(James W. Toy III / Sonoma Stompers)
PITTSBURG, Calif. – After a rough series in Vallejo, the Sonoma Stompers faced off against the Pittsburg Diamonds in the first game of a weekend series and strung together 10 hits en route to the team's third extra-inning win over the week, a 9-6 final over the Diamonds.
The hot hitting continued from Friday, with Rob DeAngelis collecting three hits and Daniel Comstock, Kenny Meimerstorf and Rayson Romero all notching two in the game.
Sonoma and Pittsburg battled back and forth all night long, tying the game up and exchanging the lead multiple times from the beginning.
A single from Comstock and a double from Meimerstorf gave the Stompers a 2-0 first inning lead, but the Diamonds tied the score at two in the bottom of the second. A Comstock sac fly gave Sonoma the lead back in the third but Vallejo tied it up once again in the fourth.
Comstock scored in the top of the sixth, but the Diamonds put together three runs in the bottom half of the inning to take a lead they carried into the ninth.
DeAngelis led off the top of the ninth and crushed a solo home run, the first of his professional career, to tie the game at six runs each and force extra innings.
"I was looking for a good pitch to hit and I got it early," DeAngelis said. "We knew something was brewing, we were excited. Especially with extras."
Playing past the ninth for the fourth time in the last seven days, Sonoma wasted no time jumping out on top, as Meimerstorf scored on a wild pitch and Romero singled in Miles Williams and Kevin Farley to put the Stompers on top 9-6.
After a five-inning outing from Juan Espinosa, in which he allowed just three runs and no walks, D.J. Sharabi delivered four innings of relief, striking out three while also giving up just three runs. Sharabi’s extended performance pathed the way for Jacob Cox to lock down his league-leading eighth save of the day on his 25th birthday.
Now five games about .500, the Stompers prepare for the weekend’s second game against Pittsburg Sunday afternoon where they will go for the sweep.