Miners move into semifinals

WICHITA -- Scott Simon doubled and drove in Cameron Blair in the bottom of the ninth inning to lead the Mat-Su Miners over Pueblo 4-3 in the National Baseball Congress World Series quarterfinals at Lawrence Dumont Stadium in Wichita on Thursday.

The win placed Mat-Su into a Friday semifinal with the Prairie Gravel. Results were unavailable prior to press time and will be available in the Tuesday edition of the Frontiersman. Mat-Su is now one of only three teams remaining in the 46-team bracket.

With two outs, the score tied at 3-3 and Blair at first base, Simon punched a double into centerfield. Pueblo centerfielder Mike Massaro made a poor play at the ball and Blair -- the reigning Alaska Baseball League player of the year -- cruised around the base paths and charged toward home.

"No way was I going to stop him," Mat-Su manager and third base coach Mike Buchmiller said.

Blair slid across the plate, easily beating the throw, and gave Mat-Su the win.

It marked the third time in as many games the Miners had sealed a victory in the final two innings. To advance to the quarterfinals, Mat-Su needed a four-run eighth to lift themselves past the Anchorage Bucs and earlier in the week a Mike Paulk sacrifice fly in the bottom of the ninth gave the Miners a 4-3 win over the Seminole (Okla.) Rebels.

"We've been getting great clutch hitting," Simon said. "Hope we can carry that."

Simon said the Miners are trying to take a level approach as the club goes for the third World Series title in the history of the organization.

"We can't get to high, can't get to low," Simon said.

That attitude has allowed the Miners to have success late, and not panic when the game has been on the line.

"Late in the game, we seem to make the plays," Buchmiller said.

Mat-Su closer Joey Andrews pitched two scoreless innings and earned the win in relief.

Chris Malone started the contest and allowed just three earned runs over six innings. Malone got into trouble early in the seventh inning and gave up all three of his runs. With the score tied at 3-3 and only one out, Chris Mason relieved Malone and the pitching of Mason and a crucial defensive play by outfielder Brett Bigler possibly saved the game for Mat-Su.

After Mason retired Reno Mendenhall, Jim Cummins sent a Mason pitch deep into the outfield. Bigler, known for his speed on the base paths as well as in the depths of center field, tracked down the ball on a sprint and dove to make the catch.

"Bigler covered a lot of ground and laid out to make, in my mind, the play of the tournament," Buchmiller said. "He kept us alive."

Random hits … Prairie is the only team to beat Mat-Su in tournament play, winning 6-3 in the first bracket … Mason pitched one inning in each of the last two games, but will still start against Prairie.