Flyers rally for 13 runs in 6th inning to hand Challengers first loss

The Challengers lost their first game of the season by losing to the Therwil Flyers 14-10.

	Thomas Landis cruised through the first five innings, but was crushed in the sixth inning.

The loss came after 6 straight wins to open the season.

The Challengers started the game in similar fashion as in game 1 of their last doubleheader against the Wil Devils. Manny Marchant and Roger Brunner's were both caught stealing second base in the first inning, and after that, the Challengers didn't steal any bases the rest of the game.

Starter Thomas Landis had a strong outing for the first five innings. He allowed just two singles, one base-on-balls and no earned run.

	Djibril Traore of the Flyers was hit twice by a pitch from Landis.

His offense even provided him with a big lead, scoring six times in the bottom of the fifth for a convincing 9-1 lead. Marchant, Brunner and Nick Lehmann hit three two-run homers. It was Lehmann's first homer of the season.

But things fell apart in the next inning. Roy Allenspach grounded out for the first out, but the next nine batters reached base safely. Alain Kurz and Karim Traore hit consecutive singles, and both scored on two fielding errors by substitute second baseman Tobias Siegrist. Landis then walked the bases full and also lost Rene Kurz on four balls to force in another run before Reto Siegel capped off the inning with a grandslam four-bagger on Landis' very first pitch.

	Flyers starter Kleiber lasted just 4 1-3 innings, giving up four earned runs on eight hits and three walks.

Closer Jose Valdez was summoned from the bullpen to stop the fire the Flyers had started. The Challengers' lead had already shrinked to 9-8, but two more fielding errors allowed two Flyer batters to reach base. Valdez loaded the bases by walking Karim Traore and his brother Djibril followed with a two-run double. Zwyer reached on the Challengers' fifth (!) misplay of the inning, and catcher Ivano Piaia made them pay by belting a big two-run homer for a 14-9 lead.

The Challengers weren't able to come back from this deficit, and went on to score just one more run on Anubis Benitez' third homer of the season.

Allenspach pitched two scoreless innings to seal the Flyers' victory.

	Nick Lehmann Catcher, Outfielder Nick Lehmann
	1999 SEASON STATISTICS AB R H RBI HR AVG 15 10 8 7 1 .533

Game Notes: The Flyers won the game despite having lost Fernando Abril in the second inning. He cursed at umpire Nderim Coma after the inning ended and was promptly tossed from the game. ...The Challengers outhit the Flyers 12-7, but also committed seven costly errors that led to seven unearned runs. The six Flyer errors led to just four unearned runs. ...Landis' at-bat in the 6th inning was his 600th of his NLA-career, trailing only Enrico Zingg's 630. ...The 13 runs allowed in one inning were the most a Challenger NLA-team allowed to score since game 2 of the 1997 semifinal series against the Flyers, when they allowed 11 runs to score.