August 2, 2006

Close call gives S.C. District One win
Dugout

First it was an out. Then it wasn't an out. And that was the ballgame.

An exciting, close game had to end on an exciting, close call.

With the scored tied at 2-2 in the 11th inning and bases loaded with two out, S.C. District One's Mo Seay sent a blast to the centerfield fence where Panama's Andy Sanchez ran into the outfield fence as he attempted to make the catch. Sanchez held up the ball, and one umpire signaled the third out of the inning, meaning the game would be headed into a 12 inning.

But a second umpire, who said he saw Sanchez pick the ball up off the ground, overruled his peer, which meant the ball was still in play and Corey Tysl had scored the winning run from third base.

The 3-2 victory was S.C. District One's second extra-innings win of the 2006 Big League World Series. It increased the team's BLWS winning streak to 7 and clinched the Pool B title.

David Parry pitched eight innings for the host team, allowing just two runs before being replaced by Andy Fowler in the ninth. Fowler pitched three hitless innings.

Panama's Eliecer Navarro struck out 13 batters in 10 innings. Jose Bravo pitched the 11th inning.

Panama scored in the top of the first inning when Otto Castillo hit a double and then came home on Einor Atenuo's single.

S.C. District One gained the lead in the bottom of the third when Cory Tysl was hit by a pitch and J.D. Burgess followed with a single. Tysl stretched his run to third, and when the Panama infield tried to make a play at third base, Burgess advanced to second. Both were knocked in by Mills Rogers' single later in the inning.

Latin America's only other run came in the ffourth inning when Einor Atenuo hit a double, then came home on Jose Bravo's single. Eribeno Jimenez then doubled, giving Panama runners at second and third with two outs, but District One's David Parry struck out the final batter to end the inning.

The host team's rally 11th inning rally began with Jimmy Weaver hitting a double. Panama chose to intentionally walk Cory Tysl in order to set up force plays at first, second and third. That put S.C. District One back at the top of the lineup, where J.D. Burgess, who was three-for-five on the night so far, was leadoff man. Panama decided to intentionally walk Burgess also.

Matt Ramey hit a fly ball and Weaver tried to score the winning run, but he was thrown out by Panama's Ronny Castillo.

Mills Rogers then loaded the bases again by earning a walk. That set up Seay's long fly ball and the game-winning run.

The loss, coupled with the U.S. Southwest's win Wednesday night over EMEA, ended Panama's hopes of being in Friday night's Pool Championship series.