A 5-game series between two Augur League Postseason first-timer teams turned into an outright squash match as the Lavasir Krakens took 3 games in a row from the Silkwood Hornets.

Anyone might have predicted the resounding win when Satchel Furlan hit a single to start off the bottom of Inning 1. With some assistance from 3rd baseman Desiderius Ricci and 2nd baseman Areti Schultes, the leadoff hitter made it home to put the Krakens in an early lead. A base hit by cleanup hitter Sandile Spijker, followed by a fumble by Hornets shortstop Tymoteusz Pavlenko, netted the Krakens another run in Inning 6. Meanwhile, impressive pitching from Krakens starter Sjra O’Brian completely shut the Hornets out. The Hornets had a few promising starts, most notably a double credited to Pavlenko in Inning 6, but found themselves outmatched by O’Brian, who was looking particularly confident on the mound. O’Brian backed up this confidence by striking out the bottom of the Hornets lineup in Inning 8. The Krakens won Game 1 with a score of 0-2.

The Hornets struggled even more drastically against the Krakens’ current in Game 2, wherein Spijker and Schultes kicked off the second Inning with consecutive home runs. O’Brian’s pitching and the Krakens’ defense continued to confound the hapless Hornets. In Inning 4, a walk drawn by Diana Laconi turned into an infield double play thanks to the efforts of Schultes and Furlan. Apparently not yet satisfied with their two-run lead, the Krakens amazed the crowd by making four consecutive base hits that resulted in four additional runs. Hornets Glynn Cletus and Pavlenko respectively responded with a single and a double of their own, but were only able to score two more runs for their team. Hornets starter Polonius Doyle called in his reliever Hanne Poirot to stop the bleeding, but even a detective’s wit is nothing against the force of the sea—Gorecki Czcibor hit a two-run homer in Inning 9, bringing the Krakens’ score to 8-2.

Clearly discouraged by the resounding loss, the Hornets’ performance in Game 3 left much to be desired. Although Doyle and Poirot’s pitching made a better showing, the Krakens took three times as many hits off of them, with several of them resulting in two runs in Inning 6. The game ended at the top of Inning 9—with one out on the board, Laconi made it to first base, but was quickly shut down as O’Brian struck out Alcides Yates, and cleanup hitter Lyubov Kumar was grounded out by Gorecki in the infield. The Krakens won the game with a score of 0-2, and won the Felicity Conference Championship Series 0-3.

As the Hornets sauntered back to the locker room, Kumar seemed dazed and troubled. “I don’t believe it,” he said. “It’s like they’re an iron wall.”

When asked to respond to Kumar’s comments, O’Brian glowed with pride in his team.

“They say a good offense is a strong defense,” beamed O’Brian, bumping fists with Gorecki as he passed. “But, I mean, obviously a good offense is a good offense. Luckily, our guys can do both.”

Sky Division’s Muteview Stags currently face their Calamity Conference opposition the Lastland Predators in their own 5-game series. The Predators, last Season’s Augur League Champions, currently lead the series 2-1.

The Calamity Conference was shaken up last night when the Muteview Stags trounced Augur League Season 1 Champions the Lastland Predators in a tightly-wound 5-game contest.

The first game in the series was business as usual for the arrogant but impressive Predators starter EJ Austen, who pitched a complete shutout. Their single run was scored by Daisy Welles, who, after drawing a walk on Stags starter Lucas Sanchez, reached third on a clean single hit by cleanup hitter Skye Bentley. A sacrifice fly hit by Slick Marquez sent Welles home with little effort. Meanwhile, the Stags were only able to connect two hits, credited to leadoff hitter Petrov Rayner and meek bottom liner Myrtle Radcliffe.

The cracks in Austen’s composure began to show in Game 2, in which they were able to hold the Stags to 0 runs until Inning 8, but a fumble from 2nd baseman Chaz Ali Aziz allowed Radcliffe to get on base. Rayner followed up with a resounding home run. In the top of the 9th, Thomasina Koslof and Bentley responded with a double and a single, respectively, but were unable to close the gap between the two teams, ending the game with a score of 1-2.

The next day, following a pep talk from cool-headed catcher Carly Hummel, Austen was able to shake off the loss by pitching another shutout. Sanchez and his reliever, Rolf Vining, responded with an opposing effort to hold the Predators to 0 runs, but were ultimately thwarted at the bottom of Inning 12, when leadoff hitter Greg Clark hit a resounding home run, bringing the game to an immediate end.

Game 4 saw Austen decidedly thrown off-balance at the bottom of the 1st following a single hit by Rayner, followed by a walk drawn by Marcy Clinton. A pair of sacrifice flies hit by Helga Davidovitch and Peter Perrini sent Rayner home with some ease. At the bottom of the 3rd, a few small ball hits and a fumble from Marquez in the left field allowed Clinton and Davidovitch to score two more runs. The Predators, on the other hand, struggled to gain traction against Sanchez’s pitching. A few scattered hits from various points in their lineup failed to coalesce into a single run. Though Austen held the score for 5 more Innings, the Stags won 0-3.

Austen seemed mostly back in form at the beginning of Game 5, but a wild pitch thrown to Sanchez at the bottom of the 3rd Inning saw them visibly sweating on the mound. Neither team scored a run until the top of the 8th, when Vining hit a home run to send both himself and Pauly Mendel to home plate. Gritting their teeth, Austen finished out the Inning before exchanging places with the reliable Edward Welton on the bench. A rare wild pitch thrown by Vining at the bottom of the 8th showed the Predators a sliver of promise, but they once again failed to drum up a rally. Welton notably made an impressive showing in Inning 9, striking out the side, including the Stags’ cleanup hitter, Peter Perrini. Their final half-Inning, however, was uneventful, and the Predators finished Game 5 without a single run.

As the final out was caught by Radcliffe in the right field, Austen, red in the face, reportedly stood and began to hurry for the Calamity Stadium locker room. When asked how they felt about the loss, Austen stopped dead in their tracks.

“What am I meant to feel? A loss is a loss, dammit,” they said, avoiding eye contact. “It is what it is. It happens.” Despite their platitudes, Austen’s right hand was visibly shaking. They refused to comment further as they ducked into the locker room. Carly Hummel trailed after them, waving off any further questions.

When reached for comment, Lucas Sanchez grinned impudently.

“Always wanted to take that primadonna down a peg,” he said, wiping a considerable amount of sweat from his brow. “Just never thought it’d be so easy.”

The Muteview Stags are set to play the Lavasir Krakens in the Augur League Season 2 Championship Series. The Stags have their work cut out for them, as the Felicity Conference Champions notoriously swept the Silkwood Hornets in their best-of-5 series.

Even in the face of a home run hit by Ricci Desiderius at the top of Inning 1, the Stags entered Game 2 continuing their commendable resistance against the Krakens’ notorious fielding. At the bottom of the Inning, Marcy Clinton hit a double, and was advanced home by a long single driven by cleanup hitter Peter Perrini. After this, it seemed the hits simply couldn’t stop for either batter, Perrini hitting home runs in his second and third plate appearances in Innings 4 and 6. At the bottom of the 8th, Krakens starter Sjra O’Brian, frustrated and clearly out of gas, tapped in the formidable Tutankhamon Thompson, who held the Stags in the final two Innings of Game 1. Even Thompson proved to be no match for Clinton’s outstanding performance—she hit a home run, bringing the score to 5-1. The Krakens were unable to get a hit in Inning 9.

Stags starter Lucas Sanchez, clearly still ablaze from the team’s win against the Predators, was more than happy to provide commentary.

“Krakens aren’t so tough, either,” he said. “Lineup’s playing hot. Yeah, I think we’re gonna get it.”

Eagle-eyed audience members might have noticed Commissioner Luck in attendance at Game 3, clearly intrigued by the stiff competition between the two teams. The Krakens took the lead early in the game, with consecutive singles by Zuzanna O’Cinneidigh, Desiderius, and cleanup hitter Sandile Spijker successfully sending O’Cinneidigh home. The Stags were finally able to tie up the score in Inning 7, in which Helga Davidovitch drew a walk off of O’Brian, and Rocco Petersen sent her home with a strong double. Despite both teams’ best efforts, they were still tied up at the top of the 10th, two Innings after O’Brian switched places with Thompson. At the bottom of the 11th, the Stags followed suit, and an exhausted Sanchez tagged in Rolf Vining. What followed was a rare duel between pitchers, which continued well into the bottom of the 19th. It should be noted that Thompson’s pitching was especially impressive considering the length of the game: he allowed only 3 runs across the 12 innings he pitched. The game ultimately ended when Rolf Vining, practically keeling over on the mound, gave up a walk, a single, and a double consecutively, allowing Desiderius and Spijker to make their way home. The Krakens took Game 3 with a score of 1-3.

Even after an extra day of rest called by Commissioner Luck, the effects of the extended Game 4 seemed obvious in the Stags, who were crushed both physically and emotionally. They did admittedly appear to start off the game strong—Petersen and Rayner made home runs to start off Innings 2 and 3, respectively. As the game continued, however, their hits became more infrequent. Spijker, in his next two at-bats, hit a home run and a single. Areti Schultes hit an impressive double, which turned into a triple due to a fumble by Pauly Mendel. Spijker made it home to tie up the score. When it seemed like the game would be prolonged once again, lead off hitter Satchel Furlan, O’Cinneidigh, and Spjiker hit a few reasonable singles, resulting in two runs scored. The Stags were unable to even begin to close the gap once again, and the Krakens won 4-2.

In Game 5, things looked even more dire for the Stags as they futilely tried to regain the pace from the Krakens. O’Cinneidigh reached first on a walk, then advanced by a single from Spijker. Following yet another walk drawn by Schultes, Giobbe Jonkers hit a single to send both Spijker and O’Cinneidigh home. On the other side of the scorecard, the Stags did nothing but struggle, making only two hits across all nine innings. O’Cinneidigh reached home plate once again in Inning 5, widening the gap even further. The Krakens won Game 5 with a score of 3-0.

One might note that the box score of Game 6 very much resembled that of Game 5—the Krakens had a two-run Inning, and then a one-run Inning to bring their score to 3. Two of these runs were once again credited to Zuzanna O’Cinneidigh, who slugged a home run with Furlan on first. Spijker doubled in his first two plate appearances. The Stags, meanwhile, again seemed able to do very little against O’Brian’s pitching, drumming up only two hits across all 9 Innings. The Championship Series ended at the bottom of the 9th to very little fanfare, when Thompson struck Perrini out. Perrini stood at the plate, almost as if anticipating another pitch. Petersen walked onto the field and grabbed his shoulder, and Perrini only then seemed to realize what had happened. The Krakens are your Augur League Season 2 Champions, beating the Stags at 4 games to 2.

Some spectators may recall last season’s postseason, wherein champion pitcher EJ Austen (who failed to make it to the Season 2 finals) called into question the quality of the teams in the Felicity Conference. It seems reasonable to say these comments have been more or less debunked by a Felicity Conference team all but dominating this postseason.