8th Inning Rally Leads PaddleHeads To Win Over Range Riders
Missoula Races Past Glacier Late In 9-5 Victory Friday
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 3 | 9 | 14 | 2 |
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0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 8 | 1 |
Flathead Valley, MT - Things did not look promising in the early innings for the Missoula PaddleHeads. The Glacier Range Riders put themselves in front in game 1 of this 3 game set behind an early rally in the 2nd and led from there for a large part of the game. Leading to the 8th inning, Missoula had only put 1 run on the board. With their backs against the wall however the PaddleHeads offense flipped the game on its head with clutch at-bats coming down the stretch.
Missoula mounted a rally in the top of the 8th with 2-out at-bats playing a big role. As a result, the PaddleHeads were able to fully erase a 4-run deficit taking the lead in the inning. Missoula kept the hammer down in the 9th inning as well, finding more offensive success to stretch the advantage. The PaddleHeads attack scored 8 runs in the final 2 innings. The bullpen had no drama in the late innings on the flipside allowing Missoula to come away with a big win on the road by a final score of 9-5.
The PaddleHeads found the scoreboard first in the opening stanza with the first 3 batters of the game getting aboard. Enzo Apodaca brought home Will Bermudez in the inning with a single up the middle as Missoula led 1-0 early. Bermudez and Apodcaca both finished 1-for-4 in the game. Nich Klemp also had a big day as part of this group finishing 3-for-4. An error in the next inning then shifted momentum to the other dugout.
Designated hitter Tommy Rover kicked a rally into gear from Glacier in the bottom of the 2nd plating a pair of runs with a single to give the Range Riders the lead. Later in the inning with 2-outs disaster struck. A pop fly was dropped in shallow center field in the inning allowing 2 more Range Rider runs to come home. This gave Glacier a 4-1 advantage. Brendan Beard did an exceptional job keeping Missoula in the game after this sequence however in a fantastic outing.
The Texas native punched out 10 batters over 5 ⅓ innings allowing only 2 earned runs in the outing. Beard struck out 5 consecutive batters in one stretch in the outing keeping Missoula within striking distance. The PaddleHeads offense remained quiet for a large portion of the game but found success when it meant the most.
The PaddleHeads brought 10 batters to the top of the 8th inning en route to the lead. After Apodaca brought home the 1st run, clutch at-bats then told the story with 2-outs in the inning. 5 consecutive hitters reached for Missoula in that scenario plating 4-runs to take the lead. Tyler Stone was the first to find success plating a run with an RBI single. After a bases-loaded walk, Ty Yukumoto delivered the swing of the night.
The rookie 2nd baseman worked the count full in the late inning at-bat and broke through with a single to left field giving Missoula the lead at 6-5 in the top of the 8th. The PaddleHeads never looked back from that point. The offense also found separation in the top of the 9th. Yukomoto finished the game 2-for-5.
Former Range Rider Xavier Casserilla delivered with 2-strikes in the top of the 9th bringing a run home with an RBI single to jumpstart another rally. Stone brought home the third baseman soon after with a sacrifice fly to give Missoula an 8-5 lead. A double from Jeremy Piatkiewicz then did the final damage giving Missoula breathing room for the final half inning. Thanks to Matthew Taubensee, there would prove to be no late inning drama. Stone finished with 2 RBIs in a 2-for-5 night at the plate while Piatkiewicz was 1-for-4.
The left hander shut down Glacier's offense in the final 2 innings to help put Missoula in the win column. Taubensee did not allow a run over the final 2 innings striking out 5 batters in that span. For his efforts, the 2nd year pro earned his first save of the season. The PaddleHeads pitching staff finished the game with 16 strikeouts as a group. Now Missoula will look to build on the momentum of this late inning win.
The PaddleHeads (9-7) head into Saturday's game 2 opposite the Range Riders (12-4) with energy after this late inning push. First pitch from Glacier Bank Park is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. Keep up to date with all the action from the Flathead Valley on ESPN Missoula 102.9 F.M.
