Pilots drop Nooks in extra innings
Tim Barto-Chinooks
Game 11 Summary
It was a wild one in Anchorage on Monday night as the Chinooks visited the Pilots at Mulcahy Stadium. The game featured two home runs, five double plays (three of which were initiated from the outfield), five batters hit by pitches, delayed steals, catcher's interference, one managerial ejection, a walk-off win for the Pilots . . . and a near brawl after it was all over.
Starting pitcher Nolan Livsey had a good outing, giving up only two runs while scattering five hits and averaging just over 11 pitches per inning through seven frames.
Chugiak-Eagle River had a two to one lead after two innings, and expanded that by another run by scoring one in the third. The Pilots pulled within one by scoring in their half of the sixth, and then tied the game at three apiece on a solo home run in the eighth. At the end of nine, it was still tied at three, so the game went into extra innings, with the Chinooks taking the lead on a two-out clutch single by Sam Kwapnioski. In the bottom of the inning, the Pilots put a man on second with a double. With two outs and the runner still on second, the Pilot clean up hitter launched one over the wall in left for a two-run, game winning home run. As they celebrated the win, a few Pilot players taunted the Chinooks and appeared to try ganging up on catcher Tim Reynolds. The Chinooks responded by coming out of the dugout to defend their teammate, but while some pushing ensued, there did not appear to be any punches thrown. Calmer heads prevailed and the teams went to their respective sides of the field.
The Fish had their leadoff hitter on base in seven of the ten innings, and ended up outhitting the Pilots 10 to 8; however, they also left eleven runners stranded on base during the game. Oliver Degenhardt, Tim Reynolds, Jayden Hill, and Sam Kwapnioski collected two hits apiece. Hill also reached base two more times via walks.
Final Score: Chinooks 4, Pilots 5
The Chinooks' record stands at four and seven in league play. Their next game is on Wednesday at 6:00 pm as they make their first trip to Palmer to face the Mat-Su Miners.
Box Score: https://cerchinooks.com/sports/bsb/2023-24/boxscores/20240624_tidt.xml
