Miners Swept at Gateway
September 4, 2015 - Frontier League (FL)
Southern Illinois Miners News Release
Marion, Ill. (September 3, 2015) - The Southern Illinois Miners and Gateway Grizzlies engaged in a pitcher's duel deluxe on Thursday night at GCS Ballpark, with both teams threatening in almost every inning but neither side able to score until the eighth, when Gateway scored a run on an infield single off the pitcher's glove for a 1-0 win, sweeping the three-game series.
Miguel Ramirez and Gateway starter Vincent Molesky both tossed well over 100 pitches in the contest, with the right-handers keeping the opposing lineup off balance when it counted with men on base. Ramirez pitched six shutout innings with seven strikeouts on 110 total pitches while Molesky struck out three but lasted seven innings on 119 pitches, also with no runs allowed. The game was handed over to the bullpens, where the trend continued as both the Miners and Grizzlies had their opportunities to score but could not get the big hit they needed to break the ice on the contest.
After the Miners stranded two runners against Ross Spurgeon (3-0) in the top of the eighth, Evan Mott (5-4) came on for the bottom of the inning and allowed a soft leadoff single to Grant Buckner, who was then sacrificed to second by Madison Beaird. A ground ball by Ryan Johns moved the runner to third and on a 3-1 count, Cody Livesay bounced a sharp grounder up the middle that Mott tried to stab himself. The ball went off his glove, however, and Buckner scored for the 1-0 Gateway advantage.
Steve Marino worked a four-pitch walk to start the ninth inning, but a popup on a bunt attempt fell into Buckner's glove for an out. JaVaun West then struck out the next two batters to seal the sweep for Gateway, just the second time this season the Miners had dropped three games in a row.
Southern Illinois will look to rebound on Friday night at 7:05 p.m. against the Florence Freedom at Rent One Park, with newly-named pitcher of the year Adam Lopez taking the hill against the Freedom's Patrick McGrath.
The Southern Illinois Miners are the back-to-back Frontier League East Division Champions and the 2012 Frontier League Champions. 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 2007, their inaugural season. For ticket information, contact the Rent One Park box office at 618-998-8499. For any additional information, visit our website at www.southernillinoisminers.com.
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