By RYAN McDONOUGH
OLEAN, N.Y. – The City of Olean may want to consider renaming Brander Stadium, “Walk Off Stadium”. Well, maybe not, but the Oilers would be on board with the name change as Olean earned its seventh walk-off win of the season.
The Olean Oilers defeated the Niagara Power, 4-3, on a hot, sunny day in a New York Collegiate Baseball League game on July 20 at Bradner Stadium.
Sam Kysor (USC Upstate) led off the ninth inning with a double down the left-field line and eventually scored as Matthew Kamenicky (Clarion) stepped to the plate –making his first appearance after entering as a pinch hitter in the eighth – and drove a high popup to centerfield just deep enough for Kysor to make it home safely and give Olean the win and their first lead of the game.
“It’s a big win. A huge win,” said Oliers’ manager Bobby Bell. “We keep preaching to ‘win the week,’ and we got a win yesterday, won today, so we’re 2-0 to start these seven days.”
It was all Niagara early on, though. John Conti (Canisius) led off the game and worked a walk, then stole second base. The fleet footed Conti later gave Niagara an early lead as he came around to score on a throwing error.
Niagara’s A.J. Bruner (Trinity International) held the lead for Niagara for most of the game on the mound. Bruner tossed 6.2 innings, and no-hit the Oilers into the fifth inning. From the end of the first inning through the end of the fourth, Bruner retired 10 straight.
Olean’s Evan Ryan (Erie CC) broke up the no-no with a seeing-eye single up the middle to lead off the fifth.
“We were struggling,” said Ryan. “I was just trying to hit the ball hard somewhere.”
Aaron Phillips (St. Bonaventure) moved Ryan to second with a bunt, but it was nothing doing for the Oilers as Bruner worked himself out of the inning with the tying run stranded on second base.
Niagara grabbed two more in the top of the sixth. Caleb Lang (Cairn) led off the inning with a single, and Mason Irby (Jones County) followed suit with a base knock of his own. Conner Combs (East Texas Baptist) then bunted himself aboard to load the bases. Caleb Thomas (Colorado School of Mines) took a pitch to the body and sent home Lang. The Power scored their second of the inning as Irby slid in safely on a sacrifice fly by Damon DeJesus (Franklin).
But Olean escaped with minimal damage, as Charlie DiGiulian (ASA) – in to relieve Andrew White (Buffalo) — induced a ground out and left two men on base.
Down 3-0, Olean got it going in the bottom of the inning.
Bruner hit Kysor with a pitch, and David “Bubba” Hollins (St. Petersburg) later moved Kysor to second with a single. Mike Fahrman (Florida) worked himself as walk, and Jon Lapolla (Suffolk) stepped to the plate with the bases loaded. Lapolla connected, and drove Kysor home with an RBI single. Evan Ryan then stayed hot and drove Hollins home with an RBI single that got through the gap between third and shortstop. Phillips then tied up the game as he sent Fahrman home on a fielder’s choice.
Both teams had their chances to tip the score in the final three innings.
Kysor smacked a double in the seventh with one out, and Peterson moved him to third with a single. But a failed double steal, “pickle” play ended up with Kysor being thrown out at home.
In the top of the eighth, Combs hit a long two-out double that one-hopped the fence in left field. But Nathan Grant (St. Bonaventure) came in to relieve DiGiulian and escaped the inning unharmed.
In the bottom of the eighth, Lapolla led off with a double. Coach Bell brought Kamenicky in to pinch run for Lapolla at second. Ryan bunted Kaminecky over to third, and noticed there was no one covering second, so Ryan took second on the play as well.
“I saw the centerfielder was pretty far away and I didn’t see anyone around second so I just took it,” Ryan said. “I thought about one of the things one of our coaches had said so I just went for it and took it.”
Nick Campe (Olivet Nazarene) came on to pitch for Niagara, and played his best Houdini, preserving the tie into the ninth.
Grant shut down the Power, 1-2-3, in the top of the ninth to put Olean in position to win the game on a walk-off.
“Once we got to the bullpen, I always feel good,” said coach Bell with upmost confidence in his staff.
Once again, Kysor set the table for the Oilers as he started off the bottom of the ninth with a leadoff double.
“Sam is seeing it well right now, which is huge for us,” said Bell of his table setter. “Anytime a leadoff guy is seeing it well and taking care of things and setting the tone, it’s going to help out and he’s seeing it well so that’s great for us.”
Cole Peterson (St. Bonaventure) bunted himself aboard, and reached base when the Power’s attempt to nab Kysor at second failed. Niagara intentionally walked Hollins to load the bases. Kamenicky stepped to the plate and sent home Kysor for an Olean win.
“I keep telling out guys ‘we have to win the week. We can’t go 5-5. We can’t go 4-6. We have to go 6-4 or 7-3,’” said Bell of his team’s motivation. “If we can win the week, we’ll be in a good spot.”
Up next, Olean will head to Wellsville for a double-header on Tuesday, July 21. The games are set to begin at 2:00 and 5:00 PM.
Niagara went right from the game at Olean to Genesee to play a night cap. After the 7:00 PM matchup at Genesee, Niagara will travel to Hornell to take on the Dodgers. First pitch is set for 7:00 PM.
More than half of the Oilers’ home wins have been walk offs (seven of the 13 home wins).
Evan Ryan went 3-for-4 with an RBI for Olean.
The Oilers twice exposed a gap in the Power’s bunt defense. Ryan and Peterson snagged an open second base after reaching safely on a bunt. Peterson’s came in the ninth when he moved Kysor to third.
Andrew White (Buffalo) started the game for the Oilers. He went 4.1 innings and struck out two.
Both teams struck out three times.
Niagara has now lost eight of its last 10.
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