NLA Game 8, May 07, 05

EAG
7
 1234567RHE
Eagles 1020310794
Challengers 323302x13135
W: Burger, Th. L: Plüss
CHA
13

Challengers take two from Eagles by winning Game 2 13-7

The Challengers won their fifth game in a row as they sunk the Reussbühl Eagles 13-7 in Game 2 of Saturday's doubleheader.

Burger picked up his first NLA-win of his career.
Burger picked up his first NLA-win of his career.
The windy and rainy condition didn't change, and so wasn't the level of play.

Both teams seemed to be affected by the lousy weather, as they combined for nine errors, obviously hoping for the game to end as quickly as possible.

And the Challengers proved to be too strong, again scoring in all but one inning, while rookie Thomas Burger and player coach Anthony Bennett took control of the Eagles' bats.

By the start of the third inning, the Challengers built up a 5-1 lead off starter Rene Plüss. Bennett had a solo homer, and Tobias Siegrist hit an RBI-double for the biggest hits in those innings.

The Eagles came back with two runs in the top of the third, but the Challengers promptly answered with three runs on their own: An error, a run-scoring ground out by Burger and an RBI-single by Chris Palatinus extended the Challengers' lead to 8-3.

In the next inning, three more runs on Oliver Labhart's two-run double, followed by rookie Wilson Santos' RBI-double, sent Plüss to the showers.

Game 1 starter Jerome Müller took over and allowed just two more runs the rest of the way.

<a href="http://www.challengers.ch/playerprofile/zeller-saentis/?liga=NLA" title="See Player Profile for Saentis Zeller">Saentis Zeller</a> went a perfect 3-for-3 with three runs scored.
Saentis Zeller went a perfect 3-for-3 with three runs scored.
The Eagles nibbled away the Challengers' lead in the fifth inning as Rodolfo Vargas hit a two-run homer, and Stalder executed a sac bunt that enabled Toni Gerig to score from third on the throw to first.

But Burger struck out Mark Fehlmann to end the threat.

Burger started the sixth inning by giving up a single to Oliver Holenstein and a base-on-balls to Müller, prompting player coach Bennett to give him the hook and place himself on the mound.

He worked two effective innings, giving up only one run on two hits.

Palatinus' double off the left-field fence scored both Adrian Kämpfer">Adrian Kämpfer and Saentis Zeller with two more unearned runs for the final score of 13-7.

The Challengers improved to 6-2 on the season, giving them a share of first place with the Bern Cardinals.

Game notes
Siegrist grounded out in the third inning in what was his 500th NLA at-bat. ...The win was the 300th NLA-win in Challengers history.