Rebellion blow lead, lose in 11th
The Pennsylvania Rebellion filed a protest with the National Pro Softball league following Monday night’s 7-3 loss in 11 innings to the Chicago Bandits in front of 219 fans at Consol Energy Park.
The protest was filed because the International Tiebreaker was not used in the game. The tiebreaker is supposed to be used when a tied game reaches the 10th inning. A game that is part of a doubleheader should have the tiebreaker used at the start of the eighth inning.
The tiebreaker was not used in either the 10th or 11th inning of yesterday’s game.
The Bandits scored four runs in the top of 11th inning to win the game.
“I asked the home plate umpire and he told me there was no tiebreaker, that it’s only used in a doubleheader,” said Rebellion manager Craig Montvidas. “They told me I can’t protest it in the bottom of the 10th inning.”
In order to have a tied game reach a conclusion faster, the tiebreaker begins each inning with a runner on second base. That runner is the player who made the last out of the previous inning.
“It totally changes our strategy,” Montvidas said. “It also would have changed (the Bandits’) strategy, too.”
Chicago manager Mike Steuerwald said he thought the tiebreaker was supposed to be used in the 10th inning.
“We had it, up until two years ago, in the 10th inning, unless it was otherwise noted,” he said. “Both teams played with the same situation.”
Emma Johnson came on in relief of Rebellion starter Allyson Fournier and pitched 8 1/3 innings, throwing 165 pitches, 100 for strikes, and took the loss. Tatum Edwards, who relieved starter Lacey Waldrop in the third, pitched 9 innings for the win.
The Rebellion built a 3-0 lead with a run in the first and two runs in the second inning. But it could have been much more. The Rebellion left a combined five players on base over those innings.
Waldrop struggled throwing strikes in the first inning, walking three of the first four batters and hitting the other. Waldrop threw 15 balls in her first 17 pitches. Alisa Goler’s walk with the bases loaded drove in designated player Mandy Ogle to make it 1-0.
Waldrop got right-fielder Alexa Peterson to fly out to short left, centerfielder Courtney Senas to line out to third base and third baseman Cheyenne Cordes to bounce back to the mound.
In the second inning, second baseman Sarah Prezioso singled to left and was sacrificed to second base. Ogle singled her to third base and Prezioso scored when shortstop Maddie O’Brien hit a nubber to the mound. Waldrop picked it up and flipped to home plate, too late to get Prezioso. Catcher Kristyn Sanderg walked and the runners moved up on a wild pitch. Goler drove in ogle with a sacrifice fly to center field before right fielder Alexa Peterson ground one at the plate and was thrown out by catcher Taylor Edwards.
“We had so many opportunities,” Montvidas said. “We did a lot of good things, but the little things make us beat ourselves.”
Waldrop walked the first two batters in the third – Senas and Cordes – and was replaced by Tatum Edwards. If the Edwards name sounds familiar, both Taylor and Tatum played for the Rebellion last year.
Prezioso sacrificed the runners over but Senas was caught in a rundown on an attempted squeeze and left fielder Sammie Garcia grounded out to end the inning.
Chicago began chipping away in the third. Centerfielder Emily Allard led off with an infield single and went to second on a single by second baseman Danielle Zymkowitz. Shortstop Tammy Williams drove her home with the third straight single of the inning. That was all for Fournier, who was replaced by Johnson. Taylor Edwards popped to third but designated player Natalie Hernandez singled in Zymkowitz to make it 3-2.
Chicago tied it, 3-3, in the fifth without a hit. Williams walked, stole second base and went to third when the throw by Sandberg went into center field. Taylor Edwards drove her home with a sacrifice fly.