Andre Chiefs

Melrose, MA- Veterans Tony Deshler and Juan Portes hit back to back solo homers in the top of the eighth inning when the Chiefs came off the mat, and rode a gritty pitching effort from Micthell Clegg, to knock off the Reading Bulldogs 5-2 at Morelli Field on Monday night.

With the win, the Chiefs go up two games to none in the best of five semi-final series and head home with Game Three scheduled for Maplewood Park at Malden Catholic on Tuesday night at 8:00 PM.

The Chiefs handed the Bulldogs a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning. Clegg got Hank Oringer to bounce to Steve Gambale at second to open the game before E.J. Martinez singled to right. Zac Talis flew to Ryan Sonberg in right for the second out but the inning stayed alive when Gambale threw low to first on Steve Busby's grounder. That error proved costly when Mike Taylor's single drove in Martinez with the uneraned run.

Reading starter Cody Hall and Clegg both tossed a zero in the second inning.

The Bulldogs served up a little benevolence themselves in the top of the third and returned the favor when the Chiefs tied things up with an unearned run of their own. Nate Witkowski led off and his infield pop-up was dropped by Talis at first base. Serino pushed Witkowski to second with a fielder's choice and he scored on a Deshler gap shot double to right-center. Hall kept the game even at 1-1 when he got Portes to ground out, and Billy Mottram on a fly ball, that ended the inning.

Clegg breezed through the Reading third and the Chiefs couldn't cash in on a scoring chance in the top of the fourth. Jordan Pallazola put the Chiefs in business when he drilled a Hall pitch into the right-centerfield gap for a lead off double. Sonberg was next, and following two missed sacrifice bunt attempts, struck out swinging for the first out. Gambale was next up and he laced a liner right at Mike DeDonato at second. DeDonato made the grab and beat Pallazola back to bag to complete a bang-bang unassisted doubleplay.

Kyle Devin put the Bulldogs in front at 2-1 in the bottom of the fourth when he drilled a one out solo homer to straight-away rightfield.

Things moved along at Usain Bolt like speed when Clegg and Hall retired the next nine batters in order, on a total of 23 pitches, as the game quickly progressed to the bottom of the sixth. The Bulldogs appeared ready to add to thier 2-1 lead and possibly put the game away. Things started peacefully enough for Clegg when he got Talis to fly to Serino in center for the first out. Busby then surprised everyone in the yard when he placed a perfect bunt single down the third base line. Chris Bosco game on to run for Busby and singles from Taylor and Devin loaded the bases with one out. DeDonato was next, and with the Chiefs' corners drawn in, he hit a one-hopper to Portes at third who fired to Pallazola to force Bosco out at the plate. With the bases still loaded, Clegg came up large when he got Darren Hartwell on a liner to Deshler in left to end the threat and keep it a 2-1 ballgame.

It was last call for the Chiefs in the top of the seventh and Pallazola served notice that they wouldn't go quietly when he lined a Hall pitch just inside the third base bag to lead off the inning. Mike Barbati pinch-hit for Sonberg and he dropped a perfect sacrifice bunt down the first base line that moved the Chiefs' catcher to second. The Chiefs then caught a huge break when Martinez apparently lost the handle on Gambale's grounder to shortstop and threw the ball high to first, and out of play, allowing Pallazola to score the tying run and put Gambale at second. The Chiefs missed an opportunity to pull in front when Hall denied them by striking out Mike Andre and then getting Witkowski on a soft liner to Hayes in left.

The Bulldogs mounted another major scoring threat when they looked for the game winner in the bottom of the seventh. Barbati, who was making his first outfield appearance in nearly a decade after hitting for Sonberg, made the save of the game when he held Hayes to a single after running down his liner leading off the inning. Oringer then moved Hayes to second with a bunt, and Martinez singled, to put runners on the corners with one out. Clegg pulled off his second Houdini like escape in as many innings when he struck out Talis, then pinch-hitter Jordan Roper, to keep the Chiefs alive and move the game to extra innings.

Serino was first up for the Chiefs in the top of the eighth and he laced a liner right at Talis for the first out. Deshler followed and the former Brandeis star turned on a Hall fastball and sent it high and deep into the night and over the left-field fence to give the Chiefs their first lead of the game at 3-2. Portes was next and the lead quickly went to 4-2 when he lined a shot over the left-centerfield fence. The Chiefs weren't done when Mottram then singled, moved to second on a wild pitch, and scored the fifth run on Pallazola's third hit of the night. A Barbati single, followed by a walk to Gambale by reliever Zac Levine, loaded the bases with one out as the Chiefs tried to blow the game open. Levine stayed tough and kept the Bulldogs within striking distance when he got pinch-hitter Peter Copa to hit into a 4-6-3 doubleplay.  

Clegg got Taylor on a groundout for the first out of the eighth before a Devin single gave the Bulldogs a baserunner. Clegg ended things when he got both DeDonato and Hartwell on grounders to Gambale.

Clegg struck out five, allowed nine hits, and one earned run. The left-hander needed just 89 pitches over his eight innings. 
Ian Roberts, Anthony Zeolie, & Steve Hartwell for Intercity League Baseball
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