Vibes Tie Jackalopes in South Division Standings With Win in Slugfest

Only one game set Grand Junction and Rocky Mountain apart in the standings going into Thursday night's game with Grand Junction clinging to the small lead. They struck first in the second with a Matt Golda RBI double highlighting a two-run inning and Rocky Mountain responded with a Jacob Barfield solo homer to make the score 2-1. However, Grand Junction blew the game open with a five-run fourth made up of another Golda RBI single, an Austin Schumaker RBI double, and a three-run triple from Joe Johnson. However, Rocky Mountain came right back with six runs in the fourth off of four RBI singles, three of them consecutively, and a Dusty Stroup two-run double to tie the game up at 7. Rocky Mountain then took the lead with a two-run home run from Stephen Wilmer. While both teams continued to score, the Vibes never let go of the lead, taking the win 12-10. Wilmer and Barfield each had three RBI for the Vibes and Joe Johnson led the way for the Jackalopes with four RBI, while Golda also had three.  

Raptors Dominate Paddleheads in Clash Between Division Leaders 

In their first game outside of the North Division, Missoula met their match. Ogden started the scoring early, going up 3-0 with RBI hits from Juan Teixeira, Damian Henderson, and Dakota Connors. Ogden scored another two runs in the fourth highlighted by a Cameron Phelts RBI double to go up 5-0, which is all they ended up needing to take the win. However, the Raptors continued to score, putting up four runs in the sixth and three in the eighth to win by a score of 12-3. Eight Raptors had an RBI Thursday night with Teixeira leading the way with three hits and three RBIs, while Phelts had four hits and two RBIs. Brock Gilliam had another solid start for Ogden, giving up only one earned run, four hits and two walks while striking out seven. The Paddleheads will look to bounce back and even up the series Friday night. 

Eighth-Inning Explosion Seals Win for Glacier Over Billings 

Gabe Howell got the game off to a fast start with a leadoff home run and a Billings balk scored another for the Range Riders in the top of the first. The Mustangs came right back in the bottom of the inning with a Gabe Wurtz RBI single and a Brady West bases-clearing double to take a 4-2 lead. Glacier took the lead back in the fourth with an RBI single from Dean Miller and a two-run double from Benjamin Fitzgerald to take a 6-4 lead. Wurtz tied the game back up with a two-run homer in the fourth, but the Billings offense was shut down from there. Miller mashed a two-run homer to take the lead in the sixth and the Range Riders sealed their victory in the eighth. Benjamin Fitzgerald hit a bases-clearing double and Mason Dinesen had a two-run single in a seven-run inning to win 15-6. Fitzgerald had five RBIs and Miller had three, while three Range Riders were walked three times by Billings pitchers. Glacier can separate themselves further from their divisional opponents as this series continues on Friday night. 

Boise Puts Up 17 in Blowout Win Over Northern Colorado 

Boise led all throughout Thursday night's game, starting in the first with two RBI walks for a 2-0 lead. Boise scored another couple of runs in the second off of a fielder's choice and a Raymond Gil RBI single. The Hawks did not stop scoring from there, Alex Baeza had six RBIs, most of them coming on a grand slam in the ninth where the Hawks scored six times. D.J. Poteet and Derek Maiben each had two hits and three RBIs. Boise had 17 hits with eight Hawks slashing two hits and were walked 14 times. Boise only needed two pitchers to get the win. Starter Buddie Pindel gave up three runs in four innings while striking out seven and reliever Gavin Gorrell earned the win with five innings of one-run ball while giving up only two hits. 

Chukars Stave Off Big Comeback to Defeat Voyagers  

This bout stayed close in the early innings. Eduardo Acosta's RBI single gave the Chukars the lead in the first and Eddie McCabe's two-run single took the lead back, but Idaho Falls soon led again off of Mark Herron Jr.'s two-run double in the third. Then in the fourth, Idaho Falls burst for six runs, highlighted by a two-run single from Acosta and a bases-clearing double from Herron Jr. A half-inning later, the Voyagers stormed back. Anthony Herron Jr. started things off with a two-run single and three Voyagers had RBI singles to get within one run of Idaho Falls. However, the Chukars put up two runs in the seventh and eighth for enough insurance to take the win. Mark Herron Jr. had five RBIs for Idaho Falls and Acosta had four along with four hits. Eddie McCabe led the Voyagers with three RBIs. The Chukars and Voyagers are behind the division lead by the same amount of games.