Beach Bums Persevere for 7-4 Win in 12 Innings
Published on July 23, 2014 under Frontier League (FL)
Traverse City Beach Bums News Release
JOLIET, IL - The Traverse City Beach Bums scored three runs in the top of the 12th inning and held on in the bottom of the frame to knock off the Joliet Slammers 7-5 on Tuesday night at Silver Cross Field, evening the series at a game a piece.
Tied at four in the 12th, Kevin Taylor led off with an infield single and Chris Cowell walked to put runners at first and second with nobody out. After a strike out, Rob Benedict smacked a single up the middle to score Taylor, pushing the Beach Bums ahead 5-4. Scott Woodward then smoked the next pitch to right-center field for a two-run double to open up a 7-4 advantage.
Scott Vachon, pitching in front of friends and family from nearby Plainfield, IL, tossed the 11th and 12th innings to pick up his first professional win. Vachon (1-1) gave up an unearned run in the last of the 12th, but struck out Danny Hernandez, representing the tying run, to finish off the game.
Taylor had given Traverse City an early 2-0 lead with two solo home runs, one in the third inning and another in the fifth. His second shot just evaded the glove of the right fielder Russell Moldenhauer, who tumbled over the short wall in right field trying to bring it back. Taylor's two homers brought his season total to three and was part of a 3-for-5 night with three runs scored and two RBI.
TC added to its lead in the sixth inning. With runners at second and third and one away, Jose Vargas lifted a fly ball to left field that Benedict attempted to score on. The throw from the left fielder Jose Garcia ricocheted off Benedict towards the first base dugout, which allowed Woodward to follow in with another run, making it 4-0.
Joliet began its comeback with a Hernandez RBI single in the last of the sixth, cutting the TC lead to 4-1. In the seventh inning, the Slammers loaded the bases with one out against Chuck Ghysels, who gave way to Will Rankin. Grant DeBruin greeted Rankin with a two-run double to slice the lead to one before Moldenhauer drove home the tying tally on a groundout to second.
The Slammers put the winning run in scoring position in both the ninth and 10th, but D.J. Johnson recorded a strike out to finish off each frame, giving the Beach Bums the opportunity to win it in the 12th.
Alex Phillips started for the Beach Bums and held the Slammers to just a run on four hits in 5.2 innings. Brett Zawacki went six innings in a spot start for Joliet, giving up four runs (three earned) on four hits. Jordan Wellander (3-1) took the loss by allowing the three runs in the top of the 12th inning.
The two teams square off in the rubber match of the series on Wednesday night at 8:05 p.m. ET. Ian MacDougall (2-3, 4.17) will get the ball for the Beach Bums opposite the Slammers' Andrew Busby (1-3, 4.82). Fans can listen to the broadcast starting at 7:45 p.m. on Classic Rock the Bear 98.1/107.1 and classicrockthebear.com.
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