EVANSVILLE SWEEPS FLORENCE, TAKES OVER FIRST PLACE IN WEST
Thursday night secured series-clinching wins for many teams, some of which were series sweeps. Read more about the night’s action with our league-wide recap:
The Tri-City ValleyCats used three home runs in the early game to beat the New York Boulders 8-6 and sweep their midweek series. New York got on the board first on an RBI single by Milton Smith, Jr. in the third. An inning later, Gian Martellini hit a two-run home run that made it 3-0. In the bottom half of the fourth, the ValleyCats got on the board. Luis Roman singled home a run, Chris Kwitzer doubled home two more, and Carson Maxwell hit a two-run shot to score the fourth and fifth runs and give Tri-City the 5-3 lead. In the fifth, Juan Silverio hit a sacrifice fly to add the sixth run, and in the sixth, Chris Kwitzer hit a solo home run that made it 7-3. The Boulders got a run back in the eighth, on a Tucker Nathans solo home run, but Andres Sosa got the run right back in the bottom half to keep the four-run lead. In the top of the ninth, New York’s Phil Capra hit a solo shot and Smith, Jr. hit an RBI groundout that closed the gap to 8-6, but that was as close as they got to the ValleyCats.
The Gateway Grizzlies shut out the Lake Erie Crushers 5-0 in what started as a pitcher’s duel for both teams. The game was scoreless on both sides until the sixth, when Gateway’s Chase Vallot hit a sacrifice fly to give the Grizzlies a 1-0 lead. An inning later in the seventh, Connor Owings hit a two-run home run to put the Grizzlies up 3-0. Jose Rosario’s two-run ground rule double in the ninth made it 5-0. Gateway starter Matt Mulhearn tossed seven scoreless innings, allowing just two hits and a walk while striking out three in the win.
The Evansville Otters beat the Florence Y’alls 10-6 to sweep their series and move into first place in the West Division standings. The Otters first run came in the first, when Gary Mattis singled home the game’s first run. Elijah MacNamee followed with an RBI single of his own that made it 2-0. In the third, Evansville’s Andretty Cordero hit an RBI single of his own, and Andy DeJesus hit a sacrifice fly to make it 4-0. Miles Gordon then singled home Cordero and one more run scored on an error by the catcher that made it 6-0. The Y’alls got their first run of the game in the fifth when Connor Crane brought home a run on a sacrifice fly. They would add five more runs in the seventh. Connor Perry brought one home on an RBI groundout, Chad Sedio doubled home three runs, and Trevor Craport doubled home Sedio to briefly tie the game at 6-6 before Evansville scored four more in the bottom half of the inning. J.R. Davis scored on a wild pitch before Cordero singled a run home. Then, MacNamee scored on a wild pitch and Michael Gangwish plated one more with a sacrifice fly that made it a 10-6 ballgame.
The Windy City ThunderBolts beat the Joliet Slammers 9-1 to clinch the series victory. The game was scoreless until the seventh, when Windy plated three runs to take the lead. Three wild pitches allowed John Sechen, Brynn Martinez, and Zach Racusin to score. In the eighth, three more came around. Jack Strunc hit an RBI double, John Sechen hit a sacrifice fly, and Payton Robertson hit a single to make it 6-0 ThunderBolts. In the bottom half, Dylan Hardy scored on an error by the catcher to give the Slammers their lone run of the game. Windy City tacked on three more insurance runs in the ninth on a pair of RBI singles by Sechen and Martinez, and a run scoring on a double play ball off the bat of Robertson that made it 9-1. Miguel Ausua pitched six scoreless innings, allowing just three hits and four walks, and striking out three in the victory.
After both teams matched each other in the first two frames, the Washington Wild Things edged out the New Jersey Jackals 4-3 with a run in the seventh. Each team scored a run each in the first. Josh Rehwaldt drove in a run for New Jersey on an RBI groundout and Bralin Jackson singled home a run for Washington in the bottom half. New Jersey got two more in the second on a double by Stanley Espinal and an RBI single by Todd Isaacs that gave them the 3-1 lead. In the bottom half, Scotty Dubrule tied the game again with a two-run single that leveled it at 3. The score stayed 3-3 until the seventh, when Andrew Sohn drove in a run on a single that gave Washington a one-run lead they would not give up. From there, the Wild Things bullpen shut the door and secure the 4-3 victory.
The Southern Illinois Miners used a six-run inning to defeat the Schaumburg Boomers 8-2. The scoring got underway in the fourth, as Schaumburg’s Angelo Gumbs singled home the game’s first run. The Miners answered in the bottom half when Anthony Brocato hit a two-run home run to give them the lead. Then in the bottom of the fifth, the Miners unloaded for six more runs. Yeltsin Gudiño hit a sacrifice fly to kick things off. Ariel Sandoval singled home a run, Brocato singled home two more, and Luke Mangieri capped the Miners scoring with a two-run triple to make it 8-1. The Boomers tacked on one more run in the seventh on a Clint Hardy fielder’s choice. Miners starter Michael Austin worked six innings, surrendering just a run on four hits and three walks, and striking out five in the win.
The game between the Sussex County Miners and Équipe Québec was postponed due to weather and will be made up as part of a doubleheader on September 10 at 5:05 p.m. ET.
Friday brings us the start of several new series as we make our way into the month of August. The playoff race is heating up! Catch every moment with FrontierLeagueTV.com or the Frontier League app!