By VAN WILLIAMS
Anchorage Daily News

ANCHORAGE--Samuel Carl Assael goes by S.C. or Sammy. He prefers Sammy.

He hit a ball like Sammy on Sunday.

The Anchorage Glacier Pilots catcher won the game with a home run in the seventh inning as the Pilots beat the Alaska Goldpanners 2-1 in the Anchorage Bucs Wooden Bat Tournament at Mulcahy Stadium.

"I just turned on one," Assael said of the waist-high fastball. "It was right where I like it."

The homer was Assael's first extra-base hit of the summer, spanning 84 at-bats and 33 games.

He homered off previously unbeaten Brian Felten, an all-Alaska Baseball League selection, with one out in the seventh.

His only hit of the day raised his average to .202.

He even stole a base.

"It was my day," Assael said.

Assael's clutch dinger made a winner of Royce Ring (3-1), who pitched 1[1/3] innings of relief for starter Nick Moran. Moran pitched great before running into trouble in the sixth when he issued back-to-back walks with two outs.

Moran left after 5[2/3] innings, having allowed three hits and one run. He walked five and struck out three.

Goldpanners starter Andrew Davidson pitched well after allowing Anchorage to score in the top of the first. With one out, Andy Stewart doubled and scored on Randy Walter's single.

Davidson buckled down from there, limiting the Pilots to two singles and a walk before being replaced by Felten.

The Panners tied the game in the fourth after Jonah Martin walked and scored on a single by Jeff Phelps.

Phelps replaced all-ABL first baseman Ryan Garko, who suffered a wrist injury and will miss the remainder of the season, including the Panners' trip to Wichita, Kan., for the National Baseball Congress World Series.

The Pilots (23-24) wrap up their season today against the Mat-Su Miners at 5 p.m. The Panners finished the tournament late Sunday against the Peninsula Oilers in a game that didn't begin until after 10:30 p.m.

July 31, 2000 Daily News-Miner