Challengers win season opener 9-8 in extra innings

Benny Räber hit a grand-slam homer and Harry Bregy pitched 3 1-3 innings in relief to give the Challengers' NLB-team a 9-8 win in extra innings on Sunday against the Zurich Lions.

Patrick Zöllig started for the Challengers and lasted 6 2-3 innings, giving up seven runs - five of them unearned - on 11 hits and seven walks, striking out three, but ended up with a no-decision.

Lions starter and former Challenger Enrico Zingg lasted just three innings, giving up Räber's grand-slam in the top of the third inning after walking Tobias Siegrist intentionally to load the bases.

The Challengers blew an 8-4 lead after five innings as three unearned runs crossed the plate in the sixth and seventh inning and another scored on a run-scoring ground out by Köstinger.

Another former Challenger, Wayne Testino pitched the final five innings for the Lions, giving up only an unearned run on one hit and two walks, striking out three.

He retired the side in order in the top of the ninth inning before his offense stranded a runner on second base in the bottom half of the inning with one out.

Räber led off the 10th inning with the only hit off Testino, and went on to steal second and third base to put the go-ahead run on third base with no outs.

Defensive replacement Oliver Labhart then popped up a pitch by Testino with what could have been the first out, but catcher Giorgio Szentgyörgyi, yet another former Challenger, dropped the ball and decided to throw the runner out at second base.

He succeded, but Räber came around to score from third for a 9-8 score.

In the bottom of the 10th, the first two Lions reached on a single and a walk.

But another former Challenger helped his old team win the game: Fabian Monn was surprised by lefty Bregy on the mound and promptly got picked off first for the second out.

Bregy also retired the final batter for the first win by a Challenger team against the Lions since July 4 1999, although they were outhit 15-7 by the Lions.