of 7,491 at Mirabito Stadium against the Reading Fightin Phils. Scherzer, throwing to Mets Catcher James McCann, went three and a third innings, allowing three hits and two runs, with one walk and six strikeouts on 65 pitches. The Ponies fell to the Fightins 7-6 in the opening game of the series. Binghamton (24-40) fell behind 1-0 in the third but roared back scoring six runs in the bottom of the frame with a three-run homer from Francisco Alvarez which put the Ponies ahead 3-1. It was Alvarez’s 16th homer of the season and he now leads the team in RBI with 44. Later in the frame, Zach Ashford’s three-run double scored Carlos Cortes, Brandon McIlwain and Jeremy Vasquez to increase the Binghamton lead to 6-1. Down 6-2 in the fifth, Reading (28-36) clawed back as Ali Castillo’s RBI single and Josh Ockimey’s RBI triple cut the Ponies lead to 6-4. The Fightins equaled the score at six in the sixth with a two-run blast from Wendell Rijo to left centerfield. On the very next pitch, Jonathan Guzman hit the go-ahead homer off Ponies pitcher Jose Butto (4-5) to give Reading a 7-6 lead. McCann was 1-4 with a run scored and a walk in his fourth game with the Rumble Ponies on a rehab assignment. The Ponies will continue their six-game homestand against Reading on Wednesday evening. First pitch is scheduled for 6:35 PM with pregame coverage beginning at 6:20 PM on NewsRadio 1290 WNBF and 92.1 FM. Postgame Notes: Scherzer struck out all three batters he retired in the first inning…Alvarez has hit eight home runs in the month of June and has now reached base safely in 16 straight games…Brett Baty extended his hitting streak to 12 games.

New Pro At Lochmor The Town of Fallsburg Municipal Lochmor Golf Course has a new head golf professional. Geoffrey "TAYLOR" Walsh, he goes by the name of Taylor, accepted the job at Lochmor in March of 2022 as the Head Golf Professional and a major program he already has started at Lochmor will be Junior Golf with a Camp program every Saturday from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Taylor commented, "I look forward to the opportunity to work with the Sullivan County community to grow the game of golf in the place of my residence......I take great pride in being part of Sullivan County golf as it's been very good to me through the years." Born in a golf family, Taylor, 42, was born February 8, 1980, the son of Geoff and Betty Walsh who make their home in Napanoch. Geoff, for the past four years is the PGA golf professional at the Town of Fallsburg Municipal Tarry Brae golf course. Geoff this year also assumed the duties of Town of Fallsburg Director of Golf. Taylor attended and graduated from Ellenville Central High School and graduated in 1998. He attended the University of Florida from 1998-2000 majoring in Business Administration. At the University of Florida Taylor was a member of the college golf team. In 2002 at the age of 22 Walsh turned professional and played professionally in the Mini Tour level which Taylor noted was just below the third tier of the Professional Golf Association. Taylor has been teaching golf since 2002 at various golf facilities in Florida and New York. Since 2019 Walsh became a full time resident and makes his home in Wurtsboro. Taylor noted that one of the major problems of playing golf professionally is successfully obtaining a full time sponsor. As the head golf professional at Lochmor Taylor offers golf lessons with rates ranging from $40 for half an hour and $70 for one hour both on and off the golf course. Lochmor offers a golf range and a full service golf shop to the public. The Lochmor golf facility offers terrific views and challenging play for golfers at every skill level. They have well groomed fairways and greens. There are four sets of tees which from the black tees has a total length of 6,550 for a par 71 and a rating slope of 120, from the green tees is 6,305 yards with a 118 slope, the senior tees total length is 5,356 and a rating slope of 118 and from the red tees (womens) a total length of 5,230 yards with a rating slope of 116. Lochmor was built in the prime of the economic boom during the 50's. At that time many local hotels offered golf courses, so it only made sense for the Town of Fallsburg to design a golf course as well. The 18-hole Lochmor golf course was designed by William F. Mitchell and opened in 1962. From the black tees the shortest hole is the 165 yard par 3 ninth hole and the longest hole is the 580 yard par 5 twelfth hole. Several of the tougher holes are located near Morningside lake and errant shoots find watery graves. An interesting hole if golfers play it safe is the 501 yard par 5 fifteenth hole which is almost totally surrounded by water...careful and accurate approach shots will keep you dry. Rory Wins Takes Shots At LIV There perhaps hasn't been a stronger critic of the LIV Golf Invitational Golf Series than Rory McIlroy. Even after picking up his second consecutive win at the RBC Canadian Open last Sunday afternoon in Toronto, McIlroy couldn't help but take another shot at the controversial Saudi Arabian golf league. Rory, like so many others, has ripped the LIV Golf series at seemingly every turn. The new league drew plenty of backlash and controversy throughout its opening weekend, too. Critics called for LIV golfers to be banned from major championships for what some have called "supporting murderers," and a group of families and survivors of the 9/11 terrorist attacks wrote letters to several golfers in the new venture criticizing them for their involvement. PGA Commissioner Jay Monahan "asked any players that has left or any players that would consider leaving......have you ever had to apologise for being a member of the PGA Tour?" McIlroy continued his criticism of the LIV after posting his 8-under 62 to grab the two-shot win in Toronto. Steingart Memorial Supports Hospice The Town of Fallsburg Lions Club Alan Steingart Memorial Golf Tournament will be held Sunday with a portion of the proceeds going to support Hospice of Sullivan County. The event will be held at the Tarry Brae golf course. The scramble tournament will feature two divisions, Smackers and Hackers. Tournament golfers will enjoy lunch, green and cart fees and dinner. The Golf Tip By Bob Menges There is always a lot of talk around the golf course about pitching and distance control. You know a lot of people stand up here with a good setup and pitch and they're just not sure how to perform. These golfers are not sure if they should take a longer club and if you're faster or slower over the club selection. There are a million ways to control the distance. I always tell golfers when you're pitching we want to go shorter first. A good tip to remember when pitching is make sure that your rear shoulder is moving through the golf ball as the rear shoulder continues to move the hands won't take over. Important....when you are setting up, put the ball in the center for a normal chip shot. Speed is a factor in controlling the distance. Robert Menges is the head golf professional at the Swan Lake Golf & Country Club on Mt. Hope Road in Swan Lake. He is available for private lessons and if you have a question or subject you would like covered, he can be reached at 845-292-0323 or 845-866-5567 or via email at bobmenges22@gmail.com ------------------------ Ed Townsend is a Public Relations Consultant to the sport of golf and brings over 65 years of photojournalism experience in writing and compiling the information for this column and our Web page, http://bght.blogspot.com If you have league or tournament information, shoot a hole-in-one or score your age, call Ed at 845-439-8177 or email to bght75@gmail.com

Ponies Rout Baysox in Game One, Fall in Game Two to Split Doubleheader in Bowie BOWIE, MD – The Binghamton Rumble Ponies (22-37) split their third straight doubleheader, routing the Bowie Baysox 13-1 in Game One and falling to Bowie 4-0 in Game Two at Prince George’s Stadium. Game One: Rumble Ponies 13, Baysox 1 The Rumble Ponies bats were working early and often as they hit four home runs and tied their season-high in runs scored. Carlos Cortes, Ronny Mauricio, and Matt Winaker each hit two-run home runs while Quinn Brodey hit a three-run blast, his first with Binghamton this season. Brodey finished 2-4 with four RBI while Cortes finished with 2-3 with 3 RBI. Francisco Alvarez finished 3-5 with a two-run double and extended his on-base streak to 13 games. Brett Baty was 2-5 with two runs scored extending his hitting streak to seven games. Jose Butto (3-5) allowed one run on five hits over six innings earning his third straight win. Game Two: Baysox 4, Rumble Ponies 0 Bowie’s four-run first inning against Jose Chacin (0-2) was too much to overcome. In the opening frame, Maverick Handley hit a two-run homer and later in the inning Andrew Daschbach and Zach Watson hit consecutive RBI doubles to account for the scoring. Bowie (23-36) RHP Adam Stauffer (1-1) did not allow a hit over five innings in his first start of the year. Quinn Brodey broke up the no-hit bid with a leadoff single in the sixth. The Rumble Ponies continue their series with the Baysox on Thursday evening with first pitch at 6:35 PM and pregame coverage getting underway at 6:20 PM on Newsradio 1290 WNBF and 92.1 FM. Postgame Notes: The Rumble Ponies are now 0-1-3 this year in doubleheaders, though this was their first twimbill away from Mirabito Stadium this season…In the first game, five Rumble Ponies finished with multi-hit games and each member of the starting lineup reached base at least once.

Vientos homers, Syracuse wins third straight game with 5-4 victory over Norfolk Norfolk, VA – Mark Vientos homered for the third consecutive game as the Syracuse Mets won their third consecutive game, beating the Norfolk Tides, 5-4, on Wednesday night at Harbor Park. Syracuse had ten hits in the win, marking the third consecutive game the Mets have had double-digit hits. Syracuse (23-38) scored the game’s first run in the top of the fourth inning. JT Riddle led off with a double. Two batters later, Luke Ritter doubled, scoring Riddle to give the Mets a 1-0 lead. Ritter is 8-for-17 in his last four games with four RBIs. The Mets added to their edge in the top of the fifth. With two outs, Vientos launched a solo home run over the left-field wall, extending the Syracuse advantage to 2-0. Vientos has four home runs in his last three games with at least one homer in all three contests. Norfolk (30-32) struck back in the bottom of the fifth. Cody Roberts led off with a home run that trimmed the Syracuse lead to one, 2-1. Then, Dylan Harris walked, Terrin Vavra singled, and Rylan Bannon singled to load the bases. Gunnar Henderson followed with a groundball to second base that Ritter misplayed for an error that brought home a run and kept the bases loaded as the game became knotted, 2-2. The Mets caught a break when Jacob Nottingham grounded into a double play back to the mound where Vavra was out at home, and Bannon was out at third for the first two outs of the frame. A walk to Shed Long Jr. reloaded the bases, which was costly because a wild pitch brought home Henderson from third to give the Tides a 3-2 advantage before a groundout ended the inning. Syracuse responded in the sixth though. Riddle led off with another double. Two batters later, with one out, Ritter grounded a ball to third, but Norfolk third baseman Rylan Bannon made an errant throw that allowed Ritter to reach base and Riddle to score from second, tying the game up, 3-3. The Mets regained the lead for good in the eighth. Daniel Palka led off with a single and advanced to second on a Riddle groundout. Travis Blankenhorn then singled into right field, scoring Palka from second to give Syracuse a 4-3 edge. After Ritter walked and Nick Meyer walked, the bases were loaded for Johneshwy Fargas, who was hit by a pitch, scoring Blankenhorn to push the Mets advantage to two, 5-3. The Tides pulled closer in the ninth. With one out, Gunnar Henderson homered to right-center field to cut the Syracuse lead to one, 5-4. Mets reliever R.J. Alvarez retired the next two batters, though, securing the win for Syracuse. The Mets continue their six-game series against the Tides on Thursday afternoon with the third game of the series. Left-hander Nate Fisher is slated to start on the mound for Syracuse opposite Norfolk left-hander DL Hall. First pitch is scheduled for 12:05 p.m.

BARNES PREPARED FOR RETURN AT THE 2022 U.S. WOMEN’S OPEN SOUTH GLENS FALLS, N.Y. - Nearly 10 months ago, Josie Barnes of Hermitage, Tennessee, made history when she won the 2021 U.S. Women’s Open, claiming the coveted green jacket and, in the process, earning $100,000, the richest prize in the history of women’s bowling. Barnes is back in the field this week looking to make another long and grueling run to the stepladder finals. Last year, she earned the top seed and defeated Singapore’s Cherie Tan, 198-194, to win her first major title. The 2022 event kicks off Wednesday at Kingpin’s Alley Family Fun Center with the tournament’s official practice sessions, and the season’s second major will conclude June 21 at 7 p.m. Eastern, live on CBS Sports Network. This year’s winner will receive $60,000, with the event’s overall prize fund at nearly $255,000. The allure of defending a title would be prominent for any player, but Barnes is focusing her energy in a different way. She tries not to use the word “defend” or the phrase “defend your title,” because whether the feat is accomplished or not, she’s always going to be the 2021 U.S. Women’s Open. It’s a layer of additional pressure she’s going to try and stay away from as the week begins and gives her an opportunity to “practice what she preaches” to her student-athletes as the associate head coach at Vanderbilt. The most recent player to successfully defend a title at the U.S. Women’s Open was Liz Johnson, who won four straight editions of the tournament from 2013-2017. There was no event held in 2014. Marion Ladewig and Dorothy Fothergill are the only other players to have successfully defended a U.S. Women’s Open title, and each accomplished the feat when the event still was known as the Bowling Proprietors’ Association of America All-Star. The name of the event was changed to the U.S. Women’s Open in 1971. “I really try not to see it that way because at the end of the day, I could finish dead last this week, and I'm still going to be the 2021 U.S. Women’s Open champion,” Barnes said. “I'm really trying to not put that kind of pressure on myself, because it's not like there's been many people to do it. It's not an easy event to win. In a lot of ways, I'm trying to keep my perspective very similar to last year in the sense that I just want to go out and control what I'm doing. And, at the end of the day, if that puts me in a position to win again, I'm going to be really freaking happy. But, if I start thinking about defending, it’s not going to be a very good week.” Barnes entered last year’s event in the midst of what she called “not a good season,” and the first day “started really poorly.” The event looked like it might be a continuation of her season to that point, but the 33-year-old right-hander turned things around, which was a lasting memory of understanding what she was capable of along with her belief in her abilities during a season and tournament that could’ve been lost. What also stood out to Barnes in retrospect was her performance down the stretch in match play, specifically during the position round. Barnes made some pivotal shots against Tan on a pair that provided her numerous problems just a couple of games prior to securing the No. 1 seed. “I had bowled on that pair a couple games before and it tricked me,” Barnes said. “I didn’t know what was going on. I didn’t feel like I executed that poorly, but my score was not very high. And, to be able to throw two (strikes) in the 10th (frame) to take the top seed, on a pair that I wasn’t comfortable on … I don’t know if I have great words to describe it. It was a pretty remarkable feeling.” The 2022 event will feature three eight-game qualifying rounds, starting Thursday at 8 a.m. Eastern, to determine the 30 players advancing to a fourth eight-game block. Each of the four rounds will feature a different oil pattern. After 32 games, 24 athletes will begin round-robin match play, starting Sunday, with the fourth oil pattern being used for the remainder of the event. Match play will consist of three eight-game rounds, with total pinfall and bonus pins for each victory determining the five players advancing to the stepladder finals. All rounds leading up to the CBS Sports Network broadcast will be livestreamed at BowlTV.com. As a young girl growing up in Vandalia, Illinois, the nine-time Team USA member grew up watching U.S. Women’s Open champions like Johnson, Kelly Kulick and Kim Terrell-Kearney just to name a few. All three are United States Bowling Congress Hall of Famers, while Terrell-Kearney was recently inducted into the Professional Women’s Bowling Association Hall of Fame last May. Johnson and Kulick certainly are shoe-ins for future induction once eligible. It’s every athlete’s dream to win the U.S. Women’s Open, and even now, it’s something Barnes still is in awe about, because she now shares the historical stage with many of her childhood idols. As much as the win means to Barnes, she’s hoping to become an inspiration to future U.S. Women’s Open champions, much like the previous champions have inspired her. “It’s honestly hard to imagine, because I’m still that little girl,” said Barnes, who is seeking her fifth PWBA Tour title this week. “Sometimes, I have to pinch myself, because I can’t believe one of the people I’m closest to (Kim) is really my friend. They’ve inspired me and so many young girls. I just hope I can do a minute amount to future generations of what they did for me.” Along with Barnes and Johnson, additional past U.S. Women’s Open champions competing this week include the Capital Region’s own Liz Kuhlkin of Schenectady, New York, and Danielle McEwan of Stony Point, New York. Kuhlkin climbed the stepladder during her victory in 2018 for her first major championship. Last week, she won her third career PWBA Tour title at the PWBA Long Island Classic at Maple Lanes in Rockville Centre, New York. McEwan captured her win at the U.S. Women’s Open at the 2019 event. It was her second career major championship. For more information about the U.S. Women’s Open, visit BOWL.com/USWomensOpen. About International Bowling Campus The International Bowling Campus (IBC) is the headquarters for the bowling industry and directly serves the more than 67 million bowlers in the United States. The IBC houses the resources of the United States Bowling Congress, the governing body and membership organization for the sport; the Bowling Proprietors’ Association of America, representing the business interests of bowling centers; IBC Youth Development; Strike Ten Entertainment, the marketing arm for the industry; the International Bowling Museum and Hall of Fame; the International Bowling Pro Shop and Instructors Association; the International Bowling Media Association; the Bowling News Network; the Billiard and Bowling Institute of America; Bowlers Journal International and Bowling Center Management, the industry’s premier magazines; and the International Training and Research Center.

Ponies Blanked by Baysox in Series Opener in Bowie BOWIE, MD – The Binghamton Rumble Ponies (21-36) fell to the Bowie Baysox 9-0 in the series opener at Prince George’s Stadium on Tuesday night. Bowie (22-35) scored two in the second inning, four in the sixth, and three in the eighth to account for the scoring. In the second, Bowie got on the board with consecutive RBI doubles from Andrew Dashbach and Chris Givin against Ponies starter David Griffin (0-4). Griffin suffered the loss despite allowing just two runs on six hits over five innings. Bowie tacked on four in the sixth with a pair of two out two-run homers from Givin and AJ Graffanino. Givin finished 3-4 with two runs scored and three RBI. Graffanino ended his night 2-4 with three RBI. Bowie held the Ponies to just four hits on the night led by starter Chris Vallimont (1-0) who allowed two hits over five innings. The two teams continue their series with a doubleheader on Wednesday with the first game getting underway at 5:35PM and pregame coverage beginning at 5:20 PM on Newsradio 1290 WNBF and 92.1 FM. The second game will begin approximately 30 minutes after the conclusion of the first game Postgame Notes: Francisco Alvarez 12-game hitting streak was snapped as he went 0-3 with a walk…Brett Baty extended his hitting streak to six games with a single in the fourth inning.

Syracuse launches six home runs, offense erupts in 18-6 win at Norfolk Norfolk, VA – The Syracuse Mets hit six home runs, six doubles, and racked up a season-high 18 hits en route to an 18-6 victory over the Norfolk Tides on Tuesday night at Harbor Park. The Mets scored runs in seven of the game’s nine innings, Daniel Palka had a career-high five hits, Mark Vientos had five RBIs and two home runs, and JT Riddle also had two homers in the win. Syracuse (22-38) struck first three batters into the game. With one out, Dominic Smith doubled. Vientos followed with a two-run home run down the right-field line to give Syracuse a 2-0 lead. The Mets continued their power hitting in the top of the second inning when Luke Ritter hit an opposite-field homer to right field to make it a 3-0 game. The hit marked Ritter’s first-career Triple-A home run. Syracuse broke the game open in the third. Smith walked, Vientos was hit by a pitch, and Palka singled to load the bases. Nick Dini followed with a bases-clearing double to push the Syracuse edge to 6-0. Riddle walked to put runners at first and second base before Ritter doubled home Dini to give the Mets a 7-0 advantage. Three batters later, with two outs, Johneshwy Fargas brought home both Riddle and Ritter with a single, extending the Syracuse lead to 9-0, completing a six-run inning. The Mets scored in the fourth thanks to one swing of the bat. With one out, Palka hit a solo home run to give Syracuse a double-digit advantage, 10-0. The homer was Palka’s team-leading 14th of the season. The 30-year-old has reached base in 15 consecutive games, including with hits in 14 of those 15 contests. Syracuse utilized the long ball again, this time in the top of the fifth. Fargas and Smith both walked, putting runners at first and second for Vientos who launched a three-run, opposite-field home run to make it a 13-0 ballgame. This is the second time this season that Vientos has hit two home runs in a game. The 22-year-old now has ten homers this season, including nine long balls in 20 games played since May 8th. The frame continued with a Palka double. Then, two batters later, Riddle pummeled a two-run homer over the right-field wall for a 15-0 Syracuse lead. Norfolk (30-31) finally got on the board in the bottom of the fifth. With two outs and runners at first and second, Dylan Harris hit a two-run double. Terrin Vavra followed with an RBI single to trim the deficit to 15-3. Those were the only runs allowed by Syracuse starting pitcher Thomas Szapucki. The left-hander struck out eight batters in five innings with just one walk. Syracuse responded in the sixth. Smith singled, Vientos walked, and Palka brought home both Smith and Vientos with an opposite-field double to left-center field to push the lead back to 14, 17-3. The Mets were finally held off the board in the seventh but added a final run in the top of the eighth with a Riddle homer, his second of the game, pushing Syracuse up 18-3. This was Riddle’s second two-home run game of his career. The Tides brought across three runs in the bottom of the eighth when Rylan Bannon hit a two-out, three-run home run to make it 18-6, but that’s as close as Norfolk would get. Palka finished the game 5-for-6 with three RBIs, a home run, two doubles, and a triple shy of hitting for the cycle. Ritter also came a triple short of hitting for the cycle as he went 3-for-4 with a home run, double, single, walk, and a hit by pitch. Syracuse’s six home runs, six doubles, 18 hits, and 18 runs were all season highs. The Mets continue their six-game series against the Tides on Wednesday night with the second game of the series. Left-hander Mike Montgomery is slated to start for Syracuse opposite Norfolk right-hander Denyi Reyes. First pitch is set for 6:35 p.m.