A TALE OF TWO GAMES: BIG TRAIN FALLS 7-4
Box Score

It was a classic pitchers duel between the starters in Tuesday night's winners bracket game, but when the relievers came in the game in the late innings it got a bit wild and crazy. Matt Wickswat (Santa Clara) went six innings for the number one seed Big Train, allowing just six hits and no earned runs. The Express starter Kyle Brown (UC-Santa Barbara) was just a little bit better, allowing no earned runs and just three hits over seven innings and leaving the game with a 2-1 lead. The Express took a 2-0 lead in the top of the fifth on a single, a double by Derek Mechling (Duquesne), a Big Train error in center field, and an RBI groundout. Brown retired 17 of the first 18 Big Train batters he faced (with the only runner reaching base as a result of an error). With two out in the bottom of the sixth, Cory Lane (UNC-Charlotte) broke up the no-hitter with a single to right and Nick Cleckler (Jacksonville State) followed with a double down the line. Brown walked Matt Long (Santa Clara) to load the bases but then induced an inning ending groundout. A three-base throwing error by Brown and an RBI single by Brian Dozier (Southern Mississippi) brought the score to 2-1 after seven. Phil Boscarino (UC-Riverside) led off the top of the eighth with a double. When Boscarino was thrown out at the plate by Lane, it looked like the Big Train might escape trouble. A two-out RBI single by Ivor Hodgson (Mount Saint Mary's) broke it open for the Express. By the time the dust had settled, Rockville had a seemingly overwhelming lead of 7-1. But in the bottom of the ninth, the Big Train battled back. Luke Adkins (Southern Mississippi) led off with a double. Josh Dietz (Bowling Green) walked. Dozier doubled home Adkins. Adam Redd (Virginia Tech) singled home Dietz. Lane singled home Dozier. A walk to Long loaded the bases and brought the winning run to the plate. But it was not to be, and the Express had secured the important winners bracket victory that will keep them in air conditioning Wednesday afternoon as the Thunderbolts and Big Train slug it out in the heat and humidity of a Bethesda afternoon in August.


Rockville Express (2-0) 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 5 0 -- 7 11 3
Bethesda Big Train (1-1) 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 3 -- 4 7 4


WP: Brown
LP: Wickswat
Save: Kennedy
2B: Orloff (RE), Mechling (RE), Boscarino (RE), Cleckler (BBT), Adkins (BBT), Dozier (BBT)
Attendance: 310
Time: 2 hours, 50 minutes


Big Train Notes: The Big Train defeated the Express in five of the eight games played between the teams this summer... In last season's League Championship Series, the Big Train lost the winners bracket game to the Thunderbolts 9-1 and came back to win two more games and force an "IF" game with the Thunderbolts for the championship. The final game was rained out.