Courtesy of Hornell Dodgers.com
HORNELL, N.Y. — The Hornell Dodgers needed an eight-run eighth inning in game two to earn a sweep of the NIagara Power on Monday evening. The Blue & White won the opener 18-5 and used another big eighth inning to win game 11-8.
The Dodgers trailed 8-3 in the nightcap before putting together a huge rally. Dylan Dunn (Hagerstown) and Justin Gonzalez (U of Buffalo) each singled and after a strikeout Luke Feisal (Wofford) walked. An infield error on a ball hit by Kevin Johnson (Pittsburgh) plated two runs and cut the lead to 8-5. Chris Roeder (St. John Fisher) made it 8-6 with a RBI single and Kyle Danford (Texas A&M Corpus Christi) loaded the bases when he was hit by a pitch. The Power went to the pen and to their closer who induced Matt Calhoun (Harding) into a pop out, but Will Benenson (Franklin & Marshall) connected on a grand slam over the centerfield fence to give the Dodgers their first lead of the game.
The Dodgers didn’t stop there as Dunn singled and came around to score on a Jake Kenney (Hagerstown CC) single to give Hornell a three-run cushion.
Johnson allowed a single to lead off the ninth but didn’t allow the Power any more chances as he earned the save to make Eric Eck (Wofford) the winner. Eck tossed a scoreless 8th inning. Tyler Wilson (Monroe CC) kept the Dodgers in the game with three innings of two-hit one-run relief.
The middle of the Power line-up did most of the damage in game two with Adam Taylor and Tyler Schweigert each finished three-for-four with two RBI. Taylor was a double away from the cycle. Nick Linne chipped in two hits in four at bats.
Dunn led the Dodgers with a four-for-five day while Benenson was two-for-five with five RBI (he hit a solo homer in the fifth. Kenney was two-for-four with an RBI, Gonzalez was two-for-four, and Roeder was two-for-five with an RBI. Johnson finished with two runs batted in.
In the opener the Dodgers scored five runs in the 2nd inning to grab an early 7-1 lead. Niagara chipped away and trailed just 8-5 when the Dodgers exploded for eight runs in the sixth to put the game well out of reach.
Feisal had a monster day finished four-for-four with seven RBI. He hit two-out, two-RBI singles in both the first and second innings and then hit a bases loaded, bases clearing double in the sixth that was just inches away from clearing the fence for a grand slam
Johnson and Beneson were each three-for-four in the game. Johnson drove in three while Benenson drove in two. Hornell took advantage of 11 walks, five hit batsmen, and seven wild pitches.
Nick Boyd (Central Connecticut) improved to 5-0 with six innings of eight hit ball. He allowed four earned runs while walking out three and striking out four. Garrett Hoag (Alfred State) made his Dodger pitching debut with 1.2 no-hit innings of relief.
Niagara was led by Linne who was two-for-four while Jamon Hammel, Schweigert, and Chane Lynch were each two-for-five. Schweigert hit a long homer into the trees in center field.
Hornell enters the July Fourth break with a 18-7 record and finish their busiest stretch, nine games in eight days, of the season with a 7-2 mark.
The Dodgers travel to Webster on Friday for a 7 p.m. game with the Lake Ontario Ridgemen (Rochester AIA).
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