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Coach A-WOL contemplates about better days ahead. (Wolan)

Squaring off against Verdasys on a hot but bearable afternoon is Tufts Health Plan. The Tufts team, winner of multiple divisional titles, brings to the game an experienced, sharp and well-organized team. The team is so well-organized that starting center fielder Elliott Eno noticed that the team even had a general manager.

But the real drama before the game was not whether Verdasys could avoid another 26-4 thumping, but rather could the club avoid another forfeit? In game 1 of the season, Verdasys was forced to declare a forfeit after only 5 players reported to play. Today 9 players were scheduled to attend. Will that be enough or will the team forfeit and be a step away from being kicked out of the league?

The seemingly okay roster quickly ran into unexpected trouble.

About an hour before game time, Coach received a curious email message from Colby stating she would be out that afternoon. Apparently, Colby received an email message allegedly addressed from Coach, stating that the game had been postponed and rescheduled to a later date. The message also contained a coupon to Dillard’s. Thinking the game had been postponed, Colby set off to use the coupon instead of reporting to the game.

Following an investigation, it turned out the message was forged by a person known only by the alias of “Doctor Chaos.” His motive for forging the message is unknown.

In addition, “Kung Fu” Lijun reported that he too would miss the game. Shortly before game time, Lijun reported that he was experiencing computer problems. The issues were so severe that he needed to sit-out the game so he could address the matter.

With the clock ticking and short two players, Coach Wolan was in need of replacements. And so, a call to reserve players Misha Efimov and Usha Shama was made. Unfortunately, neither player would be able to arrive by game time. Even then, only Misha would show up, as a computer navigation issue caused Usha to drive to the wrong field.

Out of time and staring down a forfeit, Coach Wolan’s only remaining option was to plea with the opposition. He pleaded for his team to take a 9-0 loss instead of a forfeit. Tufts agreed. In exchange, Verdasys Softball agreed to play a non-binding scrimmage game against Tufts so long as Tufts could lend Verdasys a few players.

To read about to the Scrimmage game, please click here.

The agreement seals the second loss of the season for Verdasys. But unlike their first contest, this afternoon’s game goes down as a 9-0 defeat instead of a forfeit.

Andy Wolan is a reporter and photographer for Verdasys Softball. This story was not subject to the approval of the league or its clubs.