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NYPL State College Spikes

Spikes Claw Their Way to 9-8 Comeback Win over Muckdogs

July 23, 2012 - New York-Penn League (NYPL)
State College Spikes News Release


STATE COLLEGE, PA - Jacob Stallings went 4-for-4 and finished just a homer shy of a cycle to start an offensive attack that ended with Barrett Barnes driving in Tyler Gaffney for the winning run in the bottom of the ninth as the State College Spikes came back three times to defeat the Batavia Muckdogs, 9-8, on Monday night at Medlar Field at Lubrano Park.

Down 1-0 in the third inning, 6-2 in the seventh inning, and 8-6 in the eighth inning, State College (19-16) battled back each time. The Spikes completed their comeback in the ninth, starting when Gaffney was hit by a pitch with one out. The former Stanford two-sport star then stole second base, and when Barnes slapped a single to right field, chugged around third base with the game-winning run.

Stallings started his stellar evening with a triple to right-center field in the second inning, his first as a professional. The Spikes' catcher then singled in the fourth and led off the seventh inning with a double that ignited the Spikes' surge back from a four-run deficit. Stallings then completed his night at the plate with a single and scored the tying run in the bottom of the eighth.

Batavia (19-15) began the game by taking a 1-0 lead in the first inning on a Patrick Wisdom sacrifice fly, but State College came back with a two-run second as Chris Diaz drove in Stallings with an RBI single and scored on a Samuel Gonzalez single to give the Spikes the lead. The Muckdogs would charge ahead in the fourth, though, plating a total of three runs on a Gary Apelian RBI double, a run-scoring triple from Garrett Wittels and a Breyvic Valera RBI single.

In the fifth inning, Batavia extended its lead to 5-2 with a Jonathan Keener sacrifice fly. A Danny Stienstra sacrifice fly then gave the Muckdogs a 6-2 advantage before Stallings jumpstarted the Spikes' seventh-inning rally.

Alex Fuselier's pinch-hit single scored Stallings in the seventh to cut the deficit to three runs, and Jodaneli Carvajal's base hit one batter later made it a two-run game. Gaffney then launched a triple off of the left-field wall to plate two more runs and tie the game.

The Muckdogs made their final offensive effort in the eighth inning, with Wittels doubling in another run and scoring on a wild pitch. However, Stallings' single and an ensuing sacrifice bunt put runners on second and third for the Spikes in the bottom half of the inning, and Gonzalez produced a sacrifice fly to score one run with an error scoring Stallings to tie the contest once again and set up the ninth-inning heroics.

Gaffney finished the game 3-for-4 with his two runs batted in.

Kyle Haynes (1-0) got the win in relief with two innings of two-run ball over the eighth and ninth innings. Haynes allowed two hits and a walk while striking out three. Spikes starter Joely Rodriguez yielded five run on ten hits and a walk over 4 2/3 innings. Rodriguez struck out three batters in his shortest outing since June 19.

Batavia reliver Joe Scanio (1-2) took the loss after giving up three runs, two of them earned, on two hits while striking out one in 1 2/3 innings. Starter Tim Cooney went five innings and allowed two runs, one earned, on seven hits while notching three strikeouts.

State College outhit Batavia, 15-13, in the game.

Tuesday, the Spikes and Muckdogs conclude their two-game mini-series at Medlar Field at Lubrano Park with a special noon contest. Luis Heredia (1-1), the 17-year-old right-handed phenom, gets the start for State College. Heredia has a 1.86 ERA on the season, the second-best mark in the Pirates organization and the seventh-best in the New York-Penn League. Batavia will go with left-hander Kyle Helisek (1-1) on the mound.

It's a day of fun, affordable entertainment under the sun as Medlar Field at Lubrano Park turns into a waterpark on Super Splash Day. The Splash Zone in left field will be in full swing, with a dunk tank and an Alpha Fire Company truck spouting water into Ike's Kids Zone. Plus, the first 500 fans of all ages will receive a great Spikes T-shirt thanks to Boyles Insurance on T-Shirt Tuesday at the ballpark, and the Spikes will mark the 100th anniversary of the Titanic with a Tribute to Celine Dion.

Tickets for Tuesday's game, as well as every Spikes regular season home game in 2012, are currently on sale through the Spikes Box Office by calling (814) 272-1711 or by visiting in person. Fans can also buy and print single-game tickets by visiting StateCollegeSpikes.com.

Catch all of the action on Tuesday via the Spikes Radio Network, presented by Penn State Sports Medicine, at 11:30 a.m. with the Spikes GameDay Show live from Medlar Field at Lubrano Park. The Spikes' radio broadcast can also be heard worldwide through the "Listen Live" link on StateCollegeSpikes.com, provided by 95.3 FM 3WZ.

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