Sounds Drop Finale in Extras; Split Set with Omaha

The Omaha Storm Chasers used extra innings to beat the Nashville Sounds, 8-3, in front of a sellout crowd of 10,253 at First Tennessee Park Friday night.  
The 11^th inning win overshadowed a stellar performance by Storm Chasers pitcher Jake Junis. The right-hander shutout the Sounds (23-22) over seven innings and limited Nashville to two hits while racking up a season-high 12 strikeouts in the no-decision.
Junis' outing went for naught when the Sounds rallied in the eighth and ninth innings. Trailing 3-0, Joey Wendle sparked the first rally with a leadoff double in the eighth. Two batters later, Jaff Decker singled to right field to trim the deficit to 3-1.
Omaha turned to left-hander Eric Stout for the ninth but the move backfired. Jaycob Brugman started the frame with a sharp single through the left side. Franklin Barreto doubled down the right field line to put a pair of runners in scoring position with nobody out.
Matt Olson followed with a walk to load the bases for Matt Chapman who narrowly missed a game-winning grand slam with a deep fly out to center field. He settled for a sacrifice fly to make it a 3-2 game.
With runners at the corners and one out, hit a bouncer to send to score Barreto with a fielder's choice.  
Sounds reliever Tucker Healy kept the game close. He tossed a scoreless inning in the ninth, and followed suit in the 10^th.
 Trouble started right away for Simon Castro in the 11^th. Ryan O'Hearn laid down a bunt single against a defensive shift to give Omaha a base runner to start the frame. Pinch-runner Billy Burns swiped second base, and then scored when Cam Gallagher singled to left. Renato Nuñez's throw was a perfect one-hop to catcher Ryan Lavarnway who dropped the ball when Burns ran into him.
Wendle committed a fielding error, Castro hit a batter, and Raul Mondesi cleared the bases with a triple to the gap in right-center to make it 7-3. Castro issued a wild pitch to allow Mondesi to trot home with the final run of the night.
The Sounds welcome the Colorado Spring Sky Sox for a five-game series set to begin Saturday night. Right-hander Daniel Gossett (2-2, 3.59) starts for Nashville against right-hander Hiram Burgos (2-3, 5.94) for Colorado Springs. First pitch is scheduled for 6:35 p.m.
The 2017 season is the Sounds' 40^th in franchise history and their third as the Oakland Athletics' top affiliate. Season ticket memberships are available now by calling (615) 690-4487 or by visiting www.nashvillesounds.com.