French Goes The Distance in 8-2 Win
Published on August 16, 2008 under ECHL (ECHL)
Mississippi Sea Wolves News Release
SeaWolves lefty Luke French was stellar on Saturday night at Jerry Uht Park, turning out one of his best outings of the season as he went the distance in an 8-2 win over the Connecticut Defenders.
The âWolves struck first in the bottom of the first against Connecticut starter Dave McKae. Will Rhymes and James Skelton started off the inning with back-to-back singles. On the Skelton hit, an error by right fielder Mike Mooney allowed Rhymes to score and it moved Skelton to second putting the âWolves ahead 1-0. With one out, Wilkin Ramirez doubled home Skelton for a 2-0 lead.
Connecticut got on the board in the top of the third against French. Antoan Richardson led off the inning with a triple and he scored on a groundout by Kyle Haines making it a 2-1 game. The hit for Richardson would be the last French would allow until the top of the seventh.
Erie added to its lead in the top of the third. Skelton led off with his second single of the game and Casper Wells followed with a base knock to put two on for Ramirez. Ramirez connected on his second RBI double, scoring Skelton for a 3-1 lead. With runners on second and third, Deik Scram connected on a sacrifice fly to center, scoring Wells for a 4-1 Erie advantage.
The âWolves added two more runs in the top of the fifth. Skelton led off with a walk and Wells was hit put a pitch to put a pair on. Ramirez grounded out to move the runners into scoring position. Scram singled home Skelton for a 5-1 lead and Jeff Frazier hit into a fielder's choice, scoring Wells for a 6-1 lead.
In the bottom of the seventh, the âWolves would put the game out of reach. Skelton led off with his second walk of the game bringing Wells to the plate. Wells slammed his 14th home run of the season to dead center for an 8-1 lead. Wells has now homered in two straight games.
The Defenders would get one more run in the top of the ninth when Olmo Rosario homered for the eighth time to make it 8-2 Erie.
The night, however belonged to French as he tossed Erie's first nine-inning complete game of the season. It was his third complete game of the year which ties for the league lead. French allowed two runs on seven hits with no walks and six strikeouts. It was also the third time that French did not allow a run. His last was in an win against Harrisburg on April 23.
The win improved the SeaWolves to 21-10 following the all-star break and their record in series since the break to 6-2-1.
ECHL Stories from August 16, 2008
- French Goes The Distance in 8-2 Win - Mississippi Sea Wolves
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