Washington Sweeps Twinbill Behind Outstanding Mound Work
GAME 1 – WASHINGTON 9, LAKE ERIE 1 (F/7)
AVON, Ohio (July 2) –Washington took game one of the doubleheader after Friday’s rain postponement by a final of 9-1 behind late offense to pull away and strong pitching throughout.
Washington scored the first two runs of the game on a double by Wagner Lagrange that was hit with the bases full in the third inning of Game 1. Lagrange earned his 14th double of the year with the line drive down the right field line and drove in his 33rd and 34th runs of the year with the hit.
Lake Erie got a run in the fourth inning to open its end of the scoring against righty Eric Mock, who made the start for the Wild Things in game one. He left after Jake Gitter’s RBI single, the third base hit of the frame, brought home Connor Owings from second. Kenny Pierson came on for the Wild Things and induced a double-play ball. Mock finished with 3.1 innings pitched and allowed one run on four hits with one strikeout in the spot start. He didn’t factor into the decision.
The scoring then halted until the sixth inning when Washington plated three. Andrew Czech scored Lagrange, who had singled for his 20th multi-hit game of the year, to make it 3-1 Washington. Cole Brannen tripled home a run and scored himself on an error on the same play to push the lead to 5-1, which would be extended to the final score of 9-1 in the seventh by the Wild Things.
Jared Mang hit his sixth homer of the year and fifth as a Wild Thing with a two-run shot to open that four-run frame against his former club. Later in the inning, Ian Walters singled home a run and Brannen lifted a sac fly to cap the scoring.
Kaleb McCullough worked a scoreless seventh in his pro debut from Oral Roberts University to finish the win for Washington (29-14). The win went to Pierson, who goes to 2-1, while Jay Alvarez suffered his third loss of the season for Lake Erie (17-26).
GAME 2 – WASHINGTON 1, LAKE ERIE 0 (F/7)
AVON, Ohio (July 2) – Washington continued its dominant pitching ways into the second game of the doubleheader, with four pitchers combining to earn Washington’s fifth shutout of the season in a 1-0 victory.
The only run of the game came in the second inning after Wagner Lagrange singled to extend his hit streak to 10 games, went to second on a wild pitch, to third on an error and scored on Andrew Czech’s RBI single.
Stephen Knapp made a spot start for his first as a Wild Thing and second appearance for the club. He pitched three innings, allowed three hits, fanned three, walked one and didn’t allow a run. Hayden Pearce faced six batters and set them all down with a strikeout en route to moving to 4-1 with the win. Kenny Pierson pitched 0.1 innings before giving way to closer Lukas Young after a pair of hits.
Young got a line drive back to him and turned it into a sixth-inning-ending double play before seeing the tying run reach twice in the ninth but it didn’t get past first. Young picked up his eighth save of the season with the five-out work.
Washington became the first team to 30 wins in the Frontier League with the doubleheader sweep and dropped Lake Erie to 17-27 in the process.
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The two teams will meet in the weekend series finale at 7:05 p.m. Sunday, July 3 at Mercy Health Stadium in Avon, Ohio. Washington will return home Monday, July 4 for the Fourth of July meeting with the Windy City ThunderBolts at 7:05 p.m. at Wild Things Park. The Wild Things’ faithful will see the largest fireworks display of the season at Wild Things Park. Tickets are available at wildthingstickets.com.
