Volcanoes Erupt in 5th, Hold on to Wild 18-10 Win

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On paper, the match-up looked a little lopsided, setting up the fourth Game of the Week as a potential blowout. But, as the old adage goes, that's why they play the game, and, instead of seeing the 7-1 Volcanoes dominate the 0-10 Redwings, fans were treated to an exciting, back-and-forth contest that turned on one pivotal inning which allowed the Volcanoes to walk away victorious 18-10, a final score that was much closer than it may appear.

In the first inning, the Volcanoes took a 3-0 lead after a lead-off error paved the way for an offensive rally. With a runner on second and one out, lefty slugger Dominic Muñoz crushed an RBI single to centerfield to make it 1-0, before a Cameron Rosebrooks single set the stage for Joe DeSoto, who clobbered a high fastball to deep centerfield for a two-run triple that made it 3-0. Redwings' starter Denis Delic, though, was unfazed, striking out Mason Splinter and catching DeSoto off third base to end the rally.

O'Brien's fastball was a blur en route to 6 K in 3 IP.

In the bottom half, the Redwings made their own offensive statement with a rally against the Volcanoes' right-handed ace, Chandler O'Brien. Just like their opponent, the Redwings' lead-off man, Tristen Poston, reached base on an error, and then the Redwings took advantage of early wildness to load the bases on a walk and hit batsmen. After a strikeout, though, O'Brien and the Volcanoes looked poised to escape unscathed until Dan Duhig turned a 2-0 fastball into a long double to left field that scored all three runners and knotted the score at 3-3.

The Volcanoes answered right back though with some timely hitting and a few quirky hops. Jacob Pensa walked to start the top half of the second, Malik Williams worked a walk, and Anthony Garcia then loaded the bases with an infield single that hit foul...and then bounced fair. Delic responded with a strikeout, but Volcanoes' lead-off hitter Jacob Schanning ripped a single to left field that broke the tie 4-3, and Muñoz and Rosebrooks both walked in runs to regain a three-run cushion.

The Redwings offense was still churning, but the damage wasn't as severe as the first. Paul Lorsbach lead off the second with a sharp double to left but was stranded at third as O'Brien buckled down to strikeout the side. In the third, Poston reached again via the walk and stole second, which opened the door for Tyler Lantsberger's run scoring line drive single to left that inched the home team closer at 6-4.

Delic's scoreless fourth inning, which completed a strong start that included 6 strikeouts, preserved that margin for the bottom of the fourth, when the Volcanoes went to the bullpen and brought in their #2 starter, Schanning, to relieve O'Brien. Still getting comfortable on the mound, Schanning walked Duhig and surrendered an infield single legged out by Redwings' speedster David Bustamante, but he quickly found his comfort zone, retiring Lorsbach and Jacob Medina on back-to-back strikeouts looking. With two down, Ian Ryan then hit a grounder to third for the presumptive final out, but the throw went uncaught allowing both Duhig and Bustmante to score and moving the score to 6-6. Schanning would get out of the jam with his third strikeout of the inning, but the Redwings had the momentum and seemingly had the Volcanoes on the ropes.

That momentum, though, was short-lived, as the fifth inning was disastrous. Schanning helped his own cause with a single just over the glove of shortstop Isaac Lopez. Then, on the reliever Lanstberger's first pitch to him, O'Brien crushed a shot to centerfield past the out stretched arm of Poston that bounced all the way to the fence, staying down long enough for O'Brien to cruise in with a go-ahead two run homer. An 8-6 lead was not all that the cards held, though, as the Volcanoes exploded and pushed seven more runs across the plate as part of a rally that featured another Muñoz single, a Gyovanni Hernandez double, a dropped fly ball, and another RBI knock by O'Brien that left the Redwings reeling and suddenly down 15-6.

Paul Lorsbach is held on at third by Jacob Schanning, the eventual winning pitcher.

The Redwings did not give up, though, and managed to claw their way back into the ball game in the sixth. Poston found his way to first a third time by wearing an 0-2 pitch, Willie Gormley found a hole with a bloop infield single to the right side, and Delic reached on yet another error to load the bases. Lantsberger flew out to left, but Poston did not tag, for the first out, but Lopez got the ball rolling with a single to left to make it 15-7, but the hit of inning came off the Big Cat's bat as Bustamante hit a clutch three-run double to center that narrowed the Volcanoes' lead to only five. Schanning, though, notched his fifth strikeout to escape further damage and preserve the lead.

The Volcanoes crossed the plate three more times in the sixth without a single hit to make it 18-10, and that would be the final margin as Schanning pitched around a two out single up the middle by Kyle Gonsalves to nail down the victory. 

This Saturday, the Game of the Week will showcase two teams on the rise as the surging Hot Rods take on the upstart River Bandits. Both teams mix it up on the mound with a stable of talented pitchers, and the match-up should have a unique flavor, as it pits to nicknames brand new to Elk Grove Babe Ruth.