CAPITALES WALK OFF TITANS TO COMPLETE SWEEP - FRONTIER DAILY ROUNDUP
WRITTEN BY: MIKE GUISTOLISE
CAPITALES WITH FIRM GRASP ON EAST DIVISION AFTER SWEEP OF TITANS
QUÉBEC CITY - The Québec Capitales walked off the Ottawa Titans 5-4 on Sunday to complete the series sweep at Stade Canac.
The Capitales (48-24) fought off an Ottawa (40-31) comeback effort to take the finale with a walk-off homer in the ninth inning. Québec built its lead early, using an RBI groundout and a base hit in the first inning to jump out 2-0. SS Kyle Crowl added on in the third with a two-run homer, making it 4-0. The Titans cut the lead in half with two runs in the sixth and then tied the game with a two-run single in the seventh. After exchanging zeroes in the eighth, Québec pitched a scoreless ninth and entered the bottom half with their 2-3-4 hitters due to hit. RF Marc-Antoine Lebreux led off the inning, working the count to 2-2. On the fifth pitch, Lebreux crushed an off-speed pitch over the wall in right-center to send Stade Canac into a frenzy and win the game for the Capitales. After the win, Québec's lead in the Frontier League East division stands at an impressive 7.5 games. RHP Nick Trabacchi earned the win in relief for the Capitales while LHP Tyler Jandron took the loss.
The Capitales will play their next series against the New Jersey Jackals, beginning on Tuesday at 7:05 PM EDT. The Titans will head back home to host the New England Knockouts on Tuesday at 6:30 PM EDT.
VALLEYCATS KNOCK NEW YORK OUT OF PLAYOFF SPOT
PONOMA, NA - The Tri-City ValleyCats took down the New York Boulders 8-5 at Clover Stadium on Sunday night, winning the shortened two-game series.
The win puts the ValleyCats (39-32) in the final playoff spot in the East division while New York (38-32) is on the outs for the first time this season. 3B Ian Walters put Tri-City up 1-0 with his solo homer in the fourth inning. CF Jaxon Hallmark added on shortly afterward with a two-run single that made it 3-0. The Boulders answered in the fifth, tying the game with a two-run double and an RBI base hit. Hallmark gave the lead right back to Tri-City in the sixth on an RBI bunt single, followed immediately by LF Javeyon Williams' three-run blast that put the ValleyCats up 7-3. A wild pitch gifted Tri-City another run in the inning, pushing their lead to five. New York loaded the bases in their half of the sixth with one out but managed only one run on a walk. New York cut it to 8-5 in the seventh and loaded the bases once more in the ninth, but ultimately came up empty-handed. RHP Gino Sabatine earned the win out of the Tri-City bullpen while RHP Austin Dill got the final six outs for his third save of the season. LHP Mitchell Senger took the loss for the Boulders.
The ValleyCats will move on to host the Trois-Rivières Aigles for their next series, which begins on Tuesday at 6:30 PM EDT. The Boulders will visit the Sussex County Miners for their next series, beginning on Tuesday at 7:05 PM EDT.
Y'ALLS AVOID SWEEP WITH FOUR LATE RUNS
JOLIET, IL - The Florence Y'alls took the finale in their series against the Joliet Slammers at Duly Health & Care Field on Sunday afternoon by a final score of 7-6.
After dropping the first two games of the series, the Y'alls (34-37) got in the win column against the Slammers (30-42) and are back within three games of a .500 record. After Florence took the initial lead in the first inning, the two sides went back and forth through the first three innings, with Joliet taking a 4-3 lead in the bottom of the third. A two-run single in the fifth drove the Slammer lead up to three, no doubt frustrating a Y'alls team that went three straight innings without a hit. Florence's retort began to take shape in the seventh inning, beginning with an RBI single from DH Craig Massey that cut the lead to 6-4; a sacrifice fly later in the inning dwindled the Joliet lead down to one. In the eighth, SS Ed Johnson tied things up with an RBI double to the left-center field gap and Massey came through with another RBI base hit to give the Y'alls the lead. The Slammers got the tying run to third base in the ninth but left him stranded to end the game. RHP Alex Wagner earned the win in relief for Florence while RHP Darrien Williams picked up the save. LHP Zach Grace took the loss for Joliet.
The Y'alls will visit the first-place Washington Wild Things next for a big series that begins on Tuesday at 7:05 PM EDT. The Slammers will welcome the Gateway Grizzlies to town for a series that will begin on Tuesday at 6:35 PM EDT.
WILD THINGS HOMER TWICE IN SWEEP OF MINERS
WASHINGTON, PA - The Washington Wild Things blasted the Sussex County Miners 7-2 to complete the series sweep at Wild Things Park on Sunday afternoon.
The Wild Things (49-22) homered twice and logged four extra-base hits in their convincing win over the Miners (25-46) to close out the series. Sussex County's 1-0 lead was quickly matched by 2B Jalen Miller's solo home run in the first. In the second, Washington snatched the lead with an RBI double from SS Carson Clowers. Miller then homered again to lead off the sixth to put the Wild Things up 3-1. Three batters later, RF Brandon McIlwain tripled to plate another and pushed the lead to 4-1. Washington scored two more runs in the eighth for insurance, securing the win and the series sweep. RHP Nick MacDonald earned the winning decision in relief for the Wild Things. RHP Charlie Neuweiler took the loss.
The Wild Things will continue their homestand with a series against the Florence Y'alls beginning on Tuesday at 7:05 PM EDT. The Miners will host the New York Boulders for their next series on Tuesday at 7:05 PM EDT.
THUNDERBOLTS EXACT REVENGE ON CRUSHERS
AVON, OH - The Windy City ThunderBolts took the final game in their series against the Lake Erie Crushers on Sunday by a final score of 5-2.
The ThunderBolts (32-41) quieted Crusher Stadium with a five-run first inning and limited Lake Erie (40-31) to four hits to win the finale. Windy City took a 2-0 lead in the first inning after a dropped third strike turned into an error. 1B Christian Kuzemka then singled home a run in the next at-bat to make it 3-0. After a double moved Kuzemka to third, CF Cam Phelts drove a base hit to left-center to plate two more runs to stretch the lead to 5-0. The Crushers got a run back on a fielder's choice in the bottom of the inning and notched three hits in the third to bring in one more. LHP Michael Barker and the rest of the Windy City pitching staff locked in after the third, stifling the Lake Erie offense by only allowing one hit. RHP Tyler LaPorte closed things out with a pair of strikeouts in the ninth to pick up the save, his 10th of the season. Barker earned the win while RHP Matt Mulhearn took the loss.
The ThunderBolts will take on the Schaumburg Boomers at Wintrust Field for their next series. First pitch for Tuesday's opener will be at 6:30 PM CDT. The Crushers will host the Evansville Otters for their next series, beginning on Tuesday at 7:05 PM EDT.
BOOMERS COLLECT 11 HITS TO BEAT GRIZZLIES
SCHAUMBURG, IL - The Schaumburg Boomers avoided the sweep on Sunday by taking the series finale against the Gateway Grizzlies 4-1.
The game was scoreless entering the fifth inning when the Boomers (36-34) broke through with an RBI single from CF Brett Milazzo. Gateway (43-28) tied things up in the next half inning but left the go-ahead run stranded on third. A fielder's choice in the third put Schaumburg on top 2-1, and 2B Chase Dawson and 1B Anthony Calarco hit back-to-back RBI singles in the seventh to increase the lead to three. The Grizzlies had their chances but ended up leaving nine men on base with just one run to show for it. RHP Daniel Woolfork got the win in relief for the Boomers while RHP Jake Joyce collected the save with a scoreless ninth. RHP Joel Condreay was tagged with the loss for Gateway.
The Boomers will host the Windy City ThunderBolts next, beginning on Tuesday at 6:30 PM CDT. The Grizzlies will travel to Joliet for a series with the Slammers on Tuesday. First pitch for the opener is scheduled for 6:35 PM EDT.
OTTERS SWEEP JACKALS
EVANSVILLE, IN - The Evansville Otters doubled up the New Jersey Jackals 10-5 to complete the series sweep on Sunday at Bosse Field.
The Otters (30-41) moved up one spot in the Frontier League West standings after the win and are no longer in last place. Evansville was gifted their first run via a Jackals (23-48) error in the first inning. C Justin Felix doubled the lead for the home squad with an RBI double in the second. In the fourth, the Otters more than doubled their lead with a run scoring on a fielder's choice followed by a two-run single from SS Greg Mattis. Evansville put the game out of reach in the fifth inning, scoring five more times while sending 10 men to the plate. New Jersey made an impressive effort to come back, scoring twice in the sixth and three more times in the ninth. Unfortunately for the Jackals, it was too little too late as they fell 10-5. RHP Zach Smith picked up his seventh winning decision of the year while RHP Danny Sullivan took the loss.
The Otters will visit the Lake Erie Crushers for their next series, which begins on Tuesday at 7:05 PM EDT. The Jackals will head to Québec for a series with the Capitales, beginning on Tuesday at 7:05 PM EDT.
KNOCKOUTS RUN AWAY WITH FINALE IN THE NINTH
TROIS-RIVIÈRES - The New England Knockouts won the rubber game against the Trois-Rivières Aigles at Stade Quillorama on Sunday by a final score of 10-5.
The Knockouts (25-45) put the game out of reach with three runs in the ninth, forcing the Aigles (37-35) to try and come back from a five-run deficit. New England built a sizeable lead in the early stages, beginning with a two-run single by LF Victor Castillo in the third inning. SS JR DiSarcina cleared the bases with a three-run double in the fourth, eventually scoring himself on an RBI single from 1B Jack-Thomas Wold. The Aigles managed three runs in the fifth to cut the lead to 6-3, and then cracked a two-run homer in the seventh to get to within one. Wold took a run back with another RBI base hit in the eighth. In the ninth, DiSarcina racked up his fourth and fifth RBIs of the game with a two-run blast to put the game out of reach. RHP Matt Cronin earned the win as RHP Reeves Martin collected the save across two innings of work. RHP Kosei Naito took the loss for Trois-Rivières.
The Knockouts continue their Canadian road trip with a stop in Ottawa for a series with the Titans. First pitch for the series opener on Tuesday will be at 6:30 PM EDT. The Aigles will head to New York to face off with the Tri-City ValleyCats on Tuesday. First pitch for the opener is at 6:30 PM EDT.
