CHIARAPPA PLAYS HERO AS JACKALS PLATE SIX RUNS IN NINTH FOR WALK-OFF WIN

Little Falls, NJ – Trailing 7-2 and down to their final three outs, the New Jersey Jackals plated six runs in the bottom of the ninth as rookie catcher Chris Chiarappa laced a walk-off, two-run single to carry the Jackals to an 8-7 victory over the Worcester Tornadoes on Sunday afternoon at Yogi Berra Stadium.

With a five-run lead heading into the final frame, Worcester turned to closer Anthony Sullivan, who hit second baseman Marcus Sanders with a pitch to lead off the inning. Sullivan left the game after the at-bat with an injury. Southpaw Chris Anderson entered and immediately hit left fielder Ryan Rogowski. After a fielder's choice by shortstop Mike DeJesus placed runners on the corners with one out, Jackals right fielder Myron Leslie hit a grounder to short, which Tornadoes shortstop Garrett Olson threw into the first base dugout to enable Sanders to score and cut the deficit to 7-3.

After an RBI single by Jackals first baseman Juan Tejeda plated DeJesus to make it a 7-4 game, designated hitter Matt Lauderdale drew a walk to load the bases with one out. Center fielder Billy Kovatch then hit a weak grounder to the right of the mound, which Anderson kicked out of play. Kovatch was awarded an RBI infield single as Leslie and Tejeda came plateward to pull New Jersey within one at 7-6. After third baseman Mike Scanzano was intentionally walked with first base open, the Tornadoes brought in right-hander Albert Ayala to face Chiarappa, who drove a single into left-center as Lauderdale scored the tying run and Kovatch came across the plate with the winning run.

Anderson (1-1) suffered the loss after allowing five runs – three earned – in 1/3 of an inning. The win went to New Jersey reliever Kevin Gunter (3-0), who surrendered two runs on three hits in 1 2/3 frames.

For the fifth consecutive game, the Tornadoes opened up the scoring when they plated two runs in the top of the first inning. Jackals starter A.J. Wideman, who came within five outs of a perfect game in his last start on Tuesday in Quebec, allowed three consecutive hits to begin the game as Worcester used a pair of RBI infield singles to grab an early 2-0 lead.

In the top of the fifth, Worcester center fielder Heath Keel led off with a single and scored on a hit-and-run triple by the next hitter, Olson, as the Tornadoes took a 3-0 lead. Worcester extended its lead to 4-0 one batter later as third baseman Chris Colabello pushed Olson home with a sacrifice fly.

New Jersey broke through against Tornadoes starter Zach Zuercher in the bottom of the sixth inning when Leslie laced a one-out single to center and Tejeda doubled down the line in left, enabling Lauderdale to lift a sacrifice fly as the Jackals trimmed the deficit to 4-1. An inning later, the Jackals made it 4-2 when DeJesus singled home Sanders.

The Tornadoes added one run in the eighth and two more in the top of the ninth inning to extend their lead to 7-2.

Wideman, who had worked 15 1/3 consecutive scoreless innings entering Sunday, lasted seven innings as he gave the Jackals bullpen a much-needed rest after New Jersey relievers tossed 7 1/3 shutout innings on Saturday night. Wideman allowed four runs on eight hits with two walks and four strikeouts. Zuercher gave up two runs on seven hits in 6 2/3 innings as neither starter factored in the decision. Wideman outdueled Zuercher in a 2-0 Jackals victory when the two pitcher faced off on June 17 in Little Falls.

The Jackals enjoy a day off on Monday before returning to action on Tuesday night at 7:05 p.m. against the Sussex Skyhawks at Skylands Park, when right-hander Ted Serro (4-1, 4.26 ERA) makes his sixth start of the season. Cody Chrusciel has the call with the live webcast beginning 10 minutes prior to first pitch at www.jackals.com.

The New Jersey Jackals, proud members of the Canadian-American Association of Professional Baseball, play their home games at Yogi Berra Stadium located on the campus of Montclair State University in Little Falls, NJ. 2009 season tickets, mini-plans and group outings are available by calling 973-746-7434. Visit the Jackals online at www.jackals.com.