Nick Estrella (Azusa Pacific) delivered the game winning hit in the top of the ninth.
AMSTERDAM, N.Y.- Nick Estrella (Azusa Pacific) hit an RBI single in the top of the ninth to break a 10-10 tie as the Albany Dutchmen (17-13) outlasted the Amsterdam Mohawks (19-14), 12-10, in a marathon game at Shuttleworth Park on Thursday.
Amsterdam took the lead in the bottom of the second on a Richie Nizza (Florida Atlantic) RBI single.
The Dutchmen answered with a four-run top of the third to take the lead, highlighted by a Griffen Herrera (Azusa Pacific) bases loaded single that cleared the bases, assisted by an outfield error.
The Mohawks got two back in the bottom half of the third on a Joe Genord (South Florida) RBI groundout and a Justin Foscue (Mississippi State) single that scored one, but Herrera gunned down the would-be tying run at the plate to end the inning.
After the teams traded zeros in the fourth for the second and final time of the ballgame, the Dutchmen used the long ball in the fifth to expand their lead to three. Brandon Seltzer (Palm Beach Atlantic) smashed a lead-off home run and All-Star outfielder and Home Run Derby participant, Ubaldo Lopez (Dartmouth), launched his team-leading fifth homer of the season two batters later.
Seltzer led all hitters with a 4-for-5 night with four runs scored, a walk, and an RBI. Lucas Dunn (Louisville) was 3-for-6 with three runs.
After the Dutchmen scored two more in the sixth, the Mohawks stormed back with a six-run seventh inning highlighted by three hits, two singles and a lead-off triple by Elvis Peralta (Marshall), four bases on balls, a hit by pitch, an error, and a passed ball to temporarily take a one-run lead.
In the eighth, the Dutchmen sent seven batters to the plate and scored a pair to re-gain the lead. After Seltzer led off with a single, his fourth hit of the evening, Estrella singled one batter later and they both moved up on a Lopez sacrifice bunt. Herrera was hit by a pitch two batters later with the bases loaded and Jerry Huntzinger (Seton Hall) hit a sacrifice fly to give Albany a 10-9 lead.
Amsterdam tied it once again in the bottom of the eighth when Jake Hammon (Morehead State) singled and moved to third on a Nizza infield single with a throwing error. The next hitter, Cole Barr (Indiana), hit a sacrifice fly to knot the score at ten.
Hammon finished 4-for-4 with a walk, two runs scored, and an RBI. Richie Barrella (Manhattan) went 2-for-5 with a walk, two runs, and an RBI.
The Dutchmen scored the final runs of the game in the ninth when Golston Gillespie (Ole Miss) hit a pinch-hit single, Dunn got his third hit of the night, and after a caught stealing at third, Estrella knocked in Dunn for the eventual winning run with two outs. Aided by a passed ball and a two-base wild pitch, Estrella scored one batter later.
The Dutchmen are off Friday before returning home on Saturday at 5:05 pm for a rematch with the Mohawks for Team Poster Giveaway Night and Post-Game Autographs courtesy of Northeast Commercial Printing.
