48 hours after winning the night game against the SG Unicorns/Eagles, the U15 Cadets met the SG Pirates in Embrach. After a clear 18-2 and a no-hitter in the first game, they lost 8-9 in the second game. And this after an 8-0 lead.
The opening game was a one-sided affair. The Challengers scored at least four runs in each inning, while pitchers Jasper Freigang and Ben Dickow combined for a no-hitter. Fabrizio Bucher shone with a double and a triple as well as four RBI, Tyler Smith contributed two hits to the win and Noam Müller scored four runs.
The second game started in a similar vein. The Challengers quickly took an 8-0 lead. But suddenly the thread broke. The SG Pirates first shortened the lead to 3-8 and while the Challengers suddenly no longer succeeded offensively, the Eastern Swiss team scored run after run. The game was tied at 8-8 going into the last inning. Despite having runners on second and third base with no outs, the Challengers were unable to take the lead. Meanwhile, they allowed their opponents to score the decisive run with a hit-by-pitch, an error and two wild pitches, making it 9-8. Despite their second loss the Challengers remain at the top of the standings with a 9-2 record.

The U15 Cadets won the make-up game on Thursday evening in Hünenberg with 14-8. The result is a little misleading, as the game was completely even for four innings.
The Challengers seemed to have benefited from the unusually late start time. In the make-up game for the doubleheader against the SG Unicorns/Eagles, which was canceled last Saturday due to rain, they landed no fewer than twenty hits and remained errorless in defense. Nevertheless it was a neck-and-neck race with the Central Swiss team for a long time. The guests took 1-0, 3-1 and 6-3 leads, but the SG Unicorns/Eagles immediately equalized each time. In the fourth inning, Yannik Hobi and Ilai Blickenstorfer brought the Challengers back into the lead by two runs with back-to-back doubles. This time the home team was no longer able to keep the pace. And the later the evening, the better the Zurich team became. With seven hits, including two doubles from Ben Dickow and Fabrizio Bucher, they scored six runs in the fifth inning. The Central Swiss team had no answer to that.
Noam Müller, Ben Dickow, Tyler Smith and Ilai Blickenstorfer each delivered three hits, while Fabrizio Bucher, Yannik Hobi and Jimmy Siemers had two hits each. Ben Dickow was credited with the win, while Tyler Smith, who came to the mound with the score at 8-7 in the fourth inning, recorded the save.

The U15 Cadets are taking advantage of the soccer-free evening and are playing a make-up game against the SG Unicorns/Eagles in Hünenberg this Thursday evening. The game of the first-placed Challengers against the Central Swiss team was canceled last Saturday due to rain. The game starts at 7 p.m. in Hünenberg Rony.

The U15 Cadets beat their cantonal rivals Rümlang Kobras twice in the top game of the Group East, thereby moving a little ahead at the top of the table with a 7-1 record.
The title holders started strong in the rematch of last year’s U15 final. The Challengers immediately put the opponent under pressure on offense and were already leading 9-2 after two innings. Fabrizio Bucher with a 2-run single and Noam Müller with an RBI double provided the highlights. The Challengers also consistently exploited the opponent’s mistakes. Although the Kobras cut the lead to four runs in the meantime, Ben Dickow had the right answer with a 2-run single. Ultimately the Challengers won 13-7. Fabrizio Bucher had three hits and three RBI, Noam Müller and Ben Dickow each scored two hits and Yannik Hobi scored two runs, while Jasper Freigang recorded his third win.
The second game was all about the pitchers. The batters on both sides were hard-pressed to score. The Challengers only managed three hits, but because Jasper Freigang, Ilai Blickenstorfer and Ben Dickow combined for a one-hitter, this was still enough to win again. Ilai Blickenstorfer equalized the Kobras’ early lead in the second inning with an RBI double before Jimmy Siemers put his team in front with an RBI. The score remained 2-1 until the fifth inning. There Ben Dickow brought Len Blickenstorfer home to make it 3-1 before the Challengers profited from a Kobras error and a wild pitch to finally win 5-1. Ilai Blickenstorfer took the win, giving up only one hit and two walks in three innings with five strikeouts.

The U15-Cadets met the SG Eagles/Unicorns on Saturday. The Central Swiss team proved to be a stubborn opponent, but the Challengers found a way to win both games. In the end the slightly greater depth in pitching was decisive.
It wasn’t the first time the Zurich team got off to a cold start this season. When the SG Eagles/Unicorns took a 3-0 lead in the third inning, the Challengers had only managed one hit but had already committed four errors. At least Ben Dickow cut the score to 1-3 with a sac fly that Jimmy Siemers scored on in the second half of the third inning. Now the wind changed. In the fourth frame, the Challengers were able to take the lead with four runs. Yannik Hobi scored on a wild pitch, Fabrice Cadalbert scored on an error by the guests and finally Fabrizio Bucher gave his colors a 5-3 lead with a 2-run single. Ben Dickow pitched the final two innings without allowing a run, securing the Challengers a hard-fought victory.
In the second game, the Challengers got going quicker. Although their early 8-2 lead was briefly threatened again when the SG Eagles/Unicorns scored the maximum of five runs in the second inning, the Zurich team responded immediately with five runs of their own to make it 13-7. They brought this lead to the finish. The defending champions ultimately won 14-10. Jasper Freigang and Fabrizio Bucher each delivered two hits and two RBI, Ben Dickow scored three runs, while Jimmy Siemers and Alex Maron each contributed two runs to the triumph.