Challengers 11, Submarines 9

The Challengers NLB team remained unbeaten as they won another close game against the Romanshorn Submarines 11-9.

The Submarines were the first team to score as they went ahead 3-0 after two innings. But then they somehow collapsed. Catcher Hofer committed two errors and right fielder Fabian Kimoto dropped a ball that led to six runs, all of them unearned, for the Challengers.

Nick Lehmann>

Nick Lehmann scored a game-high three runs and faced seven batters in the last two innings as a reliever.

After that, it was almost smooth sailing, as starter Patrick Bosshard kept the Submarines in check, retiring 11 batters in a row at one point.

As he left in the top of the seventh inning, the Challengers had a commanding 10-3 lead and everything looked just fine.

But the Submarines came back once again.

Shortstop Schiavo ignited a five-run seventh inning by lining a two-run double over the right field fence. He evntually scored on a fielding error by second baseman Stefan Eisenring, and two more followed as reliever Benny Räber couldn't hang on to the big lead his hitters gave him.

Eight Submarines stepped up to the plate in that inning and five of them scored to trim the Challengers' lead to 10-8.

They even had more in store and scored once more in the eighth on Fabian Kimoto's RBI single.

Bosshard was relieved once again after that hit and Nick Lehmann took over on the mound. But he quickly loaded the bases by issuing two walks and just one out.

But the Challengers got a huge break when Schiavo, who already had two doubles and a single in his previous four at-bats, lined the ball back to Lehmann who then doubled Friedli off first base for the third out and a slim 10-9 lead.

The Challengers added one more run int their half of the eighth on yet another passed ball.

Lehmann then retired the last three batters he faced in the ninth for his first save of his career and the second win for the Challengers' NLB-team this season.