KENT WINS PBA OKLAHOMA OPEN

                                                       Kent Outlasts Barnes in Championship Match

To Win Grand Casino Hotel & Resort PBA Oklahoma Open

Marshall Kent beats Chris Barnes 194-188 in title match for fourth career title and second of the season

SHAWNEE, Okla. (July 2, 2017) – In a title match that featured five lead changes, Marshall Kent of Yakima, Wash., outlasted 18-time PBA Tour winner Chris Barnes of Double Oak, Texas, to win the Grand Casino Hotel & Resort PBA Oklahoma Open Sunday for his second title of the season and fourth of his career.

With both players struggling to start the match, Kent fired four consecutive strikes in the ninth and 10th frames to defeat Barnes, 194-188, during the ESPN telecast contested on two specially-installed lanes in the Grand Hotel Event Center for his first win on national television.

“That was a lot harder than I wanted to work,” said the 24-year-old Kent, “but I’m grateful to be standing here as the winner. It’s a dream come true.”

With both players hampered by splits, Barnes held a 12-pin lead in the eighth frame but Kent was able to come back with strikes in the eighth, ninth and the first two in the 10th to clinch the win.

“The first half of the game I just didn’t throw the ball well,” Kent said. “I knew after the seventh frame I still had a chance but I had to buckle down and make good shots. Finally, I executed the way I should have and was fortunate to put those strikes together.”  

Kent, who was the top qualifier for the finals averaging 227.4 for the tournament contested on four different PBA lane conditions, earned the opportunity to choose the lane conditions for both Saturday’s semi-final and Sunday’s championship stepladder rounds. He chose the 40-foot Bear lane condition for Saturday’s round but changed his selection to the 32-foot Wolf condition for the championship round.

“In the semi-final the right side (of the lane) got a little ugly and the guys were struggling,” Kent said. “It just didn’t develop the way I thought and felt I would have a more consistent reaction on the Wolf. I was good with my decision, I just had to execute.”

Kent had not won a match on television in six appearances which included three runner-up finishes that came in the 2016 U.S. Open, 2015 Wolf Open and 2013 Scorpion Open.

“This win was important for my confidence,” Kent said. “I proved I have the versatility to compete on a variety of lane conditions and I can win in a pressure situation.”

In the opening match, Barnes, who qualified fourth for the finals, defeated six-time Tour winner Jesper Svensson of Sweden, 190-149, who earned his berth in the championship round by winning Saturday’s semi-final round.

In the second match Barnes beat four-time Tour winner and No. 3 qualifier Rhino Page of Orlando, 206-185, to advance to the semi-final match where he beat three-time PBA Player of the Year Jason Belmonte of Australia, 256-218.

After a slow start in the tournament, finishing 28th after the first round and 12th after the third round earlier in the week, Belmonte surged to the no. 2 qualifying spot for the finals by averaging 256 in the fourth round on the 44-foot Oklahoma lane condition.

The next stop for the PBA Tour will be the Storm PBA/PWBA Striking Against Breast Cancer Mixed Doubles July 27-30 in Houston.

GRAND CASINO HOTEL & RESORT PBA OKLAHOMA OPEN

Grand Hotel Event Center, Shawnee, Okla., Sunday

Championship Round Standings

1, Marshall Kent, Yakima, Wash., $30,000.

2, Chris Barnes, Double Oak, Texas $15,000.

3, Jason Belmonte, Australia, $12,000.

4, Rhino Page, Orlando, Fla., $10,000.

5, Jesper Svensson, Sweden, $9,000.

Stepladder Results

Match One – Barnes def. Svensson, 190-149.

Match Two – Barnes def. Page, 206-185.

Match Three – Barnes def. Belmonte, 256-218.

Match Four – Kent def. Barnes, 194-188.

Saturday’s Semi-final Stepladder Round Standings

5, Jesper Svensson, Sweden (advanced to fifth qualifying position for Sunday’s stepladder finals)

6, Thomas Larsen, Denmark, $8,000.

7, EJ Tackett, Huntington, Ind., $7,000.

8, Tom Smallwood, Saginaw, Mich., $6,000.

9, Tom Daugherty, Riverview, Fla., $5,000.

Stepladder Results

Match One – Smallwood def. Daugherty, 232-211.

Match Two – Svensson def. Smallwood, 213-201.

Match Three – Svensson def. Tackett, 179-150.

Match Four – Svensson def. Larsen, 192-160.

PONIES WIN DOUBLEHEADER SUNDAY

Conlon, Moore Push Ponies to Sens Sweep

BINGHAMTON, NY – The Binghamton Rumble Ponies took both games of a doubleheader against the Harrisburg Senators, Sunday afternoon at NYSEG Stadium. After walking off 1-0 in game one, the Ponies rumbled back for a 3-2 victory in the nightcap. Binghamton and Harrisburg have played five straight one-run games.

Game One – Binghamton 1, Harrisburg 0

P.J. Conlon and Matthew Crownover dueled for six innings before Binghamton finally broke through in the seventh and final frame. Conlon gave up six hits and struck out three in the no-decision, while Crownover coughed up just four hits while whiffing six.

Still scoreless in the bottom of the seventh, the Ponies needed just two batters to earn the win. Kevin Kaczmarski’s line drive to centerfield eluded the dive of Darian Sanford, resulting in a leadoff triple. The next batter, Gustavo Nunez, hit a sacrifice fly to deep right field, scoring Kaczmarski and giving Binghamton a 1-0 win.

Ben Griset (3-0) pitched a perfect top half of the seventh inning with one strikeout.

Andrew Robinson (1-1) took his first loss of the season and has allowed tallies in back-to-back appearances.

Game Two – Binghamton 3, Harrisburg 2

The start to the nightcap was quite different than the start to game one. Casey Delgado gave up a single and walked three in the opening frame, aiding the Senators to a 1-0 lead.

Harrisburg tacked on another run in the second to pad their early advantage. With runners on the corners and Corban Joseph at the dish, Darian Sanders attempted to swipe second base. Colton Plaia’s throw evaded L.J. Mazzilli’s glove and squeaked into centerfield, allowing Jake Lowery to score from third.

The Ponies responded quickly in the home half though, when Tyler Moore earned his first RBI as a Rumble Ponies. His bases-loaded single scored David Thompson to halve the deficit, 2-1.

After a fifty-minute rain delay in the top of the third inning, Scarlyn Reyes was summoned from the bullpen to relieve Delgado. Reyes tossed 2-2/3 scoreless innings to keep it a one-run game.

Binghamton didn’t break through until the bottom of the sixth inning, taking advantage of a Senators blunder. Moore again stepped to the plate with the bases loaded, and after fouling off four two-strike pitches, hit a hard ground ball to Joseph at second base. Joseph’s throw went awry, allowing Thompson and Mazzilli to score, giving the Ponies their first lead of the contest, 3-2.

Corey Taylor (5-4) pitched two scoreless innings and helped leave the potential tying run on third base in the seventh inning,

Jimmy Cordero (2-3) pitched 2/3 of an inning and allowed the winning run, despite it being unearned.

The Rumble Ponies (43-34) conclude their four-game set with the Senators on Monday night. Binghamton sends RHP Corey Oswalt to the rubber to face Harrisburg RHP John Simms. First pitch is slated for 6:35 PM at NYSEG Sstadium. The Horizons Federal Credit Union Pregame Show can be heard starting at 6:20 PM on News Radio 1290 WNBF and the Binghamton Rumble Ponies channel on TuneIn.

POSTGAME NOTES: Binghamton has swept four doubleheaders in seven tries…the Rumble Ponies were out hit in both games…Matt Oberste extended his hitting streak to nine games with a double in game one…

Tickets for Binghamton’s entire home schedule can be purchased at the NYSEG Stadium box office, online on www.bingrp.com and over the phone at (607) 722-FUNN.

YU LIU WINS AT MICHIGAN

CANADIAN LAKES, Michigan, July 2, 2017 - Yu Liu (Beijing, China) chipped in for birdie on hole 15 and held on tight for her first Symetra Tour win at the Tullymore Classic on Sunday. Liu carded a 4-under, 68 to come from two shots off the lead to narrowly edge Sophia Popov (Heidelberg, Germany) Lindsey Weaver (Bellefontaine, Ohio) and Jessica Welch (Thomasville, Ga.), who tied for second. Liu is just the third player from China to win on the Symetra Tour. The other two are Yueer Cindy Feng (2014) and Hong Mei Yang (2004). 

                                                                    

Liu finished at 16-under, 200 with rounds of 64-68-68 to earn the first place check of $15,000. She moves from tenth on the Volvik Race for the Card money list to No. 5 with $42,571 earned in 12 starts. 

“It is amazing, the first win was really tough,” said Liu. “To have my friends out there supporting me on the last hole is definitely an experience that I will remember for life.”

Liu started red hot with birdies at holes one and two to quickly move into a share of the lead. She moved into the lead with birdies on holes six and eight. Meanwhile, Weaver tripped up with bogeys on holes five and six to fall back to 12-under, but did recover with birdies on eight and nine to make the turn two off the lead. 

After four pars on the back nine, the turning point came on hole 15 when Liu chipped in for birdie from the rough. 

“That was definitely one of the turning points,” said Liu. “Lindsey was first to hit and she knocked it close, like ten feet. I had 174 yards to the pin and it was downwind so I used my 7-iron and I did a three-quarter shot, but I just smashed it and it went over the green and in the rough. I felt that I really needed a par save there and I didn’t expect it to go in. It really helped me.”

After the chip in, Liu moved to 17-under while Weaver remained at 14-under with three holes left. Liu saved par on 16 after hitting her second shot in the water and then made another par on 17. Weaver made birdie on 17 to pull back within two shots. 

On the par-5 18th, Liu hit her tee shot right and into the fescue and decided to take an unplayable. Weaver played the hole very well and hit her third to about 15-feet. Liu then played a beautiful fourth shot to about five feet. Weaver was first to putt and just lipped out for birdie. Liu had two putts to win and actually missed her par putt and then tapped in for bogey to win by one. 

Liu was doused on the 18th green with water by fellow Tour professionals Ruixin Liu, Tiffany Chan, Victoria Morgan and Mind Muangkhumsakul. 

Welch, who was playing in the group in front, had a similar birdie putt to Weaver to get to 16-under and 

nearly made it. Popov, who played with Welch, made birdie on the 18th to get to 15-under and finished in a tie for second. 

“Very happy with the way I played today,” said Popov, who moved to tenth on the money list. “The 

consistency is very important to me right now and three 67’s shows that. I like where my game is at right now and hopefully I can keep it going.”

Liu had an incredible week with 22 birdies and it appeared as if her game was building towards a 

performance like this. She finished in a tie for fifth last week at the Island Resort Championship. 

“This definitely helps not only from the ranking standpoint, but this is a big confidence booster for me 

knowing that I am capable of winning out here,” said Liu. “I’ve been close a couple of times, but I haven’t been able to get it done until now. Getting a win really differentiates the best players from the good players.”

This is her third professional victory and first since turning pro. She won two China LPGA events as an 

amateur. Liu went to Duke for one year and was the 2013-14 ACC Freshman of the Year before deciding to turn pro. She started playing in the United States as an amateur in AJGA events. 

Liu now has a win and a T4 finish in consecutive years at Tullymore Golf Resort.

“This is just my favorite golf course without a doubt.”

JESSICA WELCH WITH ANOTHER TOP 5: Jessica Welch has come on strong since the beginning of June. She finished in a tie for third at the Decatur-Forsyth Classic and now can add a career-best tie for second to her growing list of accomplishments. 

Welch posted a 5-under, 67 to nearly find her way into a playoff.

“I felt really good today and I hit the ball really solid again,” said Welch. “While I’m a little disappointed that I couldn’t finish it out on 18, I’m definitely feeling confident going into the Open.”

Welch qualified for the U.S. Women’s Open in early June. 

She moved from 45 to 27 on the new money list. 

BERMINGHAM ACES HOLE 12 IN FINAL ROUND: Jennifer Bermingham (Long Beach, Calif.) made an ace on the 12th hole in the final-round of the Tullymore Classic and posted a 2-under, 70 to finish T43.

It was the fifth ace of her career. 

The funny part of the hole-in-one is that she almost used the wrong yardage. Fellow Tour professional 

Kristin Coleman, who missed the cut, was on her bag on Sunday and saved the day. 

“I had the wrong yardage and Kristin was like ‘that is not the front edge yardage’ so I switched clubs,” 

explained Bermingham. “I was originally going to hit a 7-iron and then I hit a 6-iron and made a hole-in-one.”

The ace came from 168 yards out.

“It landed right by the pin and rolled up the hill and nobody clapped for me, I thought that it was such a good shot and I couldn’t believe nobody clapped,” explained Bermingham because the hole is not visible from the tee box. “All of a sudden, my host mom, Lynne, screams so it was pretty awesome.”

SWB RAILRIDERS IN ROUT

Homers Carry RailRiders in Rout

SWB Smashes Six Big Flies, Two Apiece from Choi, Payton

Pawtucket, R.I. – The SWB RailRiders (Triple-A/New York Yankees) clubbed six home runs and routed the host Pawtucket Red Sox (Boston Red Sox) on Sunday evening, 14-7. The RailRiders (50-32) reached the 50-win mark in their 82^nd game of the season, matching the pace of last year’s Triple-A National Champions. The PawSox (40-40) fell to 5-9 against the RailRiders and cannot win the regular-season series.

Ji-Man Choi launched the first of his two homers in the opening inning for a quick 1-0 lead. Solo shots by Billy McKinney and Mark Payton made it 3-1 in the second. After Pawtucket trimmed the margin to one in the third, the RailRiders immediately responded by posting a four-spot in the fourth including a three-run blast to right-center by Choi.

The other homers came from Eddy Rodriguez to start the sixth and from Payton with a two-run shot in the seventh.

Starter Chance Adams (6-2) picked up the win. Shawn Haviland (4-6) gave up four homers over 3.2 innings to take the loss.

The series concludes at 6:05 p.m. on Monday. SWB is scheduled to toss right-hander Ronald Herrera against southpaw Edgar Olmos (5-2, 1.93). The RailRiders return home on the Fourth of July to face the Buffalo Bisons (Toronto Blue Jays) at 7:05 p.m. The contest will sport post-game fireworks courtesy of the PA Lottery. For tickets or more information, please call 570-969-BALL (2255) or visit swbrailriders.com.

OFF THE RAILS:

Mark Payton went 2-for-5 with two homers and three RBIs. It marks the first multi-homer game of his career.

Donovan Solano went 3-for-6 with an RBI.

Ji-Man Choi finished 2-for-5 with two homers and five RBIs. Choi has hit five of his eight home runs on the road trip including two multi-homer games, the first two of his minor league career.

Billy McKinney went 2-for-5 with his first Triple-A home run and a walk.

Miguel Andujar doubled on a 2-for-6 night.

Billy Fleming went 3-for-5 with an RBI and two runs scored.

Eddy Rodriguez went 2-for-3 with a homer, two RBIs, a walk and two runs scored.

The RailRiders amassed season-high totals in runs (14), hits (19) and homers (6). The home run total tied a RailRiders era record first set on June 24, 2016, also at Pawtucket, but in a 10-inning game. Tyler Austin hit a franchise-record-tying three home runs in that affair, all during the first nine frames before Solano, Aaron Judge and Gary Sanchez went back-to-back-to-back to begin the 10^th in the 8-5 win.

The PawSox announced a sellout crowd of 11,007, the biggest crowd to see the RailRiders on the road this season.

The RailRiders have won 13 of their last 19 games.

PAWSOX SWEEP RAILRIDERS

PawSox Sweep RailRiders

Identical 5-2 Victories Posted by Rival Hosts

Pawtucket, R.I. – The SWB RailRiders (Triple-A/New York Yankees) dropped a pair of games to the host Pawtucket Red Sox (Boston Red Sox) on Saturday by identical scores of 5-2. The RailRiders (49-32) have lost back-to-back road games for the first time since May 11-12 at Syracuse. The PawSox (40-39) have won six of their last eight to climb back over .500.

The teams picked up a suspended game in the top of the fourth with SWB trailing, 2-0. The fifth frame began with a Cito Culver double and a Jake Cave homer, his fifth of the year, to tie the game, 2-2. Pawtucket took the lead back on Ryan Court’s two-run homer to right in the seventh and added to the lead with Jhonny Peralta’s line-drive homer to left in the eighth. Jamie Callahan (1-1) got the win in relief for Pawtucket. SWB’s J.R. Graham (0-1) suffered the loss.

In the nightcap, a seven-inning game, starter Dietrich Enns retired the first 10 men he faced. His perfection ended when the rehabbing Pablo Sandoval cranked a homer to left field. In the fifth, Aneury Tavarez singled home a pair and Matt Dominguez bashed a two-run homer off reliever Ben Heller in the sixth. Pawtucket starter Hector Velazquez carried a shutout into the seventh before Abiatal Avelino doubled and Devyn Bolasky homered to right to knock him out of the game. Brandon Workman recorded the final three outs for his second save. Velazquez (5-1) earned the win and Enns (0-1) suffered the loss.

The series continues at 6:05 p.m. on Sunday. SWB is scheduled to toss Chance Adams (5-2, 2.27) against fellow right-hander Shawn Haviland (4-5, 3.86). The RailRiders return home on the Fourth of July to face the Buffalo Bisons (Toronto Blue Jays) at 7:05 p.m. The contest will sport post-game fireworks courtesy of the PA Lottery. For tickets or more information, please call 570-969-BALL (2255) or visit swbrailriders.com.

OFF THE RAILS:

Jake Cave went 1-for-3 in each game including his two-run homer in the first affair.

Donovan Solano also went 1-for-3 in each game. He doubled and walked in the opener.

Dietrich Enns’ start was his first Triple-A appearance since April 14.

The RailRiders played error-free baseball in the nightcap, snapping a season-long run of games with a miscue at eight.

The PawSox belted five homers between the two games including the seventh of the year for Matt Dominguez. Five of those seven big flies have come against the RailRiders.

SWB has lost four of its five games at McCoy Stadium this season.

The PawSox announced a sellout crowd of 10,032 for the Saturday action.

Pawtucket snapped a six-game home losing streak.

RAILRIDERS RESUME PLAY AT 4:35

Rain Suspends Play in Pawtucket

Teams to Resume Play at 4:35 p.m. on Saturday

Pawtucket, R.I. – The SWB RailRiders (Triple-A/New York Yankees) and Pawtucket Red Sox (Boston Red Sox) had their series opener on Friday night suspended due to rain after three innings of play. The teams will pick up the contest at the start of the fourth with Pawtucket holding a 2-0 advantage at 4:35 p.m. on Saturday. The game will be played to a nine-inning regulation conclusion. A seven-inning game will follow.

The lone runs of the game so far came on a two-run homer to left-center by Bryce Brentz, his team-leading 18^th of the year, off of starter Daniel Camarena.

The RailRiders return home on the Fourth of July to face the Buffalo Bisons (Toronto Blue Jays) at 7:05 p.m. The contest will sport post-game fireworks courtesy of the PA Lottery. For tickets or more information, please call 570-969-BALL (2255) or visit swbrailriders.com.

HARRISBURG TOPS BINGHAMTON 4-3

Senators Govern Southern Tier in Opener, 4-3

BINGHAMTON, NY – A tally in the top of the ninth sent the Harrisburg Senators past the Binghamton Rumble Ponies, 4-3, Friday night at NYSEG Stadium.Both teams collected nine hits and committed one error, but five of the Senators knocks came with runners in scoring position. Binghamton stranded the potential tying and winning runs on base in the bottom of the ninth inning.

Deadlocked at 3-3 since the sixth inning, the Senators took and held the lead in the game’s final frame. Isaac Ballou led off the ninth with a pinch-hit single, before being moved to second on Darian Sandford’s sacrifice bunt. Yadiel Hernandez brought in the winning run when his hard hit ground ball banked off of Matt Oberste’s glove and ricocheted into right field.

Tim Peterson (2-3) took the hit with the loss, despite tossing a perfect eighth inning.

Colton Plaia began the scoring on Friday night with his first home run of the season. It was his first long ball since July 26, 2016.

Senators starter Austen Williams lasted just 2.1 innings, with Plaia’s blast as the lone run on his card. He was hit with a comebacker off the bat of L.J. Mazzilli in the second inning, but remained in the game.

Harrisburg responded quickly from the Plaia tally, plating a pair in the fourth inning. Mario Lisson singled home Jose Marmolejos, before Khayyon Norfork’s 45-foot dribbler turned into an RBI single.

Matt Oberste supplied a two-out two-run double in the fifth inning, extending his hitting streak to eight games and tying the ball game at 3-3.

Mickey Jannis gave up three runs across 6-1/3 frames, while whiffing four batters. He tossed 103 pitches before ceding to Kelly Secrest. The southpaw Secrest helped wiggle out of seventh inning jam, and tossed a hitless 2/3 of an inning.

The Rumble Ponies (41-34) continue their four-game set with the Senators on Saturday night. Binghamton sends LHP P.J. Conlon to the rubber to face Harrisburg RHP Matthew Crownover. First pitch is slated for 7:05 PM at NYSEG Sstadium. The Horizons Federal Credit Union Pregame Show can be heard starting at 6:50 PM on News Radio 1290 WNBF and the Binghamton Rumble Ponies channel on TuneIn.

POSTGAME NOTES: David Thompson’s team-best 12-game hitting streak came to an end…Colton Plaia’s home run was his first in 340 days…Binghamton has lost three straight series openers

Tickets for Binghamton’s entire home schedule can be purchased at the NYSEG Stadium box office, online on www.bingrp.com and over the phone at (607) 722-FUNN.