Eagles erase 6-0 deficit, take 2-1 Series lead

Jerome Müller got another win against the Challengers, giving the Reussbuhl Eagles a 2-1 lead in the Best-of-Five Semifinal Series.

Although surrendering six runs and 12 hits in seven innings, the Challengers couldn't hang on, giving up seven runs in the middle innings.

With fireballer Pete Soskin throwing the final two innings, the game was pretty much over, and the Challengers will now face elimination in tomorrow's Game 4.

In the second inning, the Challengers got on the board on Bryan Shemley's RBI-double and Patrick Zöllig's RBI-single.

They put on four more runs in the third inning on RBI-doubles by Tobias Siegrist and Chris Palatinus, Thomas Blank's RBI-single and a throwing error by catcher Whitney Pierce.

With that six-run cushion, the Challengers switched into lazy mode and watched the Eagles unfold a big rally.

In the fourth inning, Oliver Holenstein hit a bases-loaded RBI-single, and Marcel Enz followed with a ground-rule two-run double to cut the Challengers' lead in half.

Thomas Burger managed to escape the jam by retiring Tony Gerig and Dario D'Angelo, but the Eagles came right back the following inning.

Jerome Müller and Pierce led off with walks, and Tom Huston plated Müller with an RBI-double.

René Plüss' run-scoring ground out to first brought home Pierce, and Pete Soskin tied the game with an RBI-single.

Burger didn't find his stuff all day, and saw the lead disappear step by step.

In the sixth inning, Burger retired the first two batters, but Pierce reached on a base-on-balls, stole second and went on to score on Huston's second double of the day.

Burger retired Plüss to end the inning, but he was done after that.

Thomas Landis took over, looking to keep the Eagles in check to give his team a chance to come back.

But the Eagles countered with southpaw Soskin on the mound, and he was lights out, again.

Zöllig and Nick Lehmann were the only batters that reached first base on a bunt single and an error by first baseman Huston, and that was all they produced.

The Eagles are now in the driver's seat, with the chance to wrap up the Series at home on Sunday.

Game notes
Blank has tied his career-high by scoring 13 runs in a season. ...Lehmann scored his 199th run in the NLA by crossing the plate in the third inning.