It was only fitting — Opening night of the 2007 ISC World Tournament, playing to a packed house — star of the last two decades — Darren Zack vs. star of the present, Jeremy Manley. Horse Lake Thunder may have come in to the game unranked, against the # 1 team in the world, but Horse Lake had the Z-man, and Darren showed that he is still capable of beating the best in the world.
Zack and Manley traded zeroes for 5 2/3 innings, until Horse Lake error in the bottom of the 6th proved costly, turning a Rhys Casley base hit into a 1-0 victory for Broken Bow, who escaped with their seeding and ranking intact, but knowing how close they came to falling into the loser’s bracket. The large crowd stayed past midnight. As they filed out, they surely talked about the gem they had witnessed. Jeremy Manley looked unhittable at times, his rise ball exploding up, and his change up better than ever, striking out 18. But on this night, many in the crowd rooted for the upset, they rooted for the living legend, and rooted for Z.