By ABIGAIL SCHMIDT
HOUGHTON, N.Y. — Hornell erupted for five runs on four hits in the 11 inning as the Dodgers defeated the Genesee Rapids 6-1 in New York Collegiate Baseball League action at the Kerr-Pegula Athletic Complex, Friday night.
Starters John Kopicky (Ohio Northern) of the Rapids and Connor Ryan (Mercyhurst) of the Dodgers locked horns for nine-plus innings.
“For the two starting pitchers, it was a fifteen-round championship boxing match,” said Hornell Dodgers manager Tom Kenney.
Ryan allowed one run on eight hits over 9.1 innings.
“It was my first start of the season, and I just felt really comfortable,” said Ryan. “My off-speed stuff was working really well and I just got into a rhythm.”
The Buffalo native struck out nine and walked three.
Kopicky takes the loss but pitched an impressive ten innings. The right-hander allowed three runs (two earned) on five hits with three strikeouts.
“[Kopicky] was unbelievable tonight,” said Rapids manager Tyler Rost. “You can’t say enough about him and the effort that he gave. He deserved better than what he got tonight.”
Both teams broke through in the seventh inning and scored one run a piece. The Dodgers struck first as Jimmy Latona (Monroe CC/Mercyhurst) crossed home off a Steven Goldstein (Kansas) RBI.
The Rapids answered back as Jake Shelby (Hesston) stole home to tie the game at one.
Along with the run, Shelby recorded a single, double and a triple on the night, while Jonathan Nola (Walsh) tallied two doubles.
The score would stay tied through ten innings until the Dodgers broke the game open in the top of the eleventh.
With Breton LaRose (Sacred Heart) on the mound for the Rapids, the Dodgers scored five runs. Brock Eissman (Vanguard) tallied the first run of the inning off a Kellen Brown (St. Petersburg) RBI single.
Brown came in off a Latona triple, and two more runs scored off a Tyler Walter (St. Bonaventure) single. Collin Fantaskey (Mercyhurst) also scored in the inning to make the score 6-1.
“They executed very well,” said Kenney of his club in the eleventh. “We got a guy in scoring position right away and then some big hits to bring them home. We did a lot of good things.”
“We didn’t execute on the first bat, and they got a guy in scoring position,” said Rost. “Things kind of compiled after that.”
Michael Jordan (Vanguard) got the win for the Dodgers. He pitched the last two outs of the tenth and all the eleventh and allowed no runs on one hit and struck out three.
The Dodgers improve to 9-6 with the three-game sweep of the Rapids.
“We just played hard,” said Kenney of his team the past three games. “We played with a lot of heart every game. Every game was a battle at some point and they just kept battling. To come out and win the game tonight like we did shows a lot of character.”
The Dodgers take on the Wellsville Nitros Saturday at 5 p.m. in Wellsville.
The Rapids fall to 10-7 on the season and sit in third in the league’s Western division.
“We need to keep working hard,” said Rost. “The little things are what we didn’t do tonight. We didn’t get a bunt down when we needed to and we made a costly error late in the game. We have to fix those little things, but I think we’ll be fine.”
The Rapids have a day off and then battle the Rochester Ridgemen on Sunday at 2 p.m. at the Kerr-Pegula Athletic Complex.
“It was a terrific baseball game,” commented Kenney. “That’s about as good as it gets. It’s a shame that someone had to lose it.”
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