Belters Win Fifth Straight with 16-Inning Triumph
Published on June 5, 2013 under Frontier League (FL)
Normal CornBelters News Release
ROCKFORD - The Normal CornBelters, presented by Illinois Corn Farmers, won their fifth straight game in marathon fashion, a 3-2 victory in 16 innings on Tuesday night at Aviators Stadium.
The Aviators opened the scoring in the third inning when Alvaro Ramirez went to second base on a one-out single and an error then scored one hitter later on a base hit by Evan Button.
The CornBelters evened the game with a two-out home run to left by Santiago Chirino, his first of the season.
Normal mounted an eighth-inning rally to take the lead with one-out singles by T.J. Gavlik and Mike Schwartz followed by a walk to Pat McKenna to load the bases, with the run pushed across by Steven Felix on a fielder's choice ground ball to give the Belters a 2-1 lead.
Rockford sent the game to overtime as Chase Larsson led off the ninth inning with a towering home run over the left field fence off Normal closer Casey Upperman to tie the game at 2-2.
The CornBelters broke through in the 16th inning when they loaded the bases with one out and scored the go-ahead run with a fielder's choice ground ball from T.J. Gavlik.
Ross Davis (1-1) worked the final five innings for the win. Kelley Wagner (0-2) took the loss with four innings of relief work.
The series continues at Aviators Stadium in Loves Park at 7:05 p.m. Wednesday.
THE NIBLET : The CornBelters are still seeking host families for the 2013 season. The "Host Family Program" provides players with a home away from home. It enables them to live with a family, couple or individual in the Bloomington-Normal area. It is derived from a variety of factors from a player's standpoint. Such factors include: the difficulty in finding a lease for just several months, the possibility of playing for the CornBelters for a limited time and/or the limited salaries that accompany professional baseball at this level of play. For more information, and a host family application, please visit http://www.normalbaseball.com/host-family/.
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