For a bunch of "old" guys, the members of Carrara & Dayian were rather spry Sunday night over a three-plus hour period. The regular season champs needed to win three games during the span to claim the Barrington Men's Over-30 Softball League title, and they did so with a 12-11 triumph over Anderson Motors in the "if" game at Mellow-Veterans Field.

George Pedro's one-out, bases-loaded sacrifice fly drove in the winning run in the bottom of the seven inning, as Carrara & Dayian won its third championship in the last four seasons.

The champs' long day began late in the afternoon with an 8-6 victory over Court Sports in the losers' bracket final. Anderson had defeated C&D, 15-13, last week in the winners' finale.

In the first game of the championship round, C&D scored what proved to be the only run it would need in the top of the first on a pair of hits en route to an 8-0 win.

In the third, C&D added five more tallies to build a comfortable 6-0 lead in support of pitcher Dave MacDougal.

MacDougal's hesitating, flat delivery kept the Anderson bats at bay throughout the contest, leading a member of the latter to refer to the C&D hurler as "Cy Young."

MacDougal was pretty close, holding Anderson to a paltry sum of four hits in the game.

Bruce Marshall was the defensive standout for C&D, making two acrobatic catches as his side closed it out in the seventh.

The nightcap was more like a usual slow-pitch affair with both teams slugging and scoring plenty.

Ray Studley's three-run double put C&D up 5-1 at the end of one inning.

Anderson chipped away, however, eventually leveling the score at seven with three in the top of the fourth. Chris Mann plated two in the rally with a double.

C&D answered immediately with four in the bottom of the frame. Mike Swift drove in the go-ahead tally on a ground out and MacDougal helped himself with a RBI-blast off the left-center fence.

Anderson knocked one off the lead in the fifth then knotted the game at 11 in the top of the seventh with three more. Dexter Patterson singled with two-out to bring the tying run home.

In the bottom of the seventh, C&D loaded the bases in front of Pedro, who popped a flyball to medium left-center to score the title clinching run.

The "if" game wrapped up the 10th season on the Barrington Over-30 league and matched the top two seeds in the finals for the first time ever.

Sunday also concluded the tenure of Tom Strolla as director. Strolla will remain as an assistant, but wants to concentrate on playing in the league rather than running it.

By Mike Rego

mrego@eastbaynewspapers.com