Take Me Out to the Ball Game

The Iowa Hawkeye's baseball team had their home opener yesterday, a double header to open a 4 game stand with North Dakota State. In the past two years since moving here we have listened to, or more correctly heard, Iowa baseball games because Duane Banks Field is directly across the railroad tracks from our house and the announcer is darned loud.

When we started working over here in spring of '05 I told Lisa that the baseball diamond was the one thing that would remind us of our old place. With night games our neighborhood is illuminated by the field's mercury lights. We used to live directly across from the Mercy Hospital Parking ramp which was lit 24/7.

Anway, the Hawks were at home yesterday so I asked the girls if they wanted to go. We tuned in the first game of the DH on the radio while coming home from school. You know you may be starting your home season a little too early when the giveaway admission prize is a free Hawkeye stocking cap to the first 500 fans. When we got home the game was tied 5-5 in the 8th. We walked over to the diamond. I figured if the first game ended right when we got there, no problem, we'll eat and watch part of the second game. Kids are free and adults are $3.00. You can't beat that.

The game had started at 3:00 and we got there at 5:45, there were maybe 200 people in the stands at that time, but lots of kids out playing wiffle ball too, and the stocking caps were all gone, so there must have been more at the start. It was still tied 5-5 in the bottom of the 9th when we arrived and went to extra innings.

Nothing happened in the 10th. ND State didn't do anything in the top of the 11th. In the bottom of the 11th Iowa had the top of their order up and got their lead off hitter on. They managed to get him over to 3rd with two outs, and as I'm trying to explain all of this to older daughter, I'll be damned if he didn't steal home to win the game. I told the girls I'd never seen that happen in person, and for it to happen in extra innings was even better. We stayed for the first 4 innings of the night cap, and Iowa was leading 2-0 when we walked home at 8:10. We had a great time and will definitely come back. I saw on the 10:00 news the Hawks won the second game 8-0.

Here is a shot from the front yard of the field lights. I took this when we got home: