ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- From worst to first, and now back in the AL championship series. Shane Victorinos infield single snapped a seventh-inning tie and journeyman Craig Breslow gave Boston a huge boost out of the bullpen, sending the Red Sox into the ALCS with a 3-1 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays on Tuesday night. Koji Uehara got the final four outs -- one night after giving up a game-winning homer -- and Boston rebounded to take the best-of-five playoff 3-1. A year after finishing in last place, the AL East champion Red Sox won 97 games to match St. Louis for the best record in baseball. Now, theyre moving on to the ALCS for the first time in five years. "Its great, but weve still got one more to get where we want to be," Victorino said. "Were going to get a few days off to rest and see what happens in the other division series, and well go from there." After the resilient Rays were finally eliminated, Boston will open at home Saturday against the Athletics or Tigers. Oakland hosts Detroit in a decisive Game 5 on Thursday. Both managers mixed and matched all night at Tropicana Field in a tense game that felt more like a chess match. Desperately trying to force a fifth game, Rays skipper Joe Maddon used nine pitchers -- a post-season record for a nine-inning game -- and had ace David Price warming up for a potential 10th inning. "The way it was working at the beginning there, I could see it was just not going to work and we had to do something differently," Maddon said. "We became a little bit more extemporaneous at that point." Breslow relieved Boston starter Jake Peavy in the sixth and struck out his first four batters -- all in the middle of Tampa Bays lineup. The 33-year-old lefty from Yale has pitched for six teams in eight big league seasons, including two stints with the Red Sox. "We had guys come to spring training, everybody bought in," Breslow said, explaining Bostons quick turnaround after going 69-93 last year. "Theres accountability and 25 guys who prioritize winning baseball games beyond any kind of individual achievement or accolade." The highest-scoring team in the majors this season, Boston scratched out three runs on six singles in a game that featured only one extra-base hit. But that was enough to knock out the wild-card Rays, who won four win-or-go-home games over the previous nine days. "They didnt make any mistakes. You could see their grit," Maddon said. "Theyve got a bunch of gamers over there. ... On the other side, I think our guys were equally as tough. We have had a hard time hitting their pitching staff." Making their fourth playoff appearance in six years, the low-budget Rays have not advanced past the division series since reaching the 2008 World Series. Xander Bogaerts scored the tying run on Joel Peraltas wild pitch in the seventh and Victorino followed with an RBI infield single. Dustin Pedroia drove in Bogaerts with a sacrifice fly in the ninth to make it 3-1, and Uehara struck out Evan Longoria to end it. "It feels great," outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury said. "We played a great team over there. It was a hard-fought game. Its more mentally tiring than anything. But its a fun group of guys." David DeJesus snapped a scoreless tie with an RBI single in the sixth for the Rays, and Boston squandered several opportunities before finally breaking through in the seventh. Bogaerts drew a pinch-hit walk with one out and raced to third on Ellsburys two-out single off Jake McGee. The Rays brought in their sixth pitcher, Peralta, and the game shifted suddenly on his first pitch, which skipped in the dirt past catcher Jose Lobaton -- allowing the tying run to score. Ellsbury was stealing second on the pitch and continued to third when the ball rolled toward the backstop. Victorino beat out a slow chopper to shortstop, putting the Red Sox ahead 2-1. "Victorino really adds a different dimension to that group, and you saw that again tonight. He just drips with intangibles," Maddon said. Breslow pitched 1 2-3 scoreless innings for the win. Uehara earned a save, bouncing back from Lobatons ninth-inning homer in Game 3. Tampa Bay won three win-or-go-home games last week just to reach the division series. Coming from behind in another elimination game Monday gave them hope of taking the series back to Fenway Park, where the Rays were outscored 19-6 in the first two games. The trip to the ALCS will be Bostons first since 2008, when the Red Sox lost in seven games to Tampa Bay. When the Red Sox acquired Peavy from the Chicago White Sox at the trade deadline, they had nights like this in mind. The 32-year-old right-hander made his third career post-season start 2,562 days -- a span of seven years, five days -- after starting Game 1 of the NL division series for San Diego in 2006. Both he and Rays starter Jeremy Hellickson were working with plenty of rest. Although he pitched two innings in a simulated game last week while the Red Sox were waiting to learn who they would face, Peavy hadnt appeared in a major league game in 13 days. Hellickson hadnt pitched since Sept. 27, and his selection as Tampa Bays starter in an elimination game was somewhat of a surprise. He didnt last long. After a 1-2-3 first inning, Hellickson walked David Ortiz and Mike Napoli on eight straight pitches to begin the second. Daniel Nava singled to load the bases, and Maddon had seen enough. Jamey Wright, an 18-year veteran in his first post-season series, worked out of the jam by striking out Jarrod Saltalamacchia and getting Stephen Drew to line into a double play. NOTES: Peavy allowed one run, five hits and struck out three in 5 2-3 innings. ... Former major leaguer Rocco Baldelli, a Rhode Island native who played for both the Rays and Red Sox, threw the ceremonial first pitch. ... Rookie RF Wil Myers was back in Tampa Bays lineup after leaving Game 3 with leg cramps. ... Victorino was hit by a pitch four times in the series, twice in Game 4. ... Lobatons game-ending homer Monday night landed in the giant fish tank beyond centre field. Only two others players -- Miguel Cabrera earlier this season and Luis Gonzalez in 2007 -- have homered into the tank that has been home to cownose rays since it was installed in 2006. Warren Moon Womens Jersey . The two were in the batting cage moments before game time. Bautista was taking final warm up cuts. Pillar was hitting soft toss. The one-time utility player turned All-Star pulled aside the clubs young, fourth outfielder and offered him some advice. Nate Davis Titans Jersey . The Raptors two leading scorers were never able to co-exist the way they hoped or the team had envisioned, but individually DeRozan was thriving, in the midst of a career season. http://www.authentictitanspro.com/Jurrell-casey-titans-jersey/ . 1 overall pick in the draft by the Houston Texans, is recovering from sports hernia surgery. Bruce Matthews Womens Jersey . Warren made six birdies and a bogey for a 5-under total of 139 to sit one shot ahead of Felipe Aguilar of Chile, who carded a 69. David Horsey of England was also on 5 under through 15 holes to join Warren atop the leaderboard before play was stopped. Corey Davis Jersey . The 25-year-old Brazilian player has only made four Premier League appearances for United this season and underwent a medical test in Italy on Friday.Huntington, WV (SportsNetwork.com) - With just one game remaining in the regular season, the 19th-ranked Marshall Thundering Herd will try to stay unbeaten as they host the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers in a Conference USA bout at Joan C. Edwards Stadium. Western Kentucky sits on a 6-5 overall record, and although the Hilltoppers arent going to the Conference USA championship game in their first year as a member of the league, they are bowl eligible. Theyve won three games in a row, including a decisive 45-7 victory over UTSA last weekend. Marshall is one of two unbeaten teams in the nation (Florida State being the other), and already owns a spot in the C-USA championship game with an unblemished league mark. The Herd almost let it all slip away with a narrow 23-18 victory over UAB last weekend. Marshall leads the all-time series with Western Kentucky, 4-1. The last time these new conference rivals met, however, was back in 1996, when the Thundering Herd won, 37-3. Marshall owns a 3-0 advantage in Huntington. Western Kentucky has built a solid foundation this season around its offense, led by quarterback Brandon Doughty. The Hilltoppers enter this game against Marshall averaging 41.9 ppg, which means this could be the most offense Marshall faces all season long. In 11 games, Doughty has thrown for 3,853 yards (ranked second in the FBS - 20 yards behind the injured Connor Halliday of Washington State) with 36 touchdown passes, which is the most in the FBS nation. Last season for the Hilltoppers, the run game was essential. This year its more of a complementary aspect with Leon Allen, who has rushed 1,253 yards and 11 touchdowns. Allen averages a respectable 113.9 rushing ypg, and has carried the ball 226 times this season. Doughty has done an excellent job spreading the ball around to various receivers. Jared Dangerfield leads the team with 56 receptions and 621 yards, adding in a team-high eight touchdown grabs. Willie McNeal (seven touchdowns), Taywan Taylor (six touchdowns) and Antwane Grant (five touchdowns) are all receiving threats for WKU. Offense has been plentiful for the Hilltoppers, but the downfall for the team has been on the defensive side. Western Kentucky allows 36.8 ppg and 483.1 offensive ypg to opponents this season through 11 contests, which has allowed teams like UAB (42 points), Florida Atlantic (45 points) and Louisiana Tech (59 points) to pick up crucial wins against the Hilltoppers. WKU has been especially bad against the run, allowing 224.1 rushing ypg to opponents. Nick Holt has been a threat defensively, racking up 93 tackles with seven tackles for loss and three quarterback hurries. Dejon Brown is the next closest Hilltopper to Holt with 65 tackles on the year, and GeMonee Brown has a team-best eight tackles for loss. The Hilltoppers will need to force some Marshall turnovers in order to stay competitive in this one. Marshalls 23-point outing against UAB was by far the lowest total for the Herd this season, but a win is a win in coach Doc Hollidays eeyes.ddddddddddddNow the team must pick up its final one in the regular season against the high-scoring Hilltoppers this weekend at home. (Coach) Jeff Brohm has done a tremendous job - theyre bowl eligible for the first year in Conference USA, Holliday said. I think that is a tribute to him and what hes done. Their quarterback, Brandon Doughty, is a tremendous player whos thrown for a ton of yardage. ... Offensively, they score a lot of points, and defensively they are well-coached. They are going to come in here ready to play, and we have to make sure we are too. The Herd are led offensively by Rakeem Cato under center. Cato hasnt necessarily had the campaign many had expected from him, but with 28 touchdown passes, 2,897 yards and a 157.7 passer efficiency rating, he is one of the best leaders and field generals in all of college football. In the run game, a pleasant surprise has been the emergence of Devon Johnson. The tight end convert has carried the ball 184 times this season, and has gained an eye-popping 1,573 yards with 16 touchdowns. And he missed a game with a leg injury. He leads the team with 157.3 rushing ypg, and has helped the Herd score 44.9 ppg this season. Cato has a reliable set of weapons through the air, led by veteran pass catcher Tommy Shuler. Shuler has caught a team-best 57 passes this season for 737 yards and seven touchdowns, while talented freshman Angelo Jean-Louis has racked up 456 yards with five touchdowns in 11 games played. Tight End Eric Frohnapfel is second on the team with 30 receptions, adding 375 yards and a trio of scores to his resume. While Marshalls offense is crushing foes, the teams defense has been doing the same. The Herd are allowing just 16.5 ppg to opponents, including just 324.4 offensive ypg. Only twice this season has a challenger managed to accumulate more than 20 points against the Herd defense, with UABs 18 points being the third-highest total for an opponent this year. Linebacker Neville Hewitt leads Marshalls defense with 91 tackles, and also has registered 10 tackles for loss with 4.5 sacks. The ability to get after opposing quarterbacks and running backs in the backfield has been apparent throughout the season for the Thundering Herd, who have three defensive players that all own tackles for loss totals in the double digits. In the secondary, players like Taj Letman (three interceptions), Darryl Roberts and Corey Tindal will need to be wide awake when going up against one of the nations leading passers. I spoke to Jimbo [Fisher, head coach at Florida State] the other day, and for them to win that many games is tremendous, Holliday said. If winning was easy, there would be a lot more people in this position than us and Florida State. At some point, you have to grind them out. Florida State has had to grind a bunch out, we had to grind one out Saturday and thats a tribute to all of these guys. At the end of the day, its about winning and losing, and in the last two years these guys have won 21 of them. ' ' '