A pair of walk-off wins help the Seals take first in the North
May 30, 2010 - Golden Baseball League (GBL)
Victoria Seals News Release
Victoria, BC - Returning to Royal Athletic Park for their first double-header of the season, the Victoria Seals lined up against the Orange County Flyers for games two and three of a four-game set on Saturday night. Right-hander Aaron Trolia (0-1) took the ball in game two for the Seals, while the visitors turned to Jesse Smith (1-0) on the mound.
With both starters going toe-to-toe through the first four frames of the seven-inning contest, the Seals were first on the board in the bottom of the fifth. A two-out home run off the bat of Colin Moro gave Victoria a 1-0 lead before Ben Johnson answered with a one-run shot of his own to tie the game through six innings of play.
After Orange County converted a lead-off base hit from Tyler Keeble to lead 2-1 into the bottom of the seventh, the Seals rally team went to work. An RBI single from Terrence McClain scored Wilver Perez to even the game 2-2 before former Flyer Brian Rios rocked a walk-off blast to left field to hand the Seals a 4-2 victory.
Seals' reliever Andrew Arreola earned the win, while Flyers' closer Andre Simpson took the loss. Brian Rios' first home run of the year was good enough to seal the deal for the home side in game two of the series.
Full boxscore: http://www.pointstreak.com/baseball/boxscore.html?gameid=12646
Turning around for game number three of the series just 30 minutes later, the two clubs renewed acquaintances with Chris Bodishbaugh (0-0) getting the start for the Seals and Brett Smith (0-0) taking over on the mound for the visitors.
A defensive battle from the first half of the double-header gave way to plenty of offense in game three, with Orange County jumping on the board first in the top of the opening frame. A lead-off double courtesy of Steve Boggs put the Flyers up 1-0 after a sacrifice fly from Keith Ginter.
After the Seals evened the score in the bottom of the first, a two-run home run off the bat of rookie Tyler Keeble made it 3-1 Orange County. But Victoria would bounce back with a long ball of their own in the bottom of the second, as Shane Cronin went deep to pull the home side within one.
Padding their lead with another run in the top of the third, the Flyers could not hold off the Seals in the bottom of that same inning as singles from Colin Moro and Brian Rios knotted the game, 4-4. Moro factored into the scoring once again for the home team when his two-run home run put the Seals on top for the first time, leading 6-5 through five innings of play.
After the teams swapped runs and errors in the sixth frame, Orange County pulled even in the top of the seventh with the help of back-to-back singles from Keith Ginter and Ben Johnson. With the game tied at the end of the seven-inning regulation, Victoria capped off the double with another set of late-game dramatics.
A lead-off base hit from Chris Van Rossum, who was bunted to second by Matt Kavanaugh, handed the Seals a club-record fourth consecutive win when Flyers shortstop Tyler Keeble fired the ball over first base. Surviving another wild see-saw affair, Victoria claimed their second walk-off victory of the night with an 8-7 win in game three.
Seals closer Brandon Villafuerte picked up his first win of the season while Bryan Harris was dealt another loss on the mound, leaving Orange County still without a win at Royal Athletic Park. Colin Moro's 2-for-4 outing led the way for Victoria, who take over first place in the North Division with a 6-2 record.
The Seals are wrap up their nine-game homestand with game four against Orange County tomorrow afternoon, a 1:35 p.m. start time at Royal Athletic Park. Both single game and season tickets for the 2010 campaign are now on sale, available through the Victoria Seals office. Call (250) 220-7777 for more information, or to book your seat today!
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Golden Baseball League Stories from May 30, 2010
- Victoria Seals Stumble in Series Finale - Victoria Seals
- Calgary Vipers Vs. Strong Warriors of Maui Games Postponed - Calgary Vipers
- Flyers Overcome Three-Run Deficit for First Win at R.A.P. - Orange County Flyers
- Toros Go Winless in Yuma - Tucson Toros
- A pair of walk-off wins help the Seals take first in the North - Victoria Seals
- "Knuckle Princess" Delivers; Makes History - GBL
- Flyers Errors Give Seals Go-ahead, Winning Runs - Orange County Flyers
- Caps End First Road Trip A Little Early - Edmonton Capitals
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