Bentleague III - Week 4 Blog

Bentleague III - Week 4 Blog

This week's blog dedicated to the original blogger Tony "per diem" Priola as he undergoes knee surgery this Friday.   Carpe Knee 'Em T! 

I'll try not to show him up since I'm already taller, better looking and more talented.   Here is the recap as we approach midway through the season:

Take the Cannoli vs Team America

The early match was almost a clean sweep for the determined Cannolis.  Bentley nearly managed to lose for the 2nd time with 4.5 partner Ray, but Captain Emeritus and Ray pulled out a 3rd set breaker over Kevin and Cayman who gave them all they wanted.  6-3, 5-7, 1-0 for Ray & B.

Burt, now a legend on Tinder in Spain, teamed up with Doug "pay attention, I win a lot" Autin to take down Captain & Chapton America in straight sets.  Greg still recovering from Tops'l late night adventures as the captain falls to 0-3 on the season as the only winless captain.  

Blake and Mark remained unbeaten for Cannoli wearing down a feisty team of Billy and Bruce.  Bruce recaptured his youth with a few treks to the net and Billy was solid as always on everything lower than head high (about 5'6").  Blake overcame 26 double faults to serve out both sets for the win.  7-5, 6-2 for Cannoli

In the final match Scott and Shane overcame Scott's lack of a 2nd serve and Shane concussing his own partner with a serve to the head to take down Zipp and Fred in a 3rd set breaker.   3-6, 7-5, 10-7 for Cannoli

Team Cannoli with a 3-1 win to put the heat on 1st place FYVM

FYVM vs String Music

Captain FY sent a message to the league and his team benching 3 of his top 4 players for violation of team rules as Donald, Hunt and Captain FY himself sat this one out.  Rumor has it there were prostitutes, a swing and some strap ons involved.   The league office is still investigating.

As for the matches Team Eff You rallied for their captain playing inspired tennis while also passing the hat to raise bail money.  

Solid Todd and John "best hands in Bentleague" Keller were way too much for Ronny and Kobrock.  What seemed like a massive upgrade from original 2nd round pick Tony didn’t pan out as Chris was not quite ready for prime time coming back from injury.  Maybe Tony was a solid 2nd pick???   Food for thought but probably not. Todd/John win 6-4, 6-1

The healthy Priola and Rocky "I'm fitter than everyone not named Steve Jacobs"  Payne cruised by Hal and Jay for an easy 6-4, 6-2 win

John "Big Unit" Allen and Tucker also cruised to an easy win over Johnny "2nd place calves - I was robbed" Fournet and Pat.   6-1, 6-2 for String Music to have a chance to draw even.

In the longest match of the day Captain Ferrer and the unflappable George Strain, who hadn’t missed a shot since September, seemed to be a heavy favorite over the ageless Ryan Doubt (fully recovered from his mugshot in Arkansas) and the young Kingsdorf.   The teams split 7-6, 6-7 in the first 2 marathon sets.  String Music was ready to even the match with a 2-2 split when they raced out to a 6-3 lead in the deciding breaker; however young Ben summoned Federer's inside out forehand to lead FYVM taking the last 7 straight points for the win and a 3-1 Eff You match victory.

FYVM wins 3-1 to maintain their 1 line lead over Team Cannoli

Standings:

FYVM                        10-6

Take the Cannoli    9-7

String Music             7-9

Team America       6-10

Questions heading into week 5:

1.     Can anyone catch FYVM.   Maybe the most talent on paper - can they back it up on the court to keep their lead

2.     Will Greg ever win a match.  Team America is in need of some leadership or they'll soon be an afterthought

3.     How much trash talking did Jacobs give his old pal Ferrer after that beat down with his "B" team?   Surely there won't be much chirping from the String Music captain this week

4.     Will Burt move to Spain to drink 50 cent wine and become the Tinder legend he was destined to be, winning over unsuspecting Latina ladies with his story telling prowess?

5.     How long will Mesa be on the DL from his injury sustained while trying to put his underwear on?

·        Biggest Question of the Week - How long will it take for Tony to forgive Brad?  After Belding's late night shenanigans at Tops'l rumor has it that he is very much in the doghouse with perennially picked-on Tony.  

Good luck with surgery Friday Tony!!