The Watertown Wizards' first comeback was unexpected. The second one never came to fruition.
The Wizards erased a three-run deficit in the ninth inning — with a little help from Glens Falls — to force extra innings Saturday night at the Alex T. Duffy Fairgrounds. But the Golden Eagles tacked on three more runs in the 11th to outlast Watertown, 7-4. Glens Falls (33-10) swept the best-of-three NYCBL East Division series, 2-0.
For the third consecutive season, the Wizards (17-25) were eliminated from the playoffs in the opening round. But the progression the club made since the beginning of the season left manager Ryan Horning satisfied.
"Our guys have had a lot of heart all year," Horning said. "I think it started when we were 3-10 and bounced back. This team is just unbelievably close, and I love coaching them. They just never quit."
Watertown's season was nearly finished in the ninth inning. All Glens Falls shortstop Curt Courtwright or left fielder Jonathan White needed to do was haul in Jordan Kreke's fly ball to record the final out. Their miscommunication spoiled the victory celebration as the ball plopped between the two fielders, keeping the Wizards' rally alive.
"It seemed routine didn't it?" Golden Eagles manager John Mayotte said. "With two outs and no runners on base, it was a routine pop-up and the guys had a little conversation. The ball just flat out dropped."
Tom Barry singled home Kreke to trim the Golden Eagles' lead to 4-2. Then, Ryan Faidley, who previously walked, scored on a wild pitch by Glens Falls reliever Jamie Storey.
Storey appeared to have worked himself out of the ninth-inning jam once Jay Bresnahan slapped a ground ball to second baseman Scott Lawson. But Jose Valerio couldn't snare Lawson's routine throw to first, which allowed Barry to score the game-tying run.
"They never say die, and they showed it again tonight with two outs and down three runs to the best team in the league," Horning said. "I think that says a lot about our guys."
Bresnahan stole second base and moved to third on Storey's second wild pitch. The Minnesota State product was stranded, however, after Brad Felder grounded out to end the inning.
Horning and the Wizards waited for one more heroic effort, but Glens Falls cast the final blow. Chad Stang blooped an RBI single off Cape Vincent native Jacob Wiley to put the Golden Eagles ahead in the 11th inning. Two Watertown errors led to two more runs, and the Wizards couldn't muster another three-run rally.
Anthony Giansanti pitched two scoreless innings of relief to seal the win for Glens Falls.
"Their whole pitching staff has done a great job of keeping guys off balance and throwing strikes all year," Horning said. "I think they did that again tonight. They are 33-10 for a reason."
Barry finished with a pair of singles for the Wizards. Kreke contributed an RBI double.
nNOTES:Lawson had two singles and two RBIs to pace Glens Falls. ... The Golden Eagles advanced to the division championship series for the second straight year. They went to the league championship series last season, but were swept by Elmira. ... Wiley went four innings, gave up four earned runs, added four strikeouts in relief for Watertown.
