Challengers waste Sacramentos gem, lose Game 2 in extra innings

Lowuin Sacramento pitched 11 superb innings, but took the loss in Game 2 of the Semifinal Playoffs vs. the Therwil Flyers.

While he limited the Flyers to three hits, his offense provided him with eight hits off Gavin Guarrera, but overall went 2-for-13 with runners in scoring position.

The Challengers lost it in the top of the 11th as shortstop Saentis Zeller misplayed Sven Leemann's grounder, enabling Hideori Oshima to score from second with what proved to be the winning run.

For nine innings, Sacramento and Guarrera exchanged zeros on the board. The Flyers scored first after Emanuel Raouzeous led off with a double, David Castillo bunted him to third before Sebastian Zwyer plated him with a sacrifice fly to center field.

The Challengers managed to load the bases with one out in the fourth inning, but Zeller struck out swinging and Francisco Colindres lined out hard back to pitcher Guarrera for the third out.

Substitute Jesus Martinez led off the bottom of the eighth with a walk, and with two outs, Amado Tomas Tabilis followed with a single, and Tobias Siegrist plated Martinez with an RBI single to left to tie the game.

After the Flyers went down in the top of the ninth, Colindres raised hopes to win it in the bottom half of the inning as he reached with a one-out double.

But Guarrera struck out substitute Thomas Burger swinging and got Martinez to fly out to right to escape the jam, sending the game to extra innings.

Sacramento retired the Flyers in order in the top of the tenth, and the Challengers again put runners in scoring position with one out in the bottom half of the inning.

Thomas Blank reached safely after shortstop Takanobu Oshima misplayed his ground ball, and Ryan Byrne followed with a single to right.

But reliever Hideori Oshima got out of trouble on two fielder's choices and a popup to himself.

Hideori Oshima himself led off the top of the 11th with a single, stole second before scoring on Zeller's error.

Sacramento retired the final batter on three strikes for a total of 16 strikeouts.

Hideori Oshima struck out Blank with two runners on to end the game.

Game notes
Sacramento's 16 strikeouts are the third-most in Challengers history. ...The game was the lowest-scoring Playoff game ever for the Challengers, topping October 09, 2005's 3-1 loss to the Bern Cardinals in the final game of the Finals.