WITH less than a month remaining in the South West and Wales Baseball League (SWWBL) season, both Taunton Baseball Club sides were in action on Sunday, July 19.

The Muskets travelled to Exeter to face the Spitfires, while the Pistols welcomed the New Forest Knights to Taunton Green. It proved to be a day of mixed fortunes, with the Muskets completing an impressive double-header sweep, winning 15-7 and 18-2, while the Pistols suffered defeats of 11-4 and 20-6.

Having shared the spoils on their previous visit to Exeter, the Muskets arrived determined to make up ground in the standings and came out swinging in game one, racing into a 4-0 lead.

A five-run fourth inning helped extend their advantage as the defence kept the Spitfires in check. Every Muskets starter recorded at least one hit in the 15-7 victory, with José Bobadilla hitting a home run and Chris Cranmer adding a stand-up triple.

The second game began much tighter. The Muskets established a 2-0 lead before Exeter's Andrew Donovan levelled the scores with a two-run home run.

Taunton seized control in the third inning, scoring eight runs as Andrés Bianco and José Bobadilla both cleared the fences. Further big innings followed as the Muskets cruised to an 18-2 victory.

Pitcher James Carter continued his outstanding recent form, allowing just four hits across five innings as the Muskets completed the sweep.

Muskets manager Jake Palmer said: "It's taken a while for us to secure a sweep this season, but that was a full team effort and well deserved off the back of our recent form."

At Taunton Green, the Pistols faced a New Forest side chasing a place in the post-season. The teams were evenly matched through the opening innings, but the visitors gradually pulled clear as the home side struggled to convert hits into runs.

A five-run fourth inning gave the Knights an 11-1 advantage before the Pistols mounted a late three-run rally, eventually falling 11-4.

There were still several encouraging individual performances. Rookie Miguel Loura collected two hits and an RBI, teenager Harry Cave recorded two hits and struck out two batters in relief, while starting pitcher Dan Adams struck out nine.

The Knights carried that momentum into game two, collecting 24 hits in five innings, including four doubles, two triples and a home run, on their way to a 20-6 victory.

The Pistols managed six runs from six hits but were unable to keep pace with the visitors, leaving them with a 4-14 record in the Severn Division.

Pistols manager Connor Colman said: "A difficult day on the diamond, but we came up against a very good side. We'll take the lessons from today and move on to next weekend."

The Tricky Cider MVP awards went to Muskets trio James Carter, Andrés Bianco and José Bobadilla, while Gemma O'Toole and Dan Brown claimed the honours for the Pistols.

Carter threw just 53 pitches across five innings while conceding only four hits. Bianco struck out seven batters and collected nine hits across the two games, including a home run, while Bobadilla enjoyed another outstanding day at the plate with seven hits, including three doubles and two home runs.

For the Pistols, O'Toole scored twice, stole three bases and produced several fine defensive plays, while Brown finished with three hits, including a double, and stole four bases.