Farmingdale's Over the Hill Gang softball league kicked off another season Friday night at Allen Park. As always, there were many familiar faces to go along with a good number of "rookies" looking to impress.

It felt like days of yesteryear when Synergy played Singleton's in a battle that put two hard-hitting teams against each other to open the season. Some of the names might be different, but the competitive spirit is still there. Singleton's started out like gangbusters with 12 runs in the first three innings, but Synergy stayed with it and came out on top 16-13. The defensive move that made the difference was Denny "Ace" Oehl coming in mid-game on the mound and shutting down those big, resilient Singleton's bats. Tommy Vanasco provided what Synergy needed with two home runs (one a grandslam), a triple, and an intentional walk. Also having big nights were Denny Oehl, Benny Macchia, Bob Cruickshank, Mike Mormino, Joe "Mr. Steady" Lutz, and Dave Rubino with three hits each.

Singleton's hot hitters were Benny Alberto, Dennis Passerratti, Paul Canalattos and Rich Smindak each with two hits and Gary Saccarro with a three-hit night.

A solid performance by Hampton Air East coming out of the box beating Bar Boy 22-15. After Bar Boy jumped out to a 7-3 lead, the Hampton Air bats came to life. The now veteran Joe Auer drove a monster homer over the right center fence to start the third inning. He added another in the 6th to close the deal. Other notables were Tom Giorelle who went 2-3 and came in to pitch in the fifth inning and shut the door. Also, Glen Sullivan and Chris Keep (back from a year in the minors) also added three hits each. The rookies, Michael Quigley and Bill Capparelli, also had a strong game, but must learn to bring the refreshments for after the game.

In other action, Mers beat Changing Times and Moby beat Built-More Builders.

Note: Gary Jambor is taking a well-earned break from writing this column this year. I'll do my best to maintain his high standards and to make sure Built-More Builders gets priority placement each week. Coaches, please submit your game recaps to gtmazza@cbs.com. All players are welcome to send in milestone announcements, weddings, graduations, births, etc. Game action digital photos can also be submitted.