They say the third time is a charm and so it was with the softball match between Denton Freedom House and Robson Ranch on Saturday, October 6 after having two previous games rained out. This was the second meeting between the two groups, the previous being on a Saturday in August last year. The Freedom House won that game 13–10.
Denton Freedom House is a non-profit organization technically located in Aubrey north of Denton. They operate the Zera Coffee House on McKinney Avenue just east of downtown Denton as an outreach for their ministry. A free one-hour “get acquainted” lunch is held there the first Tuesday of every month at noon and is open to anyone who would like to learn more about them. Their mission statement is, “To liberate broken men from their bondage of sin and addiction by the transforming power of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and to equip them to become prosperous disciples of Christ with Kingdom vision, purpose and direction”. Fellowship at the Ranch has been and continues to give major support to DFH.
Prior to the first pitch, Chad Eskew, the Director of Development at The Freedom House, gathered both teams just beyond the infield and took the microphone to thank Robson Ranch for hosting them. Scott Henderson, an intern at DFH who served as the team’s manager for the game, took the microphone and gave an excellent invocation.
With the game underway, both teams scored five runs, the maximum allowed, in the first inning. But, both teams took a breather from scoring that many runs in the second inning. The innings that followed were exciting with multiple hits and runs. One of the Freedom House fans in the bleachers commented that Robson’s lady players were very skilled and were making a terrific contribution.
The home team went into the bottom of the seventh inning, the final inning in softball, with a run deficit. But, they got runners on base and enough of them rounded the bases to win the game in walk-off fashion. In what may become an annual event, the Robson co-ed team went on to beat the Freedom House all-men’s team this year in a high-scoring nail-biter, 26–25.
After the game, the two teams again gathered in the outfield for a closing prayer and team photos. The softball association treated the teams and attendees to hot dogs, brats, chips and cold drinks.