Eighty years ago, on July 20, 1939, it was a wild struggle in the feature softball game at Recreation Park with everything happening for seven innings, but after the smoke had cleared away, the Valley Brew team from Stockton held a win over the Manteca Honeydews by the score of 11 to 10. “Hooch” Graham, playing shortstop for the Valley Brews, was robbed of a home run in the first inning when he drove a mighty one into left field, hitting a parked car to return on to the field. Being forced to hold third base on that one, he later smashed one into the trees by the City Hall park for a trip all the way around.
In other sports stories from the Bulletin files:
90 years ago: July 25, 1929 – The Manteca Maulers got off on the right foot again last Sunday when they smeared the Gustine Athletics in a slugging fray by the score of 16 to 13. Hank Theiler showed some fleet-foot outfielding and hit the ball hard all day. Hank got two hits. Dan Alley pounded three hits for the locals, including a three-bagger.
70 years ago: July 28, 1949 – Jess “Satchel” Payan notched his second victory in as many attempts last Sunday by the score of 10-5. Sharpe Depot was the opponent of the Manteca Merchants. Playing under the most adverse weather conditions of wind and dust, Payan managed to strike out 12 and allow only eight hits. The hitting star was Merle Kleist, who contributed a single, double and triple to bat in five runs.
60 years ago: July 28, 1959 – A pitching duel highlighted play in the Little League this week. Larry Gonsalves of Manteca Drug and Bob Leatherwood of Bobson’s Cleaners pitched seven scoreless innings of play. The game was finally stopped because of conflicting time schedules. Leatherwood was out in the third inning trying to steal home.
50 years ago: July 25, 1969 – The Manteca Babe all-stars traveled to Sonora last week to compete in the District tournament for 14-15 year-olds. They were eliminated after four games. Manteca opened by beating West Side 8-1 as Vic Liles pitched a four-hitter. Liles and Craig Souza got two hits each. The next day, John Thissen threw a three-hitter to shut out Tuolumne County 3-0. Liles and Dan Valdez led the way with two hits apiece. Turlock beat Manteca 4-2 the next day with Liles and Tom Smith getting two hits each in a losing cause. The locals were eliminated the next day by a 5-4 eight-inning loss to Lodi after blowing a three-run lead in the seventh inning. Valdez had a perfect 4 for 4 at the plate for Manteca.
Manteca opened the second half of the San Joaquin Amateur Baseball League successfully with two wins last week. Mark Winter’s timely double in the first inning drove in both runs in a 2-1 win over San Joaquin Employees Association. Kirk Hinton’s two hits, including a two-run triple and theft of home, highlighted a 5-2 win over St. Mary’s.
40 years ago: July 23, 1979 – Steve Winter, the golf and sophomore basketball coach at Manteca High, was appointed yesterday to replace Pat Douglass as the varsity basketball coach, Walker Vick, MHS athletic director, announced. Winter also led the Buffalo golf and swim teams to championships.
East Union High has dropped its competitive gymnastics program, Principal Richard Durham said Monday. The cancellation of the Lancer activity was announced the same week Manteca High announced the name of its new gymnastics coach. Vanessa Burns, a 1979 San Jose State graduate, has been named to replace Pat Martinson.
30 years ago: July 25, 1989 – The Manteca Dolphins finished a perfect regular swim season by defeating Los Banos and Ripon in a three-way meet in Manteca Saturday. Several Dolphins won three individual events. Jack Harvey and Kelly Masterson each won three races in the six-and-under category and Jason Beier and Alicia Lowry were three-time winners in the 7-8 age group. Deni Lowry won three races in the 9-10 age group. Lisa Pendexter was a three-time winner in the 11-12 group and Julie Gaynor won three races in the 13-14 category.
20 years ago: July 28, 1999 – In a game of squandered opportunities, Tri-County’s Babe Ruth 16 year-old all-stars’ run in the State Tournament at Hanford came to an end as Modesto’s pitching took charge in a 4-1 decision last night. Robert Breedlove’s seventh-inning solo home run was the only dent that Manager Jack Thomson’s boys could make in that Modesto pitching.
10 years ago: July 30, 2009 – Jacob Gomes, age 16 of Manteca, continued his very impressive rookie racing season with second and third place finishes in two races in Roseville. With two wins and 16 top five’s in 21 starts, Gomes is now the fifth-ranked driver in the state and 19th nationally in the latest NASCAR Whelan All-American Series standings.
Paced by seven high-point winners, the Ripon Sea Lions dominated in claiming the Mid-Valley Swim League Championships title Saturday at Pitman High in Turlock. The Manteca Dolphins finished fifth out of eight teams. Mallory Brubaker, who won the 7-8 year-old girls 50-yard freestyle, led the Manteca club.
