Vibes Drop Thriller 9-8 in Glacier

Hudson Ridley

KALISPELL, Mont. The Rocky Mountain Vibes came up just short against the Glacier Range Riders, falling 9-8. This thrilling game came right down to the wire with a highlight reel play on the final out of a fantastic ending.

This matchup began with Ryan Cambell on the mound for the Vibes facing off against Rob Hamby for the Range Riders.

It didn't take long for Glacier to break this one open. In the bottom of the second Benjamin Fitzgerald would pick up an RBI double to begin the scoring. Then, on the next at-bat Matt Clayton would send a deep shot into left field for his second home run of the series. When the dust settled in the bottom of the third the Range Riders had taken a 4-0 lead.

However, the Vibes wouldn't go away quietly. Brandon Trammell's solo shot in the top of the fourth would represent Rocky Mountain's first run of the contest. From there contributions from Dusty Stroup, Brady West and Joe Encarnacion would propel a Vibes comeback with Rocky Mountain taking a 6-5 lead in the top of the sixth.

Here's where things would start to get interesting. Ryan Campbell was pulled all the way back in the fourth inning with a line of 3.0 IP, 7 H, 4 ER, 4 BB, 2 SO. Nathan Draves would be called on for the next two innings pitching to the tune of 2.0 IP, 1 ER, 0 BB, 2 SO. To close out the day Vibes manager Les Lancaster decided to go with Chrisitian Scafidi, a pitcher who is usually found starting games.

Scafidi would pitch well for Rocky Mountain, maintaining the Vibes 6-5 lead up until the bottom of the eighth. With two runners on and two outs a pitcher's mound meeting was called for Scafidi who was showing signs of slowing down. With no action in the Vibes bullpen it looked like Scafidi would have to close this one out. The very next pitch after the meeting was turned on by Kingston Liniak for a three-run home run, igniting Glacier Bank Park and giving the Range Riders a 8-6 lead. Another RBI from Matt Clayton would put the Vibes in an even deeper hole, 9-6, before the inning ended.

Rocky Mountain wasn't done yet though. With one last chance in the top of the ninth John Natoli got the call with a chance to record his first ever professional save. Safe to say things didn't go as planned for Natoli. The closer would load the bases on walks while mixing in two strikeouts to create a pressure-packed situation.

One swing away from taking the lead Casey Petersen would step in. The Vibes' best hitter all season long saw a pitch he liked and drilled it into left field. All that was standing between Rocky Mountain and the lead was the glove of Mason Dinesen. Dinesen charged at the ball and made a superman-esque extension to snag what would have been the go ahead hit. After not starting the game or recording a single Mason Dinesen still proved to be a hero on Saturday night. 

As for the Vibes, that two game Montana win streak is over. The deciding game of the series is tomorrow with first pitch from Glacier Bank Park slated for 1:05 pm.