Adelaide Bite crush Geelong-Korea 21-1 to win home series 3-1

Adelaide Bite went on a scoring rampage yesterday to smash Geelong-Korea 21-1 in West Beach, notching a 3-1 series win that maintains its push for an ABL playoff berth.

ADELAIDE Bite went on a scoring rampage yesterday to smash Geelong-Korea 21-1 in West Beach, notching a 3-1 series win that maintains its push for an ABL playoff berth.

The Bite built the platform for the emphatic performance with seven runs in the second inning, before Nick Shumpert’s grand slam in the eighth inning — his second home run for the day — helped the side to its biggest win in four years.

Jordan McArdle and Michael Gettys also cleared the fence, while starting pitcher Greg Mosel found form to get his first win for the season.

The victory keeps the Bite on the heels of Melbourne Aces and Perth Heat in the battle for a top-two-spot in the Southwest Division.

“It was good to get some runs on the board,” Bite manager Chris Adamson said. “The pitcher gave us a chance and offensively we scored easily, which allowed us to have an element of comfort.

“It was good for Mosel to get that first win. He has been battling a little bit this season, but to go out there and get over the hump and get some confidence was really good. Then the bullpen came in and did what they needed to do.”

The Bite scored its first eight runs off only three hits, with Korean starter Jae-Gon unable to find his range and coughing up eight walks.

Southern Districts 21-year old Matt Hutchings was impressive in his ABL debut, with three hits and three runs.

The victory, following a 4-1 win on Saturday, was another terrific response to an upset 3-4 defeat to the all-Korean team on Friday night. The Bite won the opening game 13-7 on Thursday.

“It was a tough one the way we went down in that loss,” Adamson said. “We didn’t deserve to win, though, and it was a wake-up call we needed.”

The Bite will face the Aces on the road in a four-game series starting on Friday.