Late Inning Magic Sparks Westerners Over North Adams, 7-6 in Game Two

Danbury, CT - With the bases loaded and nobody out in the bottom of the ninth inning, there can only be one thing on the batter’s mind: get the ball to the outfield.  When Alfredo Rodriguez (Maryland) came to bat with that scenario, he did just that.  Rodriguez crushed a fly ball to deep right field that drove Brandon Boudreaux (Tulane) in from third for the winning run of a tennis match game that put the Westerners on top of the Steeplecats, 7-6 in Game Two of the Division Championship series.  This even the series at 1, and forces a decisive Game 3.

         An offense that was less than stellar at Joe Wolfe Field on Thursday night came alive early in the bottom of the first inning, when Boudreaux singled to drive home Tucker Nathans (Fairfield).  He was driven home by Mike Williams (Kentucky) on an RBI single two batters later.  Rodriguez grounded into a Fielder’s Choice that got Williams out at second but sent home Ciocchi for the third run of the inning.  After North Adams scored four in the top of the second, Danbury took an inning to answer with two more runs in the bottom of the third with an RBI single by Rodriguez and a throwing error by Steeplecat center fielder Devon Shines.  North Adams struck back again in the sixth with two more runs, giving them a 6-5 lead, but a two base error by third baseman Cam Kneeland (UMass-Lowell) allowed Derek Ingui (Franklin Pierce) to tie the game at six.  The Westerners loaded the bases with no outs in the ninth and Rodriguez put his third RBI of the night on the board for the big win.

         Starter Bryce Lahrman was chased after just two innings of work; after gaining a comfortable 3-0 lead, he gave up four Steeplecats runs to toss the lead back to them.  Steve Catalina (UCONN) came in by the third inning and tossed a shutout three innings with three strikeouts and one walk.  After Mike Anderson (East Carolina) gave up two runs in the sixth, Danbury turned to Ryan Hander (Nebraska), who got the final two outs to end the inning.  Ian Gardeck, the usual closer for the Westerners came into the seventh inning and pitched a stellar three innings including getting out of a bases loaded situation in the top of the ninth, and got the win.  Gardeck struck out four and walked three to end the game on a high note for Danbury.

         Danbury and North Adams return to action tomorrow night at Joe Wolfe Field in North Adams, Massachusetts for a decisive game three of the Divisional Finals series.  For this game, Danbury will send righty Mike Hauschild (Dayton) to the bump, and North Adams will counter with Robert Nixon.  The game will be broadcasted on the NECBL network; if you can’t make the game listen to all the action starting at 6:30pm.