Moralez Rises to the Occasion, Gets Mustangs First Knockout Round Victory of the Season
Mitch Moralez sent two over the wall with four outs, which was enough to defeat Keaton Greenwalt.
The Mustangs struck first on Wednesday night on a Taylor Lomack two-run single, but the PaddleHeads responded quickly. Dondrei Hubbard and Keaton Greenwalt hit RBI doubles, and Josh Elvir capped off the rally with a two-run homer – his first gopher ball as a PaddleHead. Billings got a little closer in the fifth, but Austin Bernard answered immediately with a two-run shot of his own. In the seventh though, Billings turned the game on its head. Connor Denning hit a two-run single, Alejandro Figueredo brought home a run with a grounder, and Denning scored the go-ahead run on a wild pitch. The PaddleHeads capitalized on a Billings miscue in the bottom of the inning, tying the game. After a couple of scoreless frames, the game was headed to a Knockout Round. After John Michael Faile and Luis Navarro both hit one homer in the first round, Mitch Moralez sent two over the wall with four outs, which was enough to defeat Keaton Greenwalt. The Mustangs earn their first Knockout Round win of the season in three tries.
Great Falls 4, Idaho Falls 3: Voyagers Stun Chukars, Even Up Series with Late Rally
For the first seven innings of Wednesday night's game, Daniel Silva was cruising. While he only recorded one strikeout, Silva kept Great Falls off the scoreboard and thanks to a Jordan Myrow solo homer, Idaho Falls led 1-0 heading into the eighth inning. After the first two batters were retired, back-to-back singles by Xane Washington and Riley Jepson ended Silva's night. Facing reliever Bryant Bagshaw, Colin Runge kept the line moving, singling home Washington to tie the game. Jaylyn Williams followed Runge with a three-run homer, giving the Voyagers a 4-1 lead. The Chukars fought back with two runs in the bottom of the frame, and in the ninth got the tying run to third base with one out, but Andrew Garcia struck out Sam Troyer and Mark Herron Jr. to end the game.
Ogden 5, Rocky Mountain 4: Mulholland and Company Cool Off Vibes, Take Series
The Vibes had the ball flying out of the yard in the first two inning of Wednesday night's matchup. Dusty Stroup opened the scoring with a solo homer in the first, Anthony Rios cracked a two-run homer in the second, and Matt Hogan joined the party with a solo shot. From there though, Ogden starter Jake Mulholland settled down, retiring 13 of the next 17 batters he faced and not allowing anyone to cross the plate. On the flip side, Logan Williams' two-run single brought the Raptors closer in the third, and Damian Henderson tied the game with a two-run homer in the fifth. Williams brought home the go-ahead run with an RBI single in the sixth. Foster Pace and Brandon McCabe both tossed scoreless innings out of the bullpen, setting up Dan Kubiuk for his league-leading 13th save of the season.
Grand Junction 5, Northern Colorado 3: Kleinsorge's Strong Outing Leads Jacks Past Owlz
Two-time South Division Pitcher of the Week Justin Kleinsorge took the hill in Windsor on Wednesday evening and turned in the longest outing of his season. The right-hander tossed eight innings, allowing three runs (two earned) and six hits, walking one and striking out 10. Offensively for Grand Junction, Alex Stinnett hit a two-run homer in the fourth inning – his first long ball for the club, and Ron Washington Jr. went 4-for-5 with the go-ahead RBI single in the seventh inning. Riyan Rodriguez worked around a one-out walk to secure the save.
Glacier 9, Boise 3: Range Riders Attack Early and Often to Down Hawks
The Hawks fired the opening salvo at Glacier Bank Park on a Trevor Minder solo home run in the first, but that lead was short-lived. Glacier evened the score on a double steal in the bottom half of the inning, then took the lead when three runs were scored on an error in the second inning. The Hawks drew a little closer in the fourth inning, but the Range Riders responded immediately with RBI singles by Mason Dinesen and Dean Miller. Austin Bates added an RBI double in the fifth inning, and Kingston Liniak and Jake Mackenzie extended the lead with RBI singles. Jonathan Clark struck out eight in five innings, and the Glacier bullpen combined to throw four shutout innings to seal the win.