From the Southern Illinois Miners
The Southern Illinois Miners trailed for about half of the game against the Gateway Grizzlies at Rent One Park on Thursday night, but went ahead on a big home run by Ryan Sluder in the fifth inning, then collected five more runs in the seventh to pull away for a 7-1 win, taking the series two games to one.
In the first inning, after a single by Dan Holst and a walk by Joel McKeithan, Blake Brown’s RBI single made it 1-0 Gateway against Zach Cooper. But Cooper (3-8) would settle down from there, getting a double play groundout to end the first inning, working around two walks in the second and holding the Grizzlies off the board the rest of his outing. He ended up with a quality start on the hill, pitching six frames and surrendering just four hits and three walks with five strikeouts in earning the win.
The Miners trailed by the 1-0 score until they got to Will Anderson (2-10) in the fifth inning. After Ben Moore reached with one out on an infield hit and went to second base on an error, Sluder came up two batters later, and on an 0-2 pitch clubbed his second home run in as many nights, a go-ahead, two-run shot down the left field line, to put the Miners in front 2-1.
The score remained 2-1 Miners until the bottom of the seventh inning, when after a leadoff walk by Craig Massoni and a bunt single by Brett Wiley, Anderson departed. Moore sacrificed the runners to second and third base, and Gateway chose to intentionally walk Anthony Critelli to load the bases and bring up Sluder, who singled to left field to make it 3-1. London Lindley‘s RBI single then expanded the lead to 4-1 before Craig Massey struck the big blow of the inning, clearing the bases with a triple for a 7-1 Miners cushion.
Gateway would get no closer against the Southern Illinois bullpen as the Miners won the series by taking the final two contests against the Grizzlies. Sluder went 2-for-3 with two runs scored and three RBIs to set a career-high. Lindley also finished 1-for-3 with a run and an RBI while Massey drove in three on his lone base hit as Southern Illinois took the rubber match to cap off their long homestand.
Southern Illinois next heads on the road to take on the Florence Freedom at UC Health Stadium. Chris Washington will pitch the opener of the weekend series on Friday against the Freedom’s Tony Vocca beginning at 6:05 p.m. CDT.
The Southern Illinois Miners are the 2016 Frontier League West Division Champions, the 2014 and 2015 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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