Kaiser hits 3 HRs to lead Lake Park's comeback win

Lake Park's Matt Kaiser put a pair of great swings on the ball in his first two at-bats, yet things weren't going all that well for the Lancers on Friday at Neuqua Valley.

But Kaiser was just warming up. And by the time he was done, his 3-home run, 4-hit effort helped Lake Park (6-0) turn a 10-2 deficit into a memorable, 13-10, 8-inning victory to open Upstate Eight Conference play.

Kaiser ripped a deep flyball to the warning track in the first inning but was surprised to have it land in the glove of center fielder Mike Gerber in left center. Then he blasted a 2-run homer to center in the top of the fourth, but the Lancers still trailed 7-2 at the time, and the deficit grew to 10-2 after the Wildcats countered with a run in the bottom of the fourth and 2 more in the fifth.

He then opened the visitors' 8-run sixth inning with a single and followed with a game-tying 2-run smash over the left-field fence later that same inning that sent the game to extra innings.

Kaiser's already monster game managed to get much bigger when he belted a 2-run home run off a changeup from Wildcats reliever Jason Avallone (0-1), who pitched 11/3 innings and was tagged with the loss.

"We never stopped believing. We always want to keep fighting back," said Kaiser, who admitted to prematurely going into a home-run trot during his first inning flyball. "It feels great."

Neuqua starter Kevin Clendending cruised through 5 innings, limiting Lake Park to just 2 runs and 4 hits before appearing to run out of gas in the sixth. After Kaiser's leadoff single, pinch-hitter Dave Dial homered and Artie Monaco followed with a double to end Clendening's day.

Reliever Kevin Hodgman retired the first batter he faced, but a pair of hit batsmen and pair of errors extended the inning long enough for Kaiser to tie the game with the second of his homers.

"It's not a bad career for most of these guys," Lake Park coach Dan Colucci said of his first baseman's afternoon. "These guys show a lot of life. When we were down 10-2 against Neuqua Valley, I was thinking about emptying the bench and getting guys to throw."

Kaiser's performance overshadowed some nice efforts by Wildcats hitters Gerber and Cody Cooper, each of whom had 4 hits, including a 3-run homer by Gerber in the second.

"I don't know what to tell you. You saw the same game I did," Neuqua coach Robin Renner said. "Some things are going to have to change or it will be a long spring."

Once Lake Park battled back from its big hole, senior Peter Spear did his part to keep the team unbeaten. After missing last season with Tommy John surgery, Spear blanked the Wildcats for 3 innings with 6 strikeouts to earn the win.

"This is just awesome," the 2-0 right-hander said. "We're going with it. We're feeling great right now."