JACKALS RALLY IN EIGHTH, BUT FALL SHORT AS MAGIC NUMBER REMAINS ONE
By Katie Corrado

Little Falls, NJ – Despite a four-run rally in the bottom of the eighth inning, the New Jersey Jackals fell to the American Defenders of New Hampshire 8-7 on Monday night at Yogi Berra Stadium. The loss leaves the Jackals' magic number to clinch the Cam-Am League first-half title at one.

Trailing 8-3 with Ryan Rogowski and Justin Humphries on base after two walks by pitcher Gabe Cuevas in the eighth, the Jackals bats came alive. Matt Lauderdale smacked a line drive past the shortstop, bringing both Rogowski and Humphries in to score. Quentin Davis then hit a pop fly in front of left fielder Jerod Edmondson to move Lauderdale on third.

An RBI single into left-center field by Mike Scanzano drove in Lauderdale, making it 8-6. Billy Kovatch bumped a ball directly in front of home plate, but catcher Zane Chavez bobbled it, putting Kovatch on first with an infield single and loading the bases. Pitcher Juan Padilla walked Marcus Sanders, forcing home the Jackals’ fourth run of the inning to cut the deficit to 8-7.

However, the Jackals were unable to complete the comeback, as Padilla snagged a blooper off the bat of Rogowski to get out of the jam and then shut down New Jersey in the ninth.

The Defenders racked up 10 hits to New Jersey’s 13, though the Jackals left nine men on base. New Hampshire pitcher Nick Asselin (5-3) picked up the win and Padilla notched his league-leading 14th save, with Jackals pitcher Stuart Pomeranz (3-5) taking the loss for New Jersey.

Pomeranz got off to a rough start as the Defenders racked up six hits and brought in five runs in the top of the first.

The Jackals got on the board in the bottom of the first with singles from Sanders and Rogowski. After a sacrifice fly by Michael De Jesus advanced Sanders to third, he scored as Rogowski was thrown out attempting to steal second.

The New Jersey bats heated up in the second inning as Davis lined a two-out triple down the third base line, narrowly missing foul territory. Davis came in to score on a single by Scanzano that struck the pitcher’s glove, cutting the deficit to 5-2.

In the top of the fourth, a two-run homer for New Hampshire’s Jerod Edmondson brought the score to 7-3 and chased Pomeranz from the game. The Jackals got back on the board in the bottom of the fifth with an RBI sacrifice fly by Rogowski that drove in Scanzano. In the top of the eighth, New Hampshire added another run on a Chris Kelly solo home run to left field, making it 8-3 New Hampshire.

With four games remaining in the first half, the Jackals look to clinch the first-half title in their upcoming series against the Worcester Tornadoes, which begins on Wednesday night at Hanover Insurance Park at Fitton Field in Worcester, MA. New Jersey will send southpaw Giuseppe Granitto to the mound in the opener against Tornadoes lefty Ryan Lobban.

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.