Last Inning Rally Sinks Raptors

For much of the Ogden Raptors' game Wednesday night at Lindquist Field, it appeared the hosts would win and improve to a .500 record on the season. A few batters in to the ninth, however, that changed - and the Orem Owlz came back for a stunning 3-2 win to pull into a 3^rd-place tie with Ogden.
Both teams benefitted from excellent starting pitcher performances. Ogden's Jose Chacin struck out seven batters through five scoreless innings, with only two hits and two walks allowed, and he was matched nearly pitch-for-pitch by Orem's John Swanda, who gave up three hits and struck out five in four innings.
The Raptors struck first, with Daniel Robinson tripling as the first batter against the Owlz first reliever, and Jeremy Arocho punched a single through the drawn-in infield for a 1-0 lead.
Niko Hulsizer used his legs to produce the hosts' second run, taking a lead off walk in the sixth, stealing second base and advancing to third on a throwing error, and scoring on a passed ball.
Jeremiah Muhammad held the two-run lead with three nearly-perfect innings, including striking out the side in the seventh.
In the ninth, Orem's leadoff hitter stroked a single against Vinny Santarsiero, and the next batter launched a game-tying two-run home run. A walk and hit batter removed Santarsiero, and reliever Jasiel Alvino entered. He struck out his first batter on three pitches and went to an 0-2 count on the second. A grounder to the left side went through to left field for an error, though, and the go ahead run sprinted home.
The Raptors threatened in the bottom of the ninth, putting runners on the corners with two out, but they couldn't tie the game.
Ogden now goes on the road to Orem for two games, with the Owlz home opener starting at 7:05 on Thursday night.