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Rangers down Brewers, 6-3
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Posted on Aug 19 2005
The defending champions of the Saipan Major League were dealt a serious blow to their hopes of a repeat on Thursday night as the Ford Rangers stunned the Miller Lite Brewers, 6-3, at Francisco M. Palacios Field.
Craig Sanchez was the Alpha and the Omega for the Rangers as the pitcher went the distance on the hill and drove in the winning run from the plate for the night’s most complete performance.
Sanchez sprinkled nine hits in as many innings and fanned three atop the mound to pick up the win, but his two RBI-singles in the batter’s box led directly to his team’s 1-0 advantage in the best-of-three series.
Speedy shortstop John Reyes (2-for-4) added to the Ford firepower with a pair of singles and a run scored, as did left fielder Ben Lizama, who finished the game 2-for-4 with two base knocks.
Joey Dela Cruz crossed the plate twice for the silver and black attack while hitting 1-for-4, and his power-hitting teammate Pete Tomokane smacked a double and scored once.
Despite out-hitting and outscoring the Brewers, the Rangers were struggling early on when the Brew crew took a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first. A big triple by Tony Celis brought in Dane Lizama to break the scoreless tie followed by Manny Sablan’s sac fly to left that brought Celis home.
The game took a decidedly different turn in the top of the third when the Rangers capitalized on a string of Brewers errors to gain a 4-2 advantage. Sanchez picked up his second RBI in the top of the fifth by driving in Dela Cruz, and J.J. Laniyo notched his only hit of the night to score Lizama via single.
After getting off to a rough start, Sanchez allowed just three hits over the next seven innings before surrendering three hits and a run to the Brewers in the ninth. The Rangers eventually closed the door on the opening game when centerfielder Mel Teregeyo was thrown out on a fielder’s choice.
The Rangers are just one win away from advancing to the SML Championship, and they’ll have their chance tonight at Palacios Field at 6:30pm.
