By Josh McMullen – Mohawk Valley Diamond Dawgs

LITTLE FALLS, NY – For quite a while on Friday night, it looked like the magic had finally gone, and the usually high-scoring Mohawk Valley Diamond Dawgs were going to score just one run.

Then the bottom of the ninth happened.

In that inning, the Diamond Dawgs scored three runs to erase a two-run lead and send the Boonville Lumberjacks home with their sixth straight loss

The game would remain scoreless until the third, when Boonville’s (17-16-1) Andy Perez (Pitt) brought home two on a double into right field. That two-RBI double scored Devan Meran (St. Cloud Tech CC) and Sebastian Burgos (Fort Hays State).

Mohawk Valley clawed one back in the bottom of the inning on a deep sacrifice fly by Tyler Jones (George Washington) to center field, scoring Nico Sorice (Queens College).

The speedy Meran would add to the Boonville lead in the fifth, slapping a ball to the deepest part of left field and was able to get all the way home for an inside-the-park solo home run.

The score would stay 3-1 all the way to the bottom of the ninth, when once again, the Diamond Dawgs pulled off the late-inning magic. First, Sorice would score on a throwing error that made it from the Boonville pitcher’s hand all the way to the center field wall, alongside pinch-hitter Ian Oehlschlaeger (Northeastern). After a Justin Hurd (SUNY Albany) double, Jaden Ross (Flagler College) looped a single into center field and ended the game, scoring Hurd from second.

Aidan Colagrande picked up his fourth win this season for Mohawk Valley (20-15-1).

The Diamond Dawgs are back in action on Saturday when they travel to Oneonta to take on the Outlaws. Their next – and final – regular season game at Veterans Memorial Park is next Thursday night when they host the Utica Blue Sox.

Photos by Dave Warner