Chattanooga 15, Carolina 14

Chattanooga, TN --- In a fitting capper to a zany five-game series, Chattanooga rallied for two runs in the last of the ninth to devastate the Carolina Mudcats 15-14 at AT&T Field.

The high-scoring series, which the first-place Lookouts won 4-1, was played to five one-run games, and finished 48-45 in favor of Chattanooga.

Saturday's game was another four-hour affair, with both teams squandering big leads, and the Mudcats scoring all 14 of their runs in just two innings.

Down 1-0 in the third, Carolina scored six times against Lookouts starter Allen Webster, who was knocked out after 2 1/3 innings. When the Lookouts rallied for nine unanswered to send Carolina starter Curtis Partch to the bench, Carolina scored eight runs in the top of the sixth to assume a 14-10 lead.

But the Lookouts scored twice in the sixth, and another in the seventh before a ninth inning rally. Donnie Joseph allowed a one-out double to Alfredo Silverio, and after a groundout, Alex Castellanos looped a game-tying double down the left field line to tie the score 14-14. Tim Hamulack relieved Joseph, and his first pitch was socked against the centerfield wall by Hector Gimenez to win the game.

With the loss, Carolina was pushed nine games behind with 15 to play, and the elimination number against the Mudcats dropped to seven.

James Avery (5-11, 4.72) starts the opener at Five County Stadium at 6:15 PM ET against the Jacksonville Suns.