For four hours and 21 minutes- until 12:26 am- the East Texans and the Bears went at it and the issue wasn't decided until Jack Louman forced Joe Campbell for the third out of the 20th frame by rapping a hot grounder to short.
During those 20 innings some of the most brilliant pitching and fielding seen this year at East Texan Park was unreeled.
Red Murff of the East Texans and Jodie Phipps of the Bears hooked up in a hurling duel that will ball fans of Tyler talking for many years to come.
Phipps, the winner, worked 19 innings and gave up 10 hits while striking out 11 and walking four. He was most effective in the extra innings than he was in the regulation nine. During the first nine innings he yielded seven safeties and two runs, but in the 10 extra innings he worked he gave up only three hits and no runs. He pitched no hit ball from the seventh through the 14th. Phipps gave way to Ray Yochim in the 20th after serving up three consecutive balls to Bob White.
Murff gave up the same number of earned runs as Phipps, two, but had an unearned tally in the fifth also charged against him. The Tyler red head yielded 15 hits in 19 2/3 innings, struck out seven and walked seven. He gave up only two hits from the 12th through the 19th innings, but was touched for four safeties and the winning run in the 20th.
It was Phipps, himself, who singled to lead off the 20th and he went to second as Howie Martin singled. Roy Sanner slapped a liner to single but Johnny Stone made a great throw to home to nip Phipps at the plate.
Martin went to third on the play and scored the winning run as Moe Santomauro slipped a bleeder single through the pitcher's box.
Tyler had two runners on base via the free transportation route in the bottom of the 20th, but could not push them around.
There were so many fielding gems during the night that base hit robbery that would win wide acclaim in most games were accepted as run of the mill plays by the fans. Tyler backed Murff with four double plays.
The game had it's bitter moments, too, when Texarkana Manager Tony York and second baseman Hal Haddican were ejected from the game in the 15th inning for arguing a decision at first base.
And Tyler lost Milan Vucelich for the game and maybe several others when he pulled a charley horse in his leg while sliding into second base in the first inning.
Tyler got both it's runs in the sixth on doubles by Joe Campbell and Dean Stafford, a walk to Billy Capps, and a long fly ball by Ralph Fernandez.
Texarkana scored an unearned run in the fifth and picked up another tally in the eighth to tie the score at 2-2., where it remained until the top of the 20th.
A crowd of 1163 fans witnessed the game and some 500 of them stuck around for the finish. It was the longest game played in the Big State League this year and probably the longest in the league's history.
Murff now has an 11-10 record and Phipps is 10-6.
Tonight Garry Clark, who is 2-2, will face the Bears and southpaw Pete Mayor (3-8) will work for Texarkana in the second game of the series which will begin at 8:00 pm.
TEXARKANA AB R H BI TYLER AB R H BI
Harold Haddican 2B 7 0 1 0 Joe Campbell 3B-RF 7 1 1 0
Jack Bumgarner 2B 2 0 0 0 Jack Louman 2B 9 1 2 0
Howie Martin CF 8 2 2 0 Milan Vucelich RF 1 0 1 0
Tex Sanner RF 6 0 2 1 Bill Capps 3B 5 0 0 0
Moe Santomauro LF-3B 9 0 3 1 Dean Stafford LF 8 0 1 1
Alton McAfee 1B 9 1 2 0 Rafael Fernandez C 8 0 2 1
Tony York 3B 6 0 1 0 John Stone CF 8 0 1 0
Dick Demski LF 1 0 0 0 Bob White 1B 7 0 1 0
Bill Wynns SS 6 0 1 0 Irv Carlson SS 7 0 0 0
Steve Karas C 8 0 1 0 Red Murff P 6 0 1 0
Jodie Phipps P 8 0 2 0 Armin Somonte P 0 0 0 0
Ray Yochim P 0 0 0 0 Wilfredo Roca PH 0 0 0 0
Hugh Radcliffe PR 0 0 0 0
TOTALS 70 3 15 2 TOTALS 66 2 10 2
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TEXARKANA 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1- 3
TYLER 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0- 2
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
E--Phipps, Carlson. LOB--Texarkana 14, Tyler 12. DP--Tyler 4.
2B--Haddican, Sanner, Campbell, Stafford. 3B--Santomauro.
S--Capps, Murff.
TEXARKANA IP H R BB SO
Phipps (W, 10-6) 19.0 10 2 4 11
Yochim (S) 1.0 0 0 2 0
TYLER
Murff (L, 11-10) 19.2 15 3 7 7
Somonte 0.1 0 0 0 1
WP--Murff.
Umpires--Harshaney, Smith.
T--4:21. A--1,163.