Selects vs. Thunder
Tuesday, July 15, 2014
The Selects put up seven runs over the final two frames Tuesday night, erasing a 2-1 deficit to beat the Thunder 8-2 and improve to 8-3 on the year.
Both pitchers - Jeff Ferguson for the Thunder and Scott Clark for the Selects - flirted with disaster in the early innings, but made timely pitches to limit the damage. Clark left the bases loaded in each of the first two innings, though a Scott Kersey bloop single cashed Dan Wakeford to give the Thunder a 1-0 lead. After a Tim Coverdale single, Mike Welton hit-by-pitch, and Mike Tyler single had the Selects poised to answer with the bases loaded and nobody out in the bottom of the second, Ferguson notched a strikeout and induced two harmless grounders to end the threat.
The Thunder extended their lead in the third when Curtis Hurlbut reached on an error, moved to second on a sac bunt by Brad Picard, and came in to count on a Josh Crosby single. The Selects would answer in the bottom half. Mike Brown started things with a bunt single and stole second, moving to third on a Tom Allan single. The duo then executed the double steal to near-perfection, but Brown was called out at the plate, necessitating a two-out RBI single from Coverdale to salvage a run. The score would remain 2-1 entering the fifth.
After Hurlbut stroked a leadoff triple to the fence in right, Clark induced a shallow fly to left and notched a timely strikeout. Dan Wakeford then hit a flare to shallow centre that seemed to spell trouble, but Brown ended the inning with a diving grab. As the Selects came to the plate, momentum had clearly shifted. Brown hit a leadoff double and scored on a pinch-hit double from Kevin Ryrie. Brett Pfeifer then knocked him in and scored on a RBI single from Mike Welton, who eventually came in to score on a passed ball. The Selects added three more in the sixth, keyed by a two-run triple off the bat of Pfeifer, for the 8-2 win.
Clark notched his third win of the season, and second straight complete game, settling in to allow just two base runners over the final three frames.
MVP: Mike Brown, CF