AtL Sugar Land Space Cowboys

Ducks Snatch Win from Skeeters

Published on June 28, 2012 under Atlantic League (AtL)
Sugar Land Space Cowboys News Release


LONG ISLAND, New York - The Skeeters and Ducks exchanged the lead five times before Long Island snatched a win in the bottom of the ninth by the final of 9-8 in Sugar Land's first trip to Bethpage Park on Thursday night.

Heath Phillips picked up the no-decision after working six innings giving up five earned runs on nine scattered hits while walking two and striking out four. The same went for Ducks starter Bob Zimmermann who matched his longest outing of the year at seven innings while allowing four earned runs off nine hits and three walks with seven strikeouts.

Scoring started early for the Ducks off Phillips in the first. Center fielder Reid Gorecki was the first batter to reach with a single, and after a stolen base and an error on the throw that allowed him to reach third, second baseman Ray Navarrete hit a sac-fly into center to make the score 1-0. In the very next at-bat, designated-hitter Brandon Sing hit his 11th home run of the season into left to double the score, 2-0.

Sugar Land countered in the fourth after three scoreless innings. Ofilio Castro reached on a single extending his hitting streak to seven games, and two batters later, Bubba Bell tallied his 17th double of the season with his 20th RBI to cut the lead back to one, 2-1. Octavio Martinez followed suit with one of his own bringing Bell around to tie the score at 2-2.

Then, in the top of the fifth, the Skeeters took their first lead of the game. Miguel Negron walked and Luis Figueroa brought him to third with a single. After striking out in his first to plate appearances, Josh Pressley came through with an RBI single into right scoring Negron to take the lead, 3-2. Two batters later, with two outs and Figueroa on third, Steve Moss recorded his sixth RBI of the season on a sac-fly into center to double the lead, 4-2.

It did not take long for the Ducks to answer, though. In the bottom half of the same inning, Long Island loaded the bases for Navarrete. After a fielder's choice with one on, a hit-by-pitch and a walk, the Ducks second baseman drilled an off-speed pitch into left-center field clearing the bases with one big swing. Navarrete brought his RBI count up to four with his league leading 23rd double of the season and gave the home team the lead back, 5-4.

The Skeeters could not score in the sixth or seventh, but when relief pitcher Jared Lansford made an appearance, the bats got hot again. Bell smacked his third double of the game to lead the inning off, and after a groundout from Martinez, first baseman Matt Hagen showed much aplomb. With one on and one out, Hagen drilled a fastball out of the ballpark over the left field wall 325 feet away to give the visitors a one-run lead, 6-5.

In the ninth, Sugar Land tacked on two more runs for insurance on a sac-fly to center from Moss, his second of the game, and an RBI-single from Bell to take an 8-5 lead. Former Major Leaguer Armando Benitez (1-0) made an appearance in the ninth inning bringing back memories of old, but his return was overshadowed by the comeback. Gary Majewski (2-1) had entered the game in the bottom of the eighth, but in the ninth, the game escaped him. The Houston native gave up four earned runs on four hits in an inning and a third of work.

Long Island started with a leadoff walk to shortstop Dan Lyons, a single from Kraig Binick and a fielder's choice from Gorecki before the scoring started. Navarrete poked in his fifth RBI of the game with a one-out single up the middle to cut the lead down to two, 8-6. Sing followed his heels with another in the same spot to bring the lead down to one, 8-7 and third baseman Bryant Nelson tied the game with a sac-fly to center scoring Navarrete from third, 8-8. The Ducks wasted no time in winning the game with a walk-off RBI-single from first baseman Shawn Williams to steal the game in the bottom of the ninth by the final score of 9-8.

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Atlantic League Stories from June 28, 2012


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