lby Hall did what it could to
redeem itself during the last inning. They made one run, followed by two
outs and two hits which brought a man on first and another on third. Then
Brassy Bangs came to the bat.

"Now, Brassy, here's your chance!"

"Knock it over the back lots!"

Brassy set his teeth and swung the bat with a do-or-dare expression. Then
the first ball pitched came in an outcurve which he swung at in vain.

"Take your time!" called out Gif.

The next was an incurve, but Brassy swung at it and missed again.

"Strike two!"

"Hit it, Brassy! Hit it!"

"Knock the cover off!"

"Take your time! Wait until you get just what you want!"

And thereupon Brassy Bangs did wait--until he had three strikes called
upon him and was declared out.

"That ends the game!"

"And the score is ten to five in favor of Longley Academy!"

"Hurrah! That's the time we showed Colby Hall what we can do!"

The Longley Academy boys went wild in their enthusiasm and danced around
the field like so many Indians. And they had good cause to be elated, for
they remembered only too well the drubbing they had gotten at the hands
of Colby Hall the season before when Jack and Fred had made such records
for themselves.

The Colby Hall cadets could say nothing against the record made by the
Longley nine. They had put up a stiff fight from the start and deserved
their laurels.

"Our defeat was largely due to Halliday and Bangs," declared Spouter.
"Between them they let in at least five runs."

"That's exactly the truth," answered Dan Soppinger. "If I were Gif I'd
read the riot act to those two players."

"Oh, I don't think I'd be too hard on them," came from Jack. "Anybody
might have muffed that ball down in center field, and any of us might
have struck out as Brassy did."

"But both of them made several other errors," put in Walt Baxter.

On the way back to Colby Hall the students were free in their comments on
the game, and there were many uncomplimentary things said about Brassy
and Halliday. Those two players tried to excuse themselves as best they
could; but a baseball player who has not made good seldom gets any
sympathy.

"I'll give you both another chance in the game with Hixley High," said
Gif at last, in talking the matter over with the two players. "But if you
make a single error it will cost you your positions."

The game with Hixley High came off on the following Saturday and was won
by the narrow score of 7 to 6