Brandon Sun - PRINT EDITION
COLIN CORNEAU/THE BRANDON SUN Enlarge Image
Brandon Marlins’ Nolan Jago dives back to first base to avoid the pickoff attempt in the bottom of the first inning against the Brandon Cloverleafs Tuesday at Andrews Field. The Cloverleafs won the Manitoba Senior Baseball League game 10-1. (Colin Corneau/Brandon Sun)
One of the Brandon Cloverleafs slowest players played a huge role in helping them blow out the Brandon Houstons Marlins 10-1 Tuesday night.
In Tuesday’s other Manitoba Senior Baseball League game, the Reston Rockets beat the Oak River Dodgers 5-1.
At Andrews Field, Matt Gunning hit a double and came around to score in the second, drove in a run in the sixth and came around to score again in the seventh after being walked as the visiting Cloverleafs improved to 5-2 on the season.
"I was just getting good pitches to hit and luckily enough there were guys on base before me and I was lucky enough to score some runs," said Gunning, who finished the game 2-for-4 with two runs and one RBI.
While the final score was heavily slanted in the Cloverleafs’ favour, it took them a while to get their bats going. They held a 1-0 lead until the sixth when they exploded for three runs. They added five more in the seventh to put the icing on the cake and ensure Sean Dryden earned the win.
Dryden had a rough second inning where he allowed runners to reach second and third with none out, but he struck out the next three batters to get out of the jam and dominated after that. Dryden threw six scoreless innings, surrendering seven hits and he struck out eight.
Gunning was impressed with Dryden’s effort, and said it was a nice change of pace for his teammates to give their pitchers some offensive support.
"The last three or four games, our starting pitchers have been excellent," he said. "The last couple games our offence hasn’t been going the way we wanted it to, so it was nice to score some runs tonight."
Ryan Johnson went 4-for-5 and drove in three runs while Bryan Swaenepoel went 1-for-3 with two runs and one RBI.
Matt DeGagne took the loss for the Marlins (2-5). He gave up one run on three hits, but it was the pitching of Jeff Wiebe that the Cloverleafs feasted on. Wiebe gave up eight runs — six were earned — on six hits and five walks in three innings. He struck out five.
Wiebe admitted he didn’t have his best stuff on Tuesday, but knew he had a limited number of pitchers on the bench.
"I just didn’t throw strikes," he said. "They’re a very talented hitting team. They made the most of their opportunities. … It’s one of those things where I have to make better pitches. We didn’t have a ton of guys to throw tonight. I had to suck it up and I just had to pitch better."
Bret Heselwood scored the Marlins’ only run on an error in the eighth inning.
Gunning hopes Tuesday’s game is a sign of things to come for the third-place Cloverleafs, but he knows they have a long road ahead of them.
"Hopefully we can keep this momentum going," he said. "We’ve had some rainouts, so we have a lot of games coming up. If we can keep it going, it should be good for us."
The Cloverleafs return to the diamond on Thursday when they visit the Rockets. The Marlins host the Rockets on Friday at 7 p.m.
Rockets 5 Dodgers 1
At Oak River, Mitch Olson pitched a complete-game six-hitter for the Rockets (6-4), striking out four batters and walking one.
The Dodgers (1-8) also got a full nine innings from Dana McNish, who gave up five hits and four walks, with four strikeouts.
Drew Haight was 2-for-5 with a run and an RBI for the Rockets, while Chris Young went 2-for-5 and scored a run.
Marc Simard homered for the Dodgers’ run, while teammate Colin Bates doubled twice in four at-bats.
» cjaster@brandonsun.com
Republished from the Brandon Sun print edition June 20, 2012
We want you to tell us what you think of our articles. If the story moves you, compels you to act or tells you something you didn’t know, mark it high. If you thought it was well written, do the same. If it doesn’t meet your standards, mark it accordingly.
You can also register and/or login to the site and join the conversation by leaving a comment.
Rate it yourself by rolling over the stars and clicking when you reach your desired rating. We want you to tell us what you think of our articles. If the story moves you, compels you to act or tells you something you didn’t know, mark it high.
The Brandon Sun does not necessarily endorse any of the views posted. Comments are moderated before publication. By submitting your comment, you agree to our Terms and Conditions. New to commenting? Check out our Frequently Asked Questions.
One of the Brandon Cloverleafs slowest players played a huge role in helping them blow out the Brandon Houstons Marlins 10-1 Tuesday night.
In Tuesday’s other Manitoba Senior Baseball League game, the Reston Rockets beat the Oak River Dodgers 5-1.
Already subscribed? Login to view full article.
Not yet a subscriber? Click Here to Signup
One of the Brandon Cloverleafs slowest players played a huge role in helping them blow out the Brandon Houstons Marlins 10-1 Tuesday night.
In Tuesday’s other Manitoba Senior Baseball League game, the Reston Rockets beat the Oak River Dodgers 5-1.
A subscription to the Brandon Sun Newspaper is required to view this article. Please update your user information if you are already a newspaper subscriber.
Most Popular
Sort by: Newest to Oldest | Oldest to Newest | Most Popular 0 Comments
You can comment on most stories on brandonsun.com. You can also agree or disagree with other comments. All you need to do is register and/or login and you can join the conversation and give your feedback.