PALM SPRINGS, CA — The POWER (38-8) scored two runs in the bottom of the eighth inning to edge the FBA Sharks, 6-4, at Palm Springs Stadium on Sunday.
Ryne Clark (Chico State) had a perfect night at the plate, going 4-for-4 with a double and a run scored to pace the POWER offense.
“They were bringing in a different pitcher every inning so it was kind of tough to think about what they were throwing, the count, that sort of thing” said Clark. “I was just trying to stay calm at the plate, relax, and see the ball.”
Palm Springs trailed before they even came to the plate as Jose Bueno drove in Cody Sporer with two outs to give the Sharks (11-9) a 1-0 lead.
Not to be outdone, the POWER would score three times in the home half of the inning, including a two-RBI triple off the bat of Brandon Gomez (Florida International).
FBA got even in the fourth with two runs off of Palm Springs starter Kyle Murray (Hofstra) before the POWER retook the lead with a run in the bottom half of the inning.
Four innings later, the Palm Springs offense came back to life.
Danny Edgeworth (Mercer) led off the inning with a single and advanced to second on the throwing error by third-baseman Blaine Kline. Nate Pollock (Western Illinois) laid down a bunt to push him to third but Sharks pitcher Hector Perez tried to cut Edgeworth down at third, throwing it away as the POWER took a 5-4 lead. They would add an insurance run a few batters later as Jordan Zimmerman (Mesa CC) singled home Pollock.
Nick Smith (Western Illinois) improved to 3-0 on the season, allowing just one hit and striking out two in the eighth.
Doug Finley (Colorado State – Pueblo) slammed the door shut in the ninth, striking out the side for his fourth save of the summer.
The POWER are off tomorrow before returning to the field on Tuesday to take on Team APS in their final tuneup before the So-Cal World Series. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05pm.