Challengers' late rally spoiled by 4 Lions runs in the 6th

In the second game of Saturday's doubleheader against the Zurich Lions, the Challengers trailed early on and had to play catch-up the entire game.

	Orlando Balbuena allowed just two earned runs in the first three innings, but his defense allowed four additional unearned runs.

The Lions scored four runs in the bottom of the second inning on Armando Vignotto's two-run double, a passed ball by catcher Willy Schaub and a fielding error by Adrian Kämpfer">Adrian Kämpfer for a 5-1 lead.

The Challengers managed to get two runs back in both the fourth and fifth innings to get within 8-5.

Reliever Beni Blank, who took over from Orlando Balbuena on the mound, allowed just three runs in the fourth and fifth innings to keep the game close.

And it was just enough as his offense knotted the score at 9-9 in the top of sixth inning on Tobias Siegrist's two-run homer, Schaub's RBI-double and a fielding error by first baseman Rainer Eugster.

But Beni Blank couldn't control the Lions in the bottom half of the inning, and allowed the first five batters to reach base safely.

Siegrist relieved and finished the inning, but the damage was already done as four Lions crossed the plate for a 13-9 lead.

The Challengers found no recipe against reliever Arend Biewenga in the top of the seventh and final inning, and eventually lost a hard-fought battle.