By Kaitlin Corbett (Photo Credit: Meredith Perri, MassLive.com)
HOLYOKE, MA-- The Blue Sox lost a tough one to the Laconia Muskrats on Saturday in a 2-0 loss behind a solid start from righty Eric Freeman.
Eric Freeman lasted five innings, giving up two runs on seven hits with two strikeouts and just one walk. Despite Freemans solid performance, the Sox could not plate their base-runners, leaving eleven runners on base throughout the game - a trend that has become increasingly frustrating for the Blue Sox as the season has progressed.
The Blue Sox were held hitless until a fifth-inning single by catcher Manny Pazos. Pazos had two hits on the night and was one of just four Blue Sox players to record hits on the night.
Brian Wilhite went 1-4 in his Blue Sox debut, and David Petrino, who also played his first game with the Sox went 0-4.
The Muskrats got a stellar outing from starting pitcher Timothy Viehoff who went seven scoreless innings with five strikeouts and just one hit.
The Blue Sox bullpen was once again solid as Mason Ward, Ross Achter, Tyler Barss and Billy Worswick going four scoreless innings, with seven strikeouts, three of which came from Billy Worswick when he struck out the side in the ninth.
The Blue Sox sit at 4-3 now, and look to improve their record on Tuesday against the Vermont Mountaineers at Recreation Field. Game time is set for 6:30 on Tuesday, and the probable starter for the Blue Sox is Will Coursens-Carr who will be making his Blue Sox debut.
Zach Warren kept the Chugiak Chinooks (1-4) off the board during his six innings of work and the Matsu Miners (4-0) beat the Chugiak Chinooks, 3-1.
Warren struck out seven and allowed one walk and two hits.
Chris Hall was hot from the plate for the Matsu Miners. Hall went 2-3 and scored two runs. He singled in the sixth and eighth innings.
Conner Menez couldn't get it done on the bump for the Chugiak Chinooks, taking a loss. He lasted just five innings, walked two, struck out six, and allowed two runs.
...Brewster's offense on the other hand, did not get the big hit. Falmouth's pitching staff played very well, but Brewster drew 9 walks in the game and loaded the bases three different times. They had opportunities, but did not score any of the times they loaded the bases. The Whitecaps did push 2 runs acroos. Nick Senzel (Tennessee) scored from third on a passed ball by Falmouth catcher Michael Tinsley (Kansas) in the 5th, and Robbie Tenerowicz (Cal Berkley) hit a sacrifice fly to score Toby Handley (Stony Brook) in the 8th. The rest of the game, Falmouth's pitchers: Austin Tribly (Missouri), Bryce Montes De Oca (Missouri), and Andrew Frankenreiner (Northern Illinois) combined to keep the Whitecaps to 4 hits, 2 runs, and pitched out of three bases loaded jams to win the game 3-2.
...In a night filled with record-breaking moments, the biggest at bat may have been when Dominick Cammarata (Tennessee) walked with the bases loaded in the 8th inning, completing the seven-run comeback. The Marlins scored three times in the 8th to force extras, finally coming around to end the contest in the bottom of the 13th on a season-high 5th hit from Campbell.
The pressure then shifted to Zach Reid (Tennessee), who had allowed 4 ER in his last two innings of work heading into Friday night. The stud LHP bounced back strongly pitching five innings of scoreless relief limiting Wilmington to just two hits in that span.
"You definitely feel it," Reid said of pitching in extra innings. "After I got through couple of innings, it definitely settled down a little bit. I even got to a point after a couple of innings I was loose, starting laughing, and it helped me out."
Reid honestly never expected to even pitch in the game, but the Marlins (6-6) rallied from behind for their 5th come-from-behind victory of the regular season. While the Marlins tied a season-high with 17 strikeouts, Stephen Wallace went 2-7 with 4 RBI, including a monstrous two-run shot over the 394-sign in deep center field. Logan Sherer extended his hitting streak to five games, and Noah Cummings (Oral Roberts) collected his first RBI as a member of the Morehead City Marlins.
It was neither a clean game either as the teams' combined to commit 10 errors, while the Marlins allowed three past balls on their own. Every starter for the Marlins recorded a hit, including Cammarata, who waited until the 13th inning for his first shot. Ironically enough, the starting first baseman came around to score the games' final run. The last time your Morehead City Marlins played in extra innings was back on August 3rd, 2013, a 9-6 win over the Wilmington Sharks.