The Doncaster Dragons capped a remarkable two-year run on Saturday, defeating Greenhills-Montmorency via mercy rule to claim their maiden MWBL A-Grade premiership.
Following their B-Grade triumph 12 months earlier, the Dragons became the first club since 1991-92 to win the A-Grade flag in the same year they were promoted.
Having finished the regular season on top of the table, Doncaster took the long route to glory. Beaten 9-1 by GMBC in their first final at La Trobe University’s synthetic field Ganbu Djila, the Dragons advanced to the grand final courtesy of a nailbiting 2-1 win over North Balwyn.
Fresh off a dazzling 21-strikeout performance against the Stingers, Doncaster coach Dan McGrath took the mound against Monty in the bottom of the first with a 1-0 lead after leftfielder Alan Ortiz doubled to score third-baseman Marcel D’Avoine in the top half.
The Dragons exploded for four runs in the fourth. Ortiz was hit by a pitch and – with two outs – Derek Medlin, Liam Robertson and Dakota Gibson all singled. By the time a run came home on a Monty error, the score was 5-0.
Hits to D’Avoine, Ortiz, Brian Chen and Medlin in the fifth inning plated two more, and after an outfield error an inning later Ortiz’s third hit of the game extended Doncaster’s lead to 8-0.
With McGrath putting up zeroes, the 10-run rule was in sight. Chen singled to lead off the top of the seventh and pinch-hitter Fraser Boyd followed with a double. Gibson was hit by a pitch to load the bases before Luke Utting walked in a run to make it 9-0.
Brendan McDonald then crushed a booming double to deep centrefield, clearing the bases to extend his team’s lead to 12-0.
All that was left was for McGrath to get the final three outs, which he did with a minimum of fuss.
The victory secured the Dragons a second premiership in as many weeks, after the A-Reserves triumphed over Melbourne Uni on the same field seven days earlier.
For the MWBL report and quotes from club coach Dan McGrath, click here.
Doncaster Baseball Club 