Nobuhiro Matsuda raised his fist in triumph in front of the dugout as he and over 30,000 fans shook Yafuoku Dome with a spirited yell of "atsuo," the custom in Fukuoka whenever Matsuda goes deep.
Matsuda spun around while hopping on one leg as six innings of simmering tension exploded into a sudden burst of euphoria.
Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks starter Rei Takahashi carried a no-hitter into the seventh, Matsuda injected some offense into a game that had belonged to the pitchers with a tiebreaking three-run home run in the seventh and the Hawks moved closer to another Japan Series title with a 6-3 victory over the Yomiuri Giants in Game 2 on Sunday night in Kyushu.