Challengers rally again 10-8, take 2 from Rainbows

Thomas Landis pitched his first complete game since May 2, and it paid off as the Challengers again rallied to sweep the Embrach Rainbows 10-8.

	Thomas Landis picked up his 5th win of the season by going the distance for just the second time this season.

Like in game 1, the Rainbows again had a comfortable lead, this time leading 6-1 after just two frames.

They scored five runs - three of them unearned - in the first inning on four hits and two errors, and added one more run in the second inning after a flyout that second baseman Benny Räber barely managed to catch and enabled Gulati to score from third base.

But the Challengers came back in the third inning, and scored three runs on Anubis Benitez' solo homer, his 11th of the season, Jose Valdez' RBI-double and rookie Tobias Siegrist' run-scoring ground out to trim the Rainbows' lead to 6-4.

	Anubis Benitez is now second on the team with 11 homers.

But the Rainbows didn't give up, and got two runs back the following inning on former Challenger Adris Linares' 2-run shot over the left-field fences off starter Landis for an 8-4 lead.

But Landis (5-0) was almost unhittable after that, and allowed just four more baserunners in the final three innings, and none of them scored.

But the Challengers were still trailing 8-5 as they entered the bottom of the sixth inning.

Reliever Mark Imhof, who replaced starter Roger Savoldelli in the bottom of the fourth, was still going strong, but suddenly fell apart as he gave up four hits and his defense committed three costly errors that turned the tables in favor of the Challengers.

	Rainbow starter Roger Savoldelli lasted just 3 1-3 innings, giving up five runs - two unearned - on six hits and two walks.

The Challengers scored five runs in that inning - all of them unearned -, and a routine 6-4-3 doubleplay in the top of the seventh inning ended the game.

Game Notes: Landis flied out in his 100th at-bat of the season. ...Benitez hit his 11th homer of the season in the third inning and then hit his 11th double the next inning. ...Landis got Imhof to pop out in the top of the 5th inning, and completed his 500th inning pitched in the NLA. ...Armin Blickenstorfer">Armin Blickenstorfer scored his 100th career NLA-run in the bottom of the sixth inning on Linares' throwing error.