Reno falls in the 10th inning

RENO - Unfortunately for the Reno Silver Sox, there are no mulligans in baseball.

The Sox gave up eight runs in the first inning of their game against the San Diego Surf Dawgs and in spite of some late-game heroics that sent the game to the 10th inning, Reno couldn't take back the poor start, going down 11-10 in front of an announced crowd of 1,503 Tuesday at Peccole Park.

"We just didn't get the job done," said Silver Sox manager Les Lancaster, whose team was outhit 19-13, committed two errors and fell to 20-12 on the season. "We battled back, but we relaxed once we got two outs (against the Surf Dawgs in the 10th). Our mental state is shot out of the window right now. In certain situations, we just weren't there for some pitches and at-bats."

Last-place San Diego, now 12-20, sent 13 batters to the plate in the first inning against starter Ben Thurmond (4-1). The first eight Dawgs ended up scoring in the disastrous frame in which Reno didn't record its first out until Thurmond got No. 9 hitter Johnny Day to pop out to second base.

The Surf Dawgs had seven hits in the inning, which was highlighted by catcher Nick Guerra's three-run double to make it 4-0. Guerra finished 3-for-6, with 4 RBI and scored one run.

Third baseman Victor Roldan had only one hit in six at-bats, but it was a two-run triple to increase the Dawgs' lead to 7-0.

Right fielder Matt Maloney was San Diego's leading hitter, going 4-for-6, with 3 RBI. It was his single off reliever Nat Harris in the 10th that gave San Diego what proved to be the winning run.

In spite of his rough start, Thurmond was left in the game and settled into a groove, allowing four of his 11 hits the rest of the way. Thurmond went 5 innings, giving up nine runs (eight earned) before Harris, who took his first loss on the year (0-1), came on in relief.

"(Thurmond) got a few balls up, but if the defense was behind him, there wouldn't have been as much damage and (San Diego) wouldn't have had an eight-run inning," Lancaster said. "He ended up contributing and settling down to keep us in the ball game, but those one-run innings (in the fourth and sixth) were the knife in the coffin for us."

The Silver Sox were down, but they weren't about to roll over and play dead against the Dawgs. Former University of Nevada star Bub Madrid got his first home run for the Silver Sox in the second inning, cutting the lead to 8-2 when he took starter Chris George deep to left and brought in designated hitter Doug Gredvig.

After Guerra's RBI-single gave the Surf Dawgs some more breathing room at 9-2 in the fourth, Richard Giannotti had an RBI double and C.J. Lang followed with an RBI single to help Reno cut the led to 9-4.

"This looks like the regular stuff the way the ball carries here," said San Diego manager Terry Kennedy. "I knew we didn't have the game in hand (with the 8-0 lead). I saw a lot of 12-11 and 14-12 games here that came through the wire. They did a good job coming back. They're a good team. There's a reason why they're in first place. They swing the bats. Harris did a good job. We knew they weren't going to lay down."

Maloney drove in DH Scott Goodman with a double to give the Dawgs a 10-4 lead in the sixth, but Reno rallied when Lang drilled a three-run homer to left to cut the lead to three.

Lang, a Reed High School graduate and former Reno Astro signed with the Sox on June 21. Lang was hitting .208 entering the game, but went 2-for-5, with the homer and 4 RBI.

In the seventh, second baseman Mike Done singled in catcher Jason Dewey, who was playing in only his second game for Reno, to narrow the lead to 10-8.

With two down in the ninth, and Done and Phil Grau on base, Giannotti welcomed in closer E.J. Shanks with a double to tie the game. Giannotti, another new face for the Sox., went 3-for-5, with 2 RBI and scored two runs.

"I've always stressed to the hitters that you can come back," Lancaster said of his team's rally. "The pitchers can hold us there and give us the opportunity to win the game. I've been stressing that since spring training."

Lancaster said it was only a matter of failed execution that cost Reno the game when Maloney got his 10th-inning hit to sink the Sox.

"Harris did OK," Lancaster said, "but the main thing was that last inning. You have two batters down and two bases to get an out (Goodman was on second for the Dawgs). It was a lack of control by the pitcher (Harris)."

Harris gave up two earned runs and spread out eight hits in his five innings of relief. He struck out two and walked one.

George lasted 5 1/3 innings, allowing seven runs and 10 hits. Joe Safren and Brent Pourciau went a combined 3 2/3, giving up three runs. Shanks got the win to improve to 1-1.

The Silver Sox and the Surf Dawgs will meet in game two of their three-game series today at 6:35 p.m.

"We're just going to go out tomorrow and take batting practice," Lancaster said. "When the game starts, we'll see what happens."

Reno will start right-hander Carlos Chavez (1-0, with a 3.27 earned run average) and San Diego will start right-hander Jake Meyer (0-0, 0.00 ERA).