EUGENE, Or — Banana Ball’s takeover reached Eugene as the Savannah Bananas played in front of a sold-out crowd at Autzen Stadium for the first time.
Outscoring the Party Animals in the first, fifth, and sixth innings allowed the Bananas to deliver a 6-3 win.
A game scored based on who scores more per inning saw the Bananas record the first point by outscoring the Party Animals 3-0 in the first inning.
Both teams filled the next few innings with trick plays and evenly matched offense, keeping the margin at one point.
The Bananas responded in the fifth, outscoring the Party Animals 2-0 in the fifth, extending its lead to 2-0.
The Bananas defense stepped up in a major way in the sixth, allowing a one-run lead to be all the Bananas needed to add their third point of the game.
As the 2-hour clock wound down in the eighth inning, both teams realized the eighth inning was the last chance to secure a win.
In Banana Ball, unlike the previous innings, the final inning sees every run scored as a point added.
The Bananas opened the eighth with three runs scored, increasing their game total to 6 points scored.
In order to deliver a win, the Party Animals needed seven runs to win the game.
The Bananas’ defense saw the Party Animals score three runs but nothing more.
Both teams return to Autzen to close out Banana Ball in Eugene on Sunday, June 28 at 1 p.m.
