NOTE: As the video embedded below shows, Joey Bergman, not Nick Longmire made the throw, even though the official game recap credits Nick Longmire.

All season, Nick Longmire has swung a productive bat to help the Batavia Muckdogs make it to the NY-Penn League playoffs.

Tonight, it was Longmire's arm that helped ensure there will be at least one more professional baseball game played in Batavia.

In the top of the ninth, with two out and bases loaded, Tri-City Wildcats shortstop Ben Orloff hit a blooper to center. Longmire charged, dove and the ball ticked off his glove. Chris Wallace scored from third to make the score 5-4. Jacke Healey, on second, never broke stride, charging for home. Muckdogs catcher Juan Castillo stepped in front of the plate blocking Healey's path and taking Bergman's throw on one bounce. Healey didn't have a chance.

The play capped a game that was as good as they come. For the 59,000 Genesee County residents who weren't at Dwyer tonight -- you were in the wrong place.

It was a game that was as unusual as it was compelling. It opened under dark, heavy cloud cover, a threat of rain, and a must-win match in a three-game playoff series after the Muckdogs had already dropped one game.

Orloff opened the first with a double, advanced to third on a ground out and scored on the second out. Starter Zach Russell then walked the next three batters and hit the fourth.

The Muckdogs were down by two runs on only one hit.

In the fifth inning, with the score 2-1, the Muckdogs loaded the bases and Joey Bergman came to the plate working the count to 3-1, or did he? The scoreboard read two balls and one strike. Tri-City starter Jim Robinson tossed the next pitch and it was called a ball.

Bergman dropped his bat and started heading to first, but none of the Muckdogs' runners advanced, as the third-base coach waved his hands for everybody to hold their bases.

As fans yelled "ball four," the Tri-City manager trotted out to home plate to ask what was going on. The four umpires conferred and decided Bergman did in fact draw a walk, allowing Chris Edmundson to score (pictured above).

It's not often, at any level of professional baseball, that you see an attempt at a sacrifice turn into a double play. But in the 7th, following a single to right by Daniel Adamson, Tri-City DH Michael Kvasnicka managed to bunt the ball just hard enough for Batavia pitcher Zach Russell to charge off the mound, scope up the ball, wheel and fire to second. Enrique Hernandez followed with what was then a meaningless double.

Russell left the game after six innings with a 3-2 lead, having given up only one hit, the lead-off double to Orloff.

Keith Butler nailed down the final three outs in the ninth to get the save.

Third baseman Jon Rodriguez had three hits and two RBIs, while both Longmire and Victor Sanchez had two hits each.

Game three of the playoff series is scheduled for 7:05 p.m., Thursday, at Dwyer.

In the other NY-Penn League series, Brooklyn beat Jamestown 9-8 in 12 innings to knot the series at 1-1.

UPDATE: Video by Mike Janes:

More pictures after the jump:

Members of the Local Drug Enforcement Task Force executed a search warrant and 3 Vine St. this evening.

According to Sgt. Steve Mullen of the Genesee County Sheriff's Office four people are currently being detained pending completion of the search.

Mullen did not specify the type of drug activity believed to have taken place at the residence.

On Aug. 26, 40-year-old William J. Butler was taken into custody at the same address. Butler is suspected of trafficking in crack cocaine and was charged with two counts of criminal possession of a controlled substance, 3rd, and promoting prison contraband, 1st.

At least two of the people being held pending completion of the investigation are women.

Mullen anticipates that if any arrests are made, they will be made tonight and a press release will be issued.

A two-car motor-vehicle accident, with two injuries and blocking the roadway, is reported at Alleghany and Judge roads.

Alabama Fire Department is responding. Two ambulances are requested.

UPDATE (5:07 p.m.): Mercy Flight is called to the scene.

UPDATE (5:21 p.m.): Mercy Flight has landed.

UPDATE (5:38 p.m.): Mercy Flight is headed to Strong Memorial Hospital. The ambulance is going to United Memorial. The medic aboard Mercy Flight referred to the crash as a "T-bone" type of accident.

A house is reportedly filling with smoke at 4 James St., Batavia.

City Fire is responding.

UPDATE 4:07 p.m: Second alarm for the fourth platoon, standby at HQ.

UPDATE 4:35 p.m.: A resident, Joseph Trigilo, told firefighters a load of clothes had just finished drying and a few minutes later the smoke detector sounded. They checked the laundry room and it was filling up with smoke. City Fire responded quickly. When firefighters arrived there were flames in the laundry room and the fire was starting to go up a wall. The fire was put out before reaching the attic.

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Gregory S. Snyder, 41, of West Main Street Road, Batavia, is charged with harassment, 2nd. Snyder is accused of throwing and hitting a woman with a crushed beer can and then spitting on her. The alleged incident occurred at 4:15 p.m., Tuesday, at 3687 W. Main St. Road, Batavia.

Julia Bishop Wescott, 27, of Bank Street, Batavia, was picked up on a bench warrant out of family court. Wescott was arraigned in Town of Batavia Court where she posted $100 bail.

Michael L. Jackson was clearly relieved to receive concurrent sentences on multiple felony convictions in Genesee County Court this morning.

After Judge Robert C. Noonan announced that Jackson's two-year prison term on a drug-dealing charge could be served while he's also in prison for breaking into and trashing the offices of Holland High Lift in Bethany, Jackson gave a little thumbs up and turned to his family sitting behind him and smiled.

Dressed in Genesee County Jail orange and with his wrists cuffed, Jackson was clearly anxious about his fate during the morning hearing, up until the point the second sentence was pronounced.

The former Oakfield resident, who's home was destroyed in a fire two years ago, entered a guilty plea to charges of burglary, 3rd, two counts of grand larceny, criminal mischief, 4th, and witness tampering, 4th.

Noonan noted that Jackson clearly recognized he had no defense to the charges when he entered his unconditional plea the day his trial was supposed to start.

He sentenced Jackson to two-and-a-third to seven years in state prison on the burglary and larceny charges and one year concurrent on the witness tampering charge.

After Jackson's June 10 guilty plea, the Batavia resident was caught selling prescription drugs to an undercover agent. Last week, Jackson entered a guilty plea to a charge of criminal sale of a controlled substance.

Jackson obtained no sentencing cap or a promise of concurrent sentences with either guilty plea.

Attorney Gary Horton said Jackson stayed out of trouble from 2003 until 2009, when he lost his home and seemed to go into a tailspin. He said Jackson was so drunk the night in broke into Holland High Lift that he had a blackout and remembers nothing about it.

When asked by Noonan if he wanted to make a statement before sentencing, Jackson said, "Sir, I don't really remember that night. If I did, I should not have done it. Other than that, I'm sorry."

Most of Holland High Lift's losses were covered by insurance, but there was a deductible and a damaged motorcycle that was not covered. Jackson was ordered to pay $2,500 in restitution.

A Rochester man accused of breaking into the home of a former friend and threatening the woman with a knife had his bail set at $50,000 today by Genesee County Court Judge Robert C. Noonan.

Robert Thigpen III, 35, of 287 Flower City Park, Rochester, was jailed without bail after his arrest because with his prior felony conviction, a city court can't set bail.

Noonan set a fairly high bail because of the seriousness of the offense and the prior felony conviction, but also raised a concern that Thigpen will face a more serious charge of burglar, 1st, rather than the current burglary, 2nd, charge, when the case goes to the grand jury.

"The facts in supporting documents would support a burglary, 1st, charge," Noonan said. "I’m not sure if it will shake out that way, but it has the possibility of very serious consequences for Mr. Thigpen."

Thigpen is also charged with menacing, 2nd.

The alleged attack occurred last week on State Street.

The defendant resident has been living and working, including running his own cleaning business, in Rochester for two years.

There were no injuries in an auto accident on Route 19, but a pole and live electrical wires are down on Route 19 in Pavilion.

A car is in a field.

Pavilion Fire has responded.

If the Batavia Muckdogs have had one weakness this year, it's been the bullpen.

While relief pitching has been stellar at points, the Muckdogs have let a lot of games slip away in late innings.

Tonight, in Troy against the Tri-City ValleyCats, the Muckdogs took a two-run lead into the ninth, blew it and ended up losing in the 11th, 10-9.

Closer Michael Reid was charged with a blown save and took the loss, giving up three runs in 2 1/2 innings. Reid had a 2.05 ERA and two wins and two saves during the regular season in 31 innings of work.

Starter John Gast, who came into the playoffs with a regular season record of 6-0 and a 1.54 ERA in six starts, gave up seven runs in five innings.

The Muckdog's offense was led by Jon Rodriguez with four hits and Nick Longmire with three hits, two walks and two RBIs.

Chris Edmundson and Geoff Klein also had two hits each. Edmundson had two RBIs and Klein drew two walks.

The Muckdogs return to Dwyer Stadium at 7:05 p.m., Wednesday, for game two of the three-game series.

The Batavia Blue Devils soccer team dropped a match 3-1 against Brighton this afternoon at the high school. Batavia is now 2-1 on the season and Brighton is 1-2.

More photos after the jump:

An unknown type fire has been reported somewhere in the area of Angling Road, East Pembroke.

The caller is a resident on Main Road and reported seeing flames, but couldn't give the exact location.

East Pembroke Fire is responding.

A fire chief who lives in the area says he hasn't seen anything.

UPDATE 10:07 p.m.: It is apparently a controlled burn.

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Rather than separate posts for each weather-related call, we'll update this single post.

A transformer is on fire at Ledge and Lewiston roads.

Currently, National Grid reports only two minor power outages in the Alabama area.

UPDATE 9:14 p.m.: Nothing found on the Ledge Road/Route 77 to report.

UPDATE 9:16 p.m.: A power outage effecting 25 households has been reported in West Alabama along Lewiston Road.

UPDATE 9:24 p.m.: Severe thunderstorm warning is canceled.

Electrical lines are reportedly sparking at 1076 Broadway Road, Darien.

Darien Fire Department is responding.

UPDATE 9:09 p.m.: Darien Fire back in service.

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At 8:35 p.m., the National Weather Service issued a severe thunderstorm warning for Genesee County.

The warning is in effect until 9:30 p.m.

The storm is capable of producing quarter-size hail and winds in excess of 60 mph.

The storm is producing cloud-to-ground lightening. 

The weather service warns, "Lightning is one of nature's number-one killers. If you can hear thunder, you're close enough to be struck by lightning."

A two-car accident with injuries is reported at Byron Road and Route 262.

Byron and South Byron fire are responding. First responder requests Mercy EMS advanced life-support ambulance to respond.

UPDATE 8:43 p.m. (by Howard): Two sign offs. No ambulance transport. Byron and South Byron back in service.

BATAVIA, NY -- On the first Leandra's Law interlock-device case to go through Genesee County Court, there were some bugs in the bureaucracy to be worked out.

First, the case of Joshua P. Garcia was delayed from the morning to the afternoon so State Probation form DPCA-520 BAL-IID could be filled out. That form is titled "Vehicle Operation and Access By Others," and contains a description of the vehicles a person convicted of DWI could drive.

Garcia, an Erie County resident charged with DWI on Dec. 20, filled out the form originally with two vehicles, but then decided to turn in the plates on one and it was scratched from the form. 

Even so, the county has its own form, and it asked for two pieces of information not on the state form -- vehicle color and the license plate number. Since that form surfaced in court this afternoon, a deputy had to call dispatch and read the VIN number off the DPCA-520 BAL-IID form to a dispatcher and get the plate number.

Then, Garcia's attorney, Jerry Ader, petitioned the court for a hardship waiver so his client wouldn't have to pay for the interlock device. That form had to be filled out in triplicate and handed to the court at the time of sentencing, even though Judge Robert C. Noonan would be ruling on the matter in the same hearing.

In the end, Noonan found that Garcia's $25,000 annual salary was sufficient to pay for the device -- even with the fines for this DWI, a recent DWI conviction in Erie County plus probation fees there. The judge sentenced Garcia to five years probation and 90 days intermittent incarceration.

Noonan said he didn't find Garcia "indigent enough" to waive the interlock-device fees, which judges can do under terms of Leandra's Law.

Garcia, a stepson of Joseph Benaquist, the Pembroke resident murdered by Scott Doll in February, 2009, said he has been through a lot recently and turned to drinking because of the stress.

"Now I see that alcohol has brought problems into my life," Garcia said. "I’m done with alcohol."

Under sentencing guidelines, Noonan had few options, but said, "I have enough faith in you to give you a try on probation."

Ader asked that the interlock-device requirement be delayed until Garcia is eligible for a conditional driver's license.

According to his reading of the law, Ader said, he believed Noonan had the discretion to set a later date for installation.

"It makes no sense when my client does not have license," Ader said. "If he gets behind the wheel of a car while on probation, he’s committing a felony."

But the law also requires the device be installed within 10 days of sentencing, which is what Noonan required.

Contractors working for the state Department of Transportation began working on Ellicott Street, Batavia, this morning.

A 1.7-mile stretch will be milled and resurfaced. By the end of the project, the four-lane roadway will be reduced to three lanes and bike lanes will be added.

Mercy Flight has been dispatched to the Bethany Fire Hall to pick up a man who fell off a ladder.

He reportedly fell 15 feet, but was conscious following the accident.

It occurred on a farm off Route 20 in Bethany.

He was flown to Strong Memorial Hospital.

(UPDATED 12:48 p.m.)

It's been a year since Mercy EMS was established in Genesee County, and during that time Mercy has responded to 4,767 calls in the county.

During the same period, Mercy Flight has been put in the air for medical missions 92 times. There were 166 requests for the helicopter.

In the prior 12 months in Genesee County there were 151 requests and 83 flights.

"As you can see there was no significant change in air transports," said Mercy VP Margaret Ferrentino in an e-mail response to a question about comparable data. "This data along with results of our internal system wide utilization reviews supports appropriate use of resources."

In a statement, Ferrentino said: "We are extremely proud of the men and women at Mercy EMS; their commitment to the community and their dedication to our mission has been outstanding.

“We value the partnerships that have developed with the hospital and agencies throughout the county. The resulting teamwork allows us to effectively provide critical service to those who live, work or play in Genesee County.”

Mercy employs 51 people and has seven ambulances and three paramedic cars in service in Genesee County. 

When Mercy EMS launched on Sept. 1, 2009, the organization hired 57 people. Of those, 43 are still with Mercy.

From the press release:

“To support our patient care focus, we continue to add equipment assets and strive to provide the best work environment possible for our employees,” said Douglas H. Baker, Mercy Flight’s CEO and founding president.