The Miners struck first in the top of the fourth with a two-run blast from designated hitter Mahki Backstrom. After right fielder Keenan Taylor hit a leadoff single to left, Backstrom launched a home run over the left-field wall to give the Miners the first runs of the game.
Third baseman Dean Ferrara later singled and advanced to third after first baseman Kiko Romero drew a walk and catcher Sandro Gaston laid down a sacrifice bunt. With two outs, second baseman Haiden Walters lifted a sacrifice fly to center, bringing Ferrara home and extending the lead to 3-0.
The Titans weren’t going down without a fight, as they were able to respond in the bottom of the fifth inning. Catcher Mitsuki Fukuda led off the inning with a single, before right fielder Michael Fuhrman launched a two-run home run over the left field wall, bringing the Titans to close the gap, making it 3-2.
The Miners were able to add some insurance runs to extend their lead and put this game out of reach for the Titans in the 6-2 Miners win. In the seventh inning, Walters led off with a single to center before shortstop Evan Berkey followed with a base hit down the third-base line. Left fielder Gabriel Maciel dropped a bloop single to center, loading the bases with Taylor up to bat.
Taylor lined a two-run single to left field, scoring Walters and Berkey. Ferrara continued the hot hitting with an RBI single to center, bringing home Maciel and to give the Miners the 6-2 win in game one. Starting pitcher Kellen Brothers had a great day on the mound, finishing with six innings pitched, four hits, two earned runs, and ten strikeouts with one walk.
The Titans claimed the second game of this doubleheader with a 1-0 victory, scoring the game’s lone run in the bottom of the second inning. Left fielder Myles Smith provided all the offense Ottawa needed, launching a solo home run to right field for the eventual game-winning run.
Sussex County struggled to generate offense throughout the seven game contest, recording just one hit, its fewest in a seven inning game this season, leaving nine runners on base. The Miners tried to muster up some offense in the top of the seventh. First baseman Kiko Romero and Keenan O’Brien reached on errors, and Walters was then hit by a pitch to load the bases with nobody out. Relief pitcher Brett Garcia escaped the jam by striking out center fielder Edwin Mateo and Evan Berkey. Maciel was the Miners last hope, as he was the only player to record a hit for the Miners. Maciel grounded out to give the Titans the win, 1-0.
The Miners will look to take game three of this four game series versus the Ottawa Titans tomorrow, July 29. First pitch is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Fans can watch live on the Frontier League Network powered by HTN or listen on Mixlr. Streaming links are available at scminers.com.
Written by Justin Shepard