FL Lake Erie Crushers

Lake Erie Crushers Split Double Header

May 23, 2013 - Frontier League (FL)
Lake Erie Crushers News Release


MARION, Ill. - The Lake Erie Crushers made several deficits disappear in Wednesday evening's double header against the Southern Illinois Miners, as they fell in game one, 7-6, but came from behind to take the night cap, 6-3.

The Lake Erie (2-3) offense went to work, tallying 12 runs on 23 hits in the double header.

The first game went back and forth, with the lead changing hands four times. The Miners (3-2) snapped a scoreless tie in the bottom of the second when Phil Butler smashed a two-run double, and they scored again in the third inning on Gerardo Avila's solo homer.

The Crushers battled back into the contest with a four run fourth inning. They sent eight batters to the plate, and scored four times on four hits. Anderson Hidalgo's sacrifice fly brought Andrew Davis home to get the Crushers on the board, and one pitch later, Emmanuel Quilles belted a three-run homer to give the Crushers the lead.

Southern Illinois tied the contest in the bottom of the fifth inning when Tyler Stubblefield scored on Jason Ganek's sacrifice fly. The Crushers answered with two more to regain the lead in the top of the sixth inning. Russ Moldenhauer began the inning with a single, made his way to second after Quilles walked, and Juan Sanchez followed with a single to load the bases with one out. J.C. Figueroa then reached on a fielder's choice to score Moldenhauer, giving the Crushers the lead.

Guantlett Eldemire followed Figueroa with a double down the left field line to plate another run. Eldemire was thrown out at third base on the play as Figueroa was on his way to the plate, negating what would have been a two-run double.

Cannon Lester reached on a single to start the bottom of the sixth inning, and eventually scored on an errant throw from Juan Sanchez. The next batter, Butler, hit a two-run shot to give the Miners the lead.

Lake Erie did not go quietly. Andrew Davis ripped a one out double, before a controversial play ended the game. Moldenhauer hit a ground ball to short, and the throw to first brought the first baseman Jason Ganek off the bag. Moldenhauer was originally ruled safe on the play, which would have put runners at the corners, but the umpires overturned the call, ending the game, which resulted in Manager Jeff Isom earning his first ejection of the year.

Southern Illnois's Dayne Quist (1-0) earned the victory after allowing no runs on a hit over two-thirds of an inning, while Brandon Cunniff (3) tossed a scoreless seventh to earn the save. Jordan Wellander (0-1) allowed three runs on two hits over an inning and two-thirds and suffered the loss.

The Miners took an early lead in the second game, with a two-run double from Carlos Mendez in the bottom of the first inning. The Crushers cut the deficit in half in the third when Eldemire scored on Bowman's sacrifice fly.

The bottom half of the Lake Erie batting order went to work to give the Crushers the lead in the fourth. Hidalgo belted a one out single, and Ricardo Licano followed with a double. David Roney then tied the game with a single to left field, and J.C. Figueroa gave the Crushers the lead with a squeeze bunt to score Lizcano from third.

Lake Erie put three more on the board in the fifth inning to pull away. Sanchez was hit by a pitch to start the inning, and Andrew Davis followed with a single. Bowman then belted a two-run triple to the gap in left-center, and he scored moments later on a double from Moldenhauer.

Trevor Longfellow (1-1) scored the victory, after allowing just two runs on five hits in five solid innings of work. Brad Duffy tossed a scoreless sixth inning, and Matt Smith (1) tossed a scoreless seventh inning to score the save. Cody Hall (0-1) took the loss after allowing all six runs on 10 hits in four innings of action.

Davis led the way for the Crushers on the night, going 4-for-8 during the twin bill. Eldemire hit safely three times on the night, and has hits in each of his first five games on the season. Bowman went 3-for-7 on the night and drove in three runs, while Moldenhauer went 3-for-7 as well with a run and an RBI.

The Crushers will finish their three game series against the Southern Illinois Miners at Rent One Park on Thursday evening. The Crushers will start left hander Matt Rein (0-0, 0.00), and the Miners will counter with right hander Brian Oliver (1-0, 1.50). First pitch is scheduled for 8:05 PM.

The Lake Erie Crushers, the 2009 Frontier League Champions, and 2011 Frontier League Organization of the year, play ball at All Pro Freight Stadium, a 5,000 capacity stadium located in Avon, Ohio. The Frontier League is an independent baseball league with 14 teams operating throughout the Midwest. Season tickets for the 2013 season are on sale now! For more information on tickets, promotions and team news, visit the team website at www.LakeErieCrushers.com or call 440-934-3636.

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