17 Aug Clutch Performances Push Miners Over Florence
Miller’s Start, Ciriaco’s Finish Give Miners Win In First Game of Series
August 17, Augusta, NJ – The Sussex County Miners (39-32) earned a hard-fought 3-1 victory over the Florence Y’alls (43-29) on Tuesday night. With the Washington Wild Things having the night off, the Miners have now extended their lead at the top of the Northeast Division to two games.
Both teams got the scoring started in the third inning. Florence cashed in on an error that was committed in the outfield on a fly ball hit by shortstop Luis Pintor. In the bottom half of the inning, a sharp single to right field from Juan Kelly tied the game at one. Until the eighth inning, both pitching staffs were able to keep the bats at bay. Jared Cheek and Jalen Miller Sr. did a brilliant job mixing their pitches throughout their outings tonight.
In the bottom of the eighth with the game still tied at one, the Miners started things off with a walk from Juan Kelly followed by a double from Kaleo Johnson. Two batters later, Audy Ciriaco delivered the biggest hit of the night, lining a double down the right field to give the team a two-run advantage.
Jalen Miller Sr. was excellent in his second start of the season, going 6 2/3 while only giving up three hits and no earned runs. Robert Klinchock came out of the bullpen to get four pivotal outs before sending it to closer. Michael Mediavilla finished it off with a clean ninth inning to give the Miners a crucial win to open their series with Florence.
The Miners and Y’alls will continue their three-game series tomorrow night, with a 7:05 first pitched scheduled at Skylands Stadium.
Written by Christian De Block