Kral’s Walk Off Single Leads Patriots To Victory

Bridgewater, NJ- A Rob Kral RBI single with the bases loaded in the bottom of the tenth inning led the Somerset Patriots to a 6-5 win over the Long Island Ducks at TD Bank Ballpark on Saturday night.

Matt Fields led off the inning with a walk, and after back-to-back intentional walks loaded the bases, Kral drove the seventh pitch of the at-bat to left center for the game-winning RBI single.

“He kept trying to attack me with fast balls. He tried to elevate in the zone and I was thinking about something up and that’s what he was doing. Then all of a sudden he was trying to expand the zone to the outside part of the plate and I was able to get enough bat on it,” said Kral.

For the first time this season, Somerset took an early lead in the first inning. Trayvon Robinson hit his second home run of the season to lead off the bottom of the inning. It marked two consecutive at bats in which Robinson hit a home run, dating back to his three-run blast in Friday night’s win. An RBI infield single by Matt Fields later in the inning made the score 2-0.

The Ducks wasted no time tying up the game in the top of the second on a two-run homer by Cody Puckett (1).

Long Island took a 3-2 lead on a solo home run by Lew Ford (1) in the third.

Somerset powered their way back on top on a solo home run by Carlos Guzman (1) in the bottom of the fourth inning. Kral drove in another run on a ground out in the frame for a 4-3 advantage.

The Ducks came back with two runs to regain the lead on a single by Mike Downs in the sixth inning.

David Vidal’s solo shot (1) in the bottom of the frame knotted the game up at five runs apiece.

Mike Thomas (1-0) picked up the win with a scoreless inning pitched. Nick Struck (0-2) suffered the loss, allowing a run on a hit and three walks (two intentional) in 0.2 innings pitched.

The 2016 Somerset Patriots Season presented by Ford will continue at TD Bank Ballpark on Sunday, April 24^th with a 1:05 pm game against the Long Island Ducks. The game includes Championship Card Strips presented by Mt. Bethel Village, Autism Awareness Day, Pre-Game Autographs and Kids Run The Bases after the game. For tickets, call (908) 252-0700 or visit www.somersetpatriots.com.