Miners Sweep Doubleheader from Wild Things
May 23, 2018 - Frontier League (FL)
Southern Illinois Miners News Release
Washington, PA - The Southern Illinois Miners used stellar starting pitching and several timely, two-out hits to sweep a doubleheader from the Washington Wild Things on the road by 4-0 and 3-2 final scores on Wednesday night at Wild Things Park in Washington.
In game one, starter Robby Rowland was on his game, as he went the distance for a complete-game shutout, and permitted just three hits and no walks with five strikeouts. He improved to 3-0 on the year, and ran his scoreless inning streak to 14 1/3 with the win, throwing 65 of 90 pitches for strikes in the contest.
Offensively, the Miners took the lead for good in the top of the third inning, when with two outs and Marc DiLeo at second base, a popup to the shortstop Justin Bohn off the bat of John Holland was dropped, allowing DiLeo to score for a 1-0 lead. Three pitches later, Southern Illinois tripled their lead when Chance Shepard blasted his fifth home run of the season to center field, a two-run shot that put the Miners up 3-0. They also would add another run in the seventh inning when with two outs, DiLeo doubled in Joe Dudek for the 4-0 final score.
In the second contest, Washington took the lead in the second inning on Kyle Pollock's solo homer at 1-0. Southern Illinois would answer two innings later in the fourth- Nolan Earley worked a one-out walk and moved to third base on Dudek's two-out double. Ben Moore then stepped up to the plate, making his season debut with the club after opening the year on the injured list, and pulled a double inside third base to score both runners and give Southern Illinois a 2-1 lead.
Washington rallied to tie the score in the next half inning on a double by Reydel Medina at 2-2, but Kurt Heyer would strike out the next two batters to keep the game tied. In the next half inning, the Miners took the lead for good when Romeo Cortina singled home Chris Scura with a two-out knock to center field, putting the visitors up 3-2.
Heyer (2-1) would hold the lead through six strong innings of work, scattering five hits and two runs while walking one and striking out seven to earn his second win of the year. In the ninth inning, John Werner worked a perfect frame with a strikeout for his third save of the season as the Miners swept a twin-bill in Washington for the second time in team history and moved back over the .500 mark at 6-5.
The Miners will go for a road series sweep in the finale on Thursday night at 6:05 p.m. central time, with Geno Encina toeing the rubber for Southern Illinois against Washington's Thomas Dorminy.
The Southern Illinois Miners are the Frontier League's winningest franchise since debuting in 2007, winning the 2012 Frontier League Championship as well as division titles in 2010, 2014, 2015 and 2016. They have been awarded the Frontier League Organization of the Year award three times since their inception, and also set a new Frontier League attendance record in their inaugural season. For ticket information, contact the box office at (618) 998-8499. For additional information, visit our website at www.siminers.com.
Frontier League Stories from May 23, 2018
- CornBelters Fall 6-1 to Joliet - Normal CornBelters
- Rascals Record 2nd Straight Shutout - River City Rascals
- Miners Sweep Doubleheader from Wild Things - Southern Illinois Miners
- Wild Things Drop Both Games of Doubleheader - Washington Wild Things
- Boomers Shut out in Second Straight - Schaumburg Boomers
- Evansville Falls 5-3 to Windy City in Second Game of Series - Evansville Otters
- Wild Things Add Pitcher, Activate Bohn from DL - Washington Wild Things
- Bolts Bounce Back with 5-3 Win - Windy City ThunderBolts
- Celebrate Memorial Day Weekend with the Slammers - Joliet Slammers
- Crushers Blank Grizzlies - Lake Erie Crushers
- Smith Shines Again, But Grizzlies Fall - Gateway Grizzlies
- Otters Shutout ThunderBolts 2-0 - Evansville Otters
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
