Flyers outduel Challengers 11-7

The Flyers took an early lead and never looked back in Saturday's 11-7 victory in Game 1.

Chris Blackbee led all Flyers with four hits in five at-bats and three RBI's, Michel La Torre went a perfect 3-for-3 with three singles and three runs scored, and Stefan Koller picked up the win by allowing seven runs - two of them unearned - on nine hits and five walks, while also striking out seven.

While the Challengers also collected nine hits, they made three costly errors that led to five unearned runs. All three of those errors were committed by third baseman Carlos Peña on two grounders and a bad throw.

While the Flyers put up six runs against starter Thomas Burger (1-1), the Challengers managed to get to Koller in the fourth inning by scoring three times on Jesus Martinez' RBI-double, followed by Chris Palatinus' two-run single to left field.

But the Flyers responded with four runs in the top of the fifth inning off reliever Palatinus, that gave them a comfortable 10-3 lead.

That was all they needed as the Challengers could barely put runners on base the rest of the way. And the ones that reached were erased quickly, for example Peña at home as he tried to score on Tobias Siegrist's single to short center field, or Palatinus who was picked off first by Koller and first baseman Daniel Eichenberger.

Two more unearned runs in the bottom of the eighth brought the Challengers within 11-7, but closer Lucas Croton pitched a perfect ninth to close the game.

Game notes
Siegrist tied Enrico Zingg for 4th place on the alltime list for walks with 148. ...The last Challengers to committ three errors in a single game was Saentis Zeller against the Zurich Barracudas on June 7, 2008.