9th Inning Rally Leads Voyagers To 9-5 Win

MISSOULA, MT - Pitching told the story for a large portion of the contest Saturday in Game 2 of a 3 game set between the Missoula PaddleHeads and Great Falls Voyagers. Both starting pitchers would work their way through 6 innings with both offenses tallying only 4 runs combined. A home run from Jack Lynch would prove to be the difference in the game through 7 innings as Great Falls would cling to a 2 run lead. The fortunes of both offenses would change in the final 2 frames resulting in a wild sequence of events. Both teams saw the pendulum turn in their favor over certain stretches. Behind a big rally in the top of the 9th, the Voyagers would be the team in the lead at the end of it all. 

Collin Runge would open the stretch with a dramatic 2-out home run in the bottom of the 8th inning giving the PaddleHeads their first lead of the night at 4-3. The lead however would seemingly evaporate in an instance however in the top of the 9th as 7 consecutive batters would reach to start the frame. This would result in a 6-run rally for the Voyagers. Missoula tallied one run in the 9th but would not make things dramatic allowing the Voyagers to knot things up in this 3-game set by a final score of 9-5. 

A 2-run home run from Lynch would give the Voyagers a 2-0 lead in the top of the 1st. The Voyagers shortstop has homered twice in as many games in this series for Great Falls and would finish 1-for-4 Saturday. A single from Kody Kutnam would also knock in a run for the Voyagers in the 4th to claim a 3-0 lead. This would be the only blips on the map for starter Jonothan Clark. 

The 2nd year pro had his 2nd consecutive solid outing opposite the Voyagers in 6 ⅔ innings. Clark would allow 3 runs while striking out 5 to keep Missoula in the ballgame. This would be necessary due to the fabulous outing on the opposite side of the spectrum. 

Southern California native Kenny Carrillo was outstanding for Great Falls on the bump through 6 innings allowing only 1 run on 3 hits. The right hander would keep the PaddleHeads offense in check by staying ahead of the count to dictate at-bats. Carrillo would only issue 2 walks throughout his outing. Pitching would not tell the story throughout however as both offenses would strike in the late innings. 

After tripling home Missoula's 1st run in the 4th inning, Runge would come through in a huge at-bat in the bottom of the 8th. With 2 runners on, and 2-outs, Runge would crush a 3-run home run over the left field wall to give Missoula their only lead of the night at 4-3. Runge would knock in 4 runs in the game finishing 2-for-3. It would prove to be all for not however in the top of the ninth. 

The Voyagers would send 11 batters to the plate in the 6-run 9th inning allowing Great Falls to land the final nail in the coffin taking a 9-4 lead. A pair of hits from Hernan Yanez, and Freddy Rojas Jr. would do most of the damage with 4-runs coming in on a double, and single in consecutive at-bats. Free passes also played a big role in the inning as the Voyagers would draw 4 walks.

Mike Rosario made sure the PaddleHeads would not go down quietly in the bottom of the 9th hitting a home run to left field to trim the Great Falls advantage. Nothing further would be in store offensively on this night however as the Voyagers evened things up in this 3 game set.

The PaddleHeads (18-5) will look for a series win in the rubber match opposite the Voyagers (5-18) on Sunday afternoon. This will also mark the end of a 12 game homestand for Missoula. First pitch on a 'Kids Free Sunday' at Allegiance Field at Ogren Park is set for 2:15. If you cannot be there to enjoy all the fun in person, tune in on 102.9 ESPN Missoula and 1029espn.com.