PROCTOR DELIVERS WALKOFF HIT

Lancaster Stays Atop Divisional Race

For the first time in 59 home games this season, the Lancaster Barnstormers celebrated a walkoff win.

Chris Proctor singled home Chad Sedio with one out in the ninth inning to carry the Barnstormers to a 6-5 victory over the Staten Island FerryHawks at Clipper Magazine Stadium.  With the win, the Barnstormers remained one game ahead of Southern Maryland and three ahead of York in the North Division chase with 10 games remaining on the schedule.

Wilson Garcia grounded a single up the middle to start the home ninth, and the Barnstormers replaced him with Sedio.  Joseph Carpenter blistered a ground ball that eluded second baseman Noah Fisher to his right, sending Sedio to third.  Pedro Payano (2-5) struck out Shawon Dunston, Jr., but Proctor drilled a 1-1 pitch past the diving attempt of shortstop Angel Aguilar to bring Sedio across and earn himself a sports drink bath in shallow right field.

The Barnstormers had their big inning in the second, following a Ricardo Cespedes solo homer in the top of the inning.  Garcia singled to the base of the wall in right and left for Dunston, the designated runner.  Carpenter singled off Aguilar’s glove, chasing Dunston to third, and Trayvon Robinson tied the game with a double to right.  Proctor and Jack Conley each drove home a run with an out for a 3-1 advantage.  Lefty starter Ryan Hartman plunked Trace Loehr with a pitch.  Melvin Mercedes dropped a bunt toward third, and Garrett Kueber made a wild throw, enabling Loehr to score the inning’s fourth run.

Staten Island quickly drew back into a tie against Brent Teller.  Justin Williams and Angel Aguilar produced consecutive one-out singles.  Chris Brito produced the third straight hit, a single toward the right field corner, scored Williams.  Aguilar crossed home on a wild pitch to cut the lead to 4-3, and Brito came home with the tying run on Luis Castro’s base hit to left.  The inning ended when the Barnstormers allowed Cespedes’ infield pop up to land off to the first base side of the mound, but Castro was nabbed rounding second.

Lancaster went ahead, 5-4, in the bottom of the fourth when Loehr led off with a double down the right field line and scored on Andretty Cordero’s  two-out single up the middle.

Garrett Granitz tossed two perfect innings of relief to maintain the lead, but Aguilar hit a long homer to left center off Ofreidy Gomez leading off the top of the eighth.  Gomez retired the side in order after that.  Nick Duron (2-0) survived Cespedes’ leadoff double in the ninth, striking out two and getting a po up from Fisher.

Jared Lakind (8-4) will make the start on Thursday against Staten Island ace Chris Capuano (10-4).  Fans may tune into FloBaseball at 6:25.

NOTES:  Lancaster has won five straight at home…Cordero has hit safely in 17 in a row…Garcia has hit safely in seven straight…His last 15 hits are singles…The Barnstormers took over the #1 spot in the league in team batting…Robinson has 12 RBI in his last 10 games…Duron has allowed only one earned run in his last 17 innings while striking out 27.