Anchorage Daily News

Wichita, Kan. -- Holding the glass trophy, signifying his selection to the All-America team, Anchorage Glacier Pilots shortstop Jose Ortega slowly carried it about 15 feet.

Then he casually dropped it on his bag. He sat back down on the artificial turf, clasped his hands and resumed what he was doing.

Fuming.

It was a somber, still scene for the Pilots after they blew a five-run lead in the last three innings Friday night, letting the rival Fairbanks Goldpanners rally for a 7-6 victory at the National Baseball Congress World Series.

Too crushed to even come out of the dugout for a postgame handshake with the Goldpanners, the Anchorage players and coaches waited for about 15 minutes as the All-Americans and other awards were announced.

It was just more time to think about how close they were, leading 6-1 after six innings, to a victory that would have sent them straight to the championship game Sunday.

On the other side of the field, the Goldpanners could do nothing but celebrate a win that kept them in the tournament.

"It's just awesome," Fairbanks outfielder Scott Robinson said. "We've played them so many times and to beat them like that, to beat them here -- that was awesome."

Both Alaska teams will play semifinal games today, with Fairbanks playing the Nevada (Mo.) Griffons at 4:30 p.m. and Anchorage playing the San Luis Obispo (Calif.) Blues at 7 p.m. ADT.

With no undefeated teams left, it's single elimination the rest of the way. The Goldpanners and defending champion Pilots, the only teams to win five NBC titles, just might meet again.

Friday's matchup of Alaska powers did not go as expected. Each team committed four errors and there was some uncharacteristically bad pitching.

Fairbanks threatened in the first inning against Anchorage starter David Purcey, loading the bases with one out. But Purcey, who hit 97 mph on one radar gun, struck out the next two batters.

It was a common theme in Purcey's night. With a runner on third base in the fifth, he struck out Chad Corona, the tournament's leading hitter. In the sixth, Fairbanks again loaded the bases, but Purcey blew a full-count fastball past leadoff batter Tony Perez, ending the inning.

All the while, the Pilots were busy scoring runs off Goldpanners starter Mike Moat. Singles from Bryan Zech and Drew Anderson, a sacrifice fly from Tommy Caple and a double from Haas Pratt led to three runs in the third and a 4-1 lead.

The Pilots added two more in the fifth, capped by Ortega's RBI single to center field.

Anchorage appeared to be in control. Then reliever Kevin Lynch entered the game in the seventh.

He walked Ryan Haag and allowed a single to Todd Jennings. Corona then hit a grounder to Ortega's right. He snagged the ball and tried to sidearm a throw to second base, but it skipped past Zech and into right field.

Haag scored and runners were on second and third with no outs. A walk to Robinson loaded the bases.

But Lynch seemed ready to utilize Purcey's modus operandi. He struck out the next two batters, bringing himself one out from escaping real damage.

Blake Gill came to the plate. A pick-up from the Mat-Su Miners before the tournament, he was 4 for 16 in Fairbanks' first four games.

But he came through this time, ripping a flat slider over Brian Wahlbrink's head in right field, scoring Jennings and Corona.

"I've had a rough tournament, so I was just trying to focus on making good contact," Gill said. "I was down on myself, tired of having my teammates pick me up. It was great to come through for them."

Lynch then balked in Robinson from third base, cutting the Pilots' lead to 6-5 before getting the third out.

It was an uncharacteristic performance for Lynch, who had not allowed an earned run in 211/3 innings this season. That's why Pilots coach Bob Miller sent him back out for the eighth inning.

It would turn out to be a critical mistake. Lynch again walked the leadoff batter, Perez. After a groundout and a spectacular diving catch from Anderson in left field, Lynch was one out away from maintaining the lead.

But Corona hit a chopper to the right side, where second baseman Zech got a glove on it but could not finish off the play. It was ruled a single.

Robinson, the 18-year-old who was 3 for 17 in the tournament to that point, then ripped a double to right field, scoring both runners and giving the Panners a 7-6 lead.

That ended Lynch's night. Bo Ashabraner struck out Tim Montgomery to end the inning.

Miller tried not to second-guess himself about leaving Lynch in that long.

"He was still making pitches," Miller said. "He's a battler, a guy who's competed for us all season. He deserved the chance to get us through that."

Lynch's troubles left Anchorage in need of a ninth-inning run to avoid its first loss. The Pilots had back-to-back singles and Bob Grant was on third base with two outs. But Tim Petru flied out to right field, ending the game and leaving him 0 for 16 in the tournament.

And the Goldpanners were jubilant.

"It's just so huge," Gill said. "To get momentum like this late in the tournament, you can't even say how important it is."

Miller tried to rally his downtrodden troops in the postgame speech. He believes his team, with the experience of winning the NBC last year and rallying in the Alaska Baseball League pennant race this year, has what it takes to overcome such a heartbreaking loss.

"I think we will bounce back," he said. "This isn't going to beat us twice."