Page:The purple pennant (IA purplepennant00barb).pdf/314

Rh here, Skeet, if we can win one first in the sprints and get, say, six points out of the hurdles"

"Oh, don't be an ass, Arthur," interrupted Guy crossly. "You can figure until you get writer's cramp, but that doesn't alter the fact that we're dished. As Skeet says, the only thing we can do is to make Springdale work hard for the meet. It's perfectly rotten luck!"

There was another brief silence. Then Toby Sears asked: "How did Lanny get hurt, anyway? I didn't see it. I was so excited"

"Blocked off that runner of theirs at the plate. Someone hit a fierce liner at Haley and he knocked it down and it rolled over toward third base line. When he got it it was too late to peg to first and he chucked it to Lanny about a half-second before the runner got there. Lanny dropped to the plate and the runner slid feet-first into him and his spikes ripped right across Lanny's knee. It was a mighty pretty piece of blocking, but he ought never to have taken such a chance." And Partridge shook his head dismally.

"It wouldn't have hurt anything if they'd taken that old game," said Guy bitterly. "They had two more to play."

"Seems to me," said Sears, "it would be a good plan to keep quiet about Lanny's trouble. There's