Canaries home finale ends one run short, 6-5
August 23, 2006 - American Association (AA)
Sioux Falls Canaries News Release
Sioux Falls, SD - The Sioux Falls Canaries (17-28) rallied but ended up a run short in a 6-5 loss to the Lincoln Saltdogs (31-14) on Wednesday night in the team's 2006 home finale.
Lincoln struck first in the opening frame. Evan Tartaglia got on base with a lead off single and advanced to third on a single by Pichi Balet. Tartaglia scored when Josh Patton grounded into a double play and the Saltdogs took an early 1-0 lead.
The Saltdogs extended their lead in the third inning. Tartaglia got on base with a ground rule double. Tartaglia stole third base and scored on a single by Josh Patton to give the Saltdogs a 2-0 lead.
Lincoln broadened their lead further in the sixth. Pichi Balet singled and advanced to third base on a double by Josh Patton. A sacrifice fly by Luis Lopez scored Balet and a single by Paul Powell scored Patton. The pair of runs gave the Saltdogs a 4-0 lead.
The Canaries closed the gap in the home half of the sixth. Kenta Suzumegano led off with a triple and scored on a single by Ralph Santana. John Schmitz followed with a single to put runners on first and second base. After a double steal moved the runners into scoring position, Bubba Smith singled to score Santana and Chris Hall hit a sacrifice fly to score Schmitz. After six innings the Canaries trailed, 4-3.
The Saltdogs added two runs in the eighth inning. Paul Powell doubled to score Luis Lopez and Kevin Sullivan, giving the Saltdogs a 6-3 lead.
The Birds scratched into Lincoln's lead in the eighth. Ralph Santana singled and stole his 39th base of the season before scoring on a double by Chad Hermansen. Santana's run brought the Canaries within two runs, 6-4. The double by Hermansen was his 34th of the season, tying the Canaries single-season record held by Jose Viera who doubled 34 times in 2002.
The Canaries would get within a run in the ninth. With Jake Smith on first base, Abner Arroyo pinch hit for Kenta Suzumegano. Arroyo doubled to score Smith and bring the Canaries within a run, 6-5. The Birds would not be able to tie the game in the 6-5 loss.
Lindsay Gulin (13-2) picked up the win for Lincoln and Matt Koziara (3-5) suffered the loss for the Canaries. Scott Vandermeer finished the game off for Lincoln to claim his fifth save of the season.
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