Americans Drop Close Game to Tarp Skunks After Ninth-Inning Rally Falls Short

JAMESTOWN, N.Y. — The Niagara Falls Americans fell to the Jamestown Tarp Skunks, 6-5, in a back-and-forth contest on Wednesday night at Russell E. Diethrick Park. The Americans opened the scoring in the top half of the second inning. Dominick Zangardi, an incoming freshman at Niagara University, led off with a single and came around to score on a wild pitch. Later in the inning, David Harris extended the early lead by scoring Yadiel Santos on a sacrifice fly. In the third, Matthew Ganschow laced a base hit down the left field line to score Justin Gladfelter and increase the Americans’ lead. Ganschow was thrown out at second on the play, attempting to stretch his single into a double. The Tarp Skunks responded in the bottom half of the third as Eric Weeks drove an RBI single through the middle to score Matthew Dumas. Moments later, Heath Fetchik added a two-RBI single to knot the game at three After two and a half scoreless innings, Jamestown pushed across a run in the sixth and two more in the seventh off Colin Price, taking a 6-3 lead into the eighth. In the penultimate inning, the first two Americans batters reached base, and Derek Gesmondi executed a successful sacrifice bunt to move both runners up ninety feet. Matthew Ganschow then drove in CJ Snusz with a deep sacrifice fly to right center field for his second RBI of the night. However, that was all the Americans managed to plate in the eighth. The Americans mounted a rally in the ninth. Yadiel Santos led off by being hit by a pitch and advanced to third after a strikeout, groundout, and wild pitch. David Harris then reached on an error by Tarp Skunks first baseman, Nate Muncy, allowing Santos to score. Loagan Stickler followed with a walk, putting the winning run on first. However, Chase Beran collected his league-leading second save of the season by striking out CJ Snusz to end the Americans’ final-inning push. Alex Rumfola made his first start for the Americans, tossing five innings with three earned runs, three walks, and two strikeouts. Colin Price took the loss, moving his record to 0-1. Justin Gladfelter, Derek Gesmondi, and Matthew Ganschow all recorded two hits at the top of the Americans’ lineup, with Gladfelter also stealing a base. The Americans return to action at 11:00 on Thursday, June 11, as they host the Niagara Ironbacks in a seven-inning doubleheader. The opener marks the team’s first-ever Education Day Game. Both games will be livestreamed on the Niagara Falls Americans YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@NiagaraFallsAmericans. To purchase single-game or season tickets, call 716-215-6161 or visit niagarafallsamericans.com. Season tickets start as low as $99. For sponsorship opportunities or to organize a group outing, contact General Manager Marc Witt at mwitt.canusa@gmail.com.