Gastonia 6, So. Maryland 3
Gastonia 3, So. Maryland 0

WALDORF, Md. - The Gastonia Honey Hunters got two very solid pitching performances on Saturday along with 21 hits to sweep a doubleheader against the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs at Regency Furniture Stadium by scores of 6-3 and 3-0.

 In game one, Gastonia opened with a three-run first inning to lead throughout the series opener. Zach Jarrett and Luis Castro collected two out knocks to get the Honey Hunters off to the 3-0 advantage.

 After the Blue crabs countered with a single run in the bottom half of the first, Jake Skole and Herlis Rodriguez drove in runs to give Gastonia a 5-1 lead midway through the fourth.

 Matt Hibbert trimmed the deficit to 5-3 with a two run homer against Reilly Hovis, giving Southern Maryland renewed energy.

 Gastonia would add insurance in the sixth inning, as Reece Hampton tucked a ball inside the first base bag to score Luis Castro, stretching the Honey Hunters´ lead to 6-3.

 Jesus Balaguer pitched a scoreless ninth to earn save number twelve on the year to secure game one for Reilly Hovis, who earned his fourth win on the year.

 Game two had much tighter margins, as Mitch Lambson opposed Zach Godley for Gastonia. Lambson pitched a shutout against Gastonia on May 11th, earning the Blue Crabs first win of the season against Gastonia. Godley was looking to pick up win number one for his new team.

 Gastonia broke the stalemate in the fifth, as the Honey Hunters scored twice on four hits to take the lead. Reece Hampton scored on an Emmanuel Tapia single, followed by a Joseph Rosa double, scoring Alex Holderbach.

 From there, Godley and Quintin Torres-Costa nailed the sweep shut for Gastonia. 

 Godley earned his first win in a Gastonia uniform as Torres-Costa collected his first save of 2022.

 Mitch Lambson absorbed the loss for Southern Maryland despite pitching a complete game.

 The doubleheader sweep comes two days after Southern Maryland clinched the North Division´s first half pennant in the Atlantic League.

 Also of note, Southern Maryland(42-16) has a staggering 24-5 record at home this season. However, with the wins tonight, Gastonia is the only Atlantic League with three road wins in Waldorf, MD.

 The wins for Gastonia tonight puts the club 23 games over .500 for the first in the franchise´s two-year history. The wins also reduce the team's magic number for clinching the South Division´s first half crown to one. Any Gastonia win or High Point loss puts the Honey Hunters into the playoffs for the first time ever.  

 The Honey Hunters(40-17) wrap up the series against the Blue Crabs at 2:05pm on Sunday, as John Anderson faces off against Eddie Butler. 

York 19, Staten Island 1

(June 25, 2022 – York, Pa.):  York Revolution fans did not have to wait until postgame for fireworks on Saturday night as York exploded for 22 hits including four home runs in the eighth inning in a 19-1 victory over the Staten Island FerryHawks at PeoplesBank Park.

 Staten Island struck first for the second night in a row. After a one-out triple by Dilson Herrera, he was driven in on a Ricardo Cespedes double to left with two outs in the first for a 1-0 lead.

 York found its answer three batters into its half of the first. After a leadoff double, Troy Stokes Jr. stole third base and scored on a Connor Lien ground rule double to left-center, Lien’s third extra base hit and fourth RBI of the series. With two outs, JC Encarnacion plated another on a seeing-eye single up the middle, and Josue Herrera drove a two-run double to left center field for a 4-1 lead after an inning.

 Yefri Perez led off the bottom of the second with a single, and after stealing second, scored on a base hit to center from Stokes Jr. to make it 5-1.

 Friday night’s walk-off hero Elmer Reyes got on the board in the fourth inning, depositing a single into left center field and scoring Perez who had reached on a walk, increasing the lead to 6-1.

 York greeted reliever Jose Velez with three straight hits in the sixth, with the third, a Reyes ground rule double to left-center, extending the lead to 7-1. Velez walked the next two with the second one to Nellie Rodriguez plating yet another run. Carlos Franco followed with an RBI single to center, and Encarnacion plated another as he beat out a double play ball to make it a four-run frame. York batted around in the sixth to make it 10-1.

 Josh Martin relieved Jorge Martinez with a 1-2-3 inning in the seventh. Martinez (5-4) finished his day after just 87 pitches, surrendering only three hits in six innings for the second consecutive start while striking out five, winning his third straight.

 Tuck Tucker made his pro debut in the eighth inning and rolled two ground balls and induced a fly out, retiring the side in order. 

 Encarnacion led off the bottom of the eighth with his fifth home run of the year on a blast to left-center against reliever Anthony Auletta. After three more reached, Kelsie Whitmore inherited a bases loaded jam with nobody out. Stokes Jr. followed with his fifth hit of the game, a two-run single to right center field to extend the lead to 13-1. The Revs refused to take their foot off the gas as Reyes blasted a three-run homer to left-center, making it a 16-1 game. Franco cemented himself as the second in the league to 20 home runs on the season when he blasted a two-run shot to the top of the lawn in right-center. Outfielder Joseph Monge relieved Whitmore, and Encarnacion greeted him with a moonshot over the Arch Nemesis in left, joining Melky Mesa (2019) as the second in Revs history with two home runs in the same inning. The Revs’ four homers as a team set a new franchise record for a single inning, highlighting the nine-run explosion.

 Duke von Schamann pitched the ninth and was touched for a slow infield single with one out, ending a streak of 15 straight retired by York pitching. Von Schamann closed things down with a scoreless inning, however, giving York the 19-1 win, tying the largest margin of victory of the season along with a win in Lexington by the same score on April 28.

 The offense erupted for a season-high 22 hits, York’s most in a game since 2019.

 York will look to sweep the series on Sunday when Alex Sanabia takes the mound against Hector Guance, with the game getting underway at 2 p.m.  The day features #InstaTokBook, Crab Feast catered by Captain Bob’s Crabs, Sunday Funday presented by Weis Markets, Bark in the Park, and an appearance by a Budweiser Clydesdale.  Tickets are on sale at YorkRevolution.com, (717) 801-HITS, and in-person at the Shipley Energy Ticket Office.

 Notes: Franco’s first inning walk extended his on base streak to 38 games, bringing him within seven of Nate Espy’s club record from 2007.  Franco’s 20 homers are one shy of matching Telvin Nash’s franchise record for a first half.  Stokes Jr.’s five-hit game is the 12th in Revs history and first since Mesa did it on September 7, 2021 in Lancaster; it is the first five-hit game of Stokes Jr.’s pro career.  Reyes’ five-RBI game is his first since August 4, 2021 with Charleston (vs. Gastonia).  Encarnacion’s two-homer game is the Revs’ eight of the year and second in as many nights, following Lien’s two-homer game from Friday; it is the second of Encarnacion’s career (May 30, 2019 with Delmarva, at Greenville). Franco and Encarnacion’s back-to-back homers in the eighth are the Revs’ second set of back-to-back home runs on the season (Strokes Jr. and Perez, June 15 at Lexington).  Martinez moves to second in the league in ERA and tops among active pitchers (3.11), while jumping to second in strikeouts (74); his five wins are two off the league lead.  He has allowed one run on six hits in 12.0 innings over his last two starts (both vs. Staten Island), and with one walk and five strikeouts on Saturday night, has now walked just three while striking out 30 in 24.1 innings over his last four starts.  The 18-run margin of victory is one run shy of a franchise record.  The 22 hits are tied for sixth most in a game in team history and the most since a 25-hit showing on July 2, 2019 at Southern Maryland.  It marks the ninth time the Revs have tallied at least 22 hits.  The nine-run eighth inning came within one run of the biggest inning of the season and marked the third time they’ve put up at least nine in an inning this season.  The Revs improve to 26-30, moving within four games of .500 for the first time since starting the season 2-6.  York is 22-16 since May 13, and has four wins and one split in its last five series, going 9-4 on that stretch.  The three-game winning streak matches a season-best.  York improves to 6-5 vs. Staten Island, having won six of the last eight meetings.

Long Island 8, Lancaster 6
Long Island 3, Lancaster 3

(Central Islip, N.Y., June 25, 2022) – The Long Island Ducks swept a single admission doubleheader from the Lancaster Barnstormers on Saturday night at Fairfield Properties Ballpark, rallying for an 8-6 win in game one and a 4-3 win in game two.

The Ducks took a 1-0 lead in the second inning of game one on an RBI ground-rule double by Dustin Woodcock off Barnstormers starter Oscar De La Cruz. Kelly Dugan answered in the third with a two-out, two-run homer to right-center off Ducks starter Akeel Morris to put the Barnstormers ahead 2-1.

 A three-run third inning by Lancaster, highlighted by solo homers from LeDarious Clark and Anderson Feliz and an RBI triple by Shawon Dunston Jr., gave the visitors a 5-1 lead. However, a two-run homer to right by Woodcock followed immediately by a solo homer down the left field line from Austin Rei in the bottom of the frame brought Long Island back within a run at 5-4. Dugan’s second homer of the game pushed the Barnstormers advantage to 6-4 in the fifth.

 Long Island stormed back with four runs in the sixth to take an 8-6 lead. RBI singles by L.J. Mazzilli and Vladimir Frias, a wild pitch that scored Woodcock and a sac fly to center off the bat of Sam Travis did the damage.

 Morris did not factor into the decision but lasted three and two-thirds innings, allowing five runs on five hits and three walks with three strikeouts. Chad Hockin (1-1) picked up the win with a 1-2-3 sixth inning. De La Cruz (2-1) took the loss, giving up seven runs (six earned) on eight hits and three walks over five innings with three strikeouts. Tyler Webb earned his sixth save with a 1-2-3 seventh inning, striking out two.

 Lancaster took a 2-0 lead in the first inning of game two on Andretty Cordero’s RBI single off Ducks starter Cody Beckman and an error that plated Dugan. Travis closed the gap to 2-1 in the second with a leadoff solo homer to left-center off Barnstormers starter Erik Manoah. An RBI infield single to short by Frias in the third tied the game at two.

 The Barnstormers went back in front 3-2 in the fourth on a throwing error that scored Trace Loehr. It stayed that way until the bottom of the sixth when the Ducks rallied to take a 4-3 lead on a fielder’s choice that scored Alejandro De Aza and an RBI single by Joe DeCarlo.

 Neither starter factored into the decision. Beckman lasted five innings, allowing three runs (one earned) on four hits and five walks while striking out six. Manoah pitched five innings as well, giving up two runs on three hits and two walks with seven strikeouts. Sandy Baez (3-1) got the win after pitching around three walks to toss a scoreless sixth inning. Chase Johnson (1-6) suffered the loss, surrendering two runs (one earned) on two hits and a walk in one inning. Nick Goody collected his third save with a scoreless seventh inning.

 The Ducks and Barnstormers wrap up their four-game series on Sunday afternoon. Game time is slated for 1:35 p.m., with the ballpark gates opening at 12:35 (12:20 for full season ticket holders). The first 1,500 fans in attendance will receive Ducks Thunderstix, courtesy of News 12 Long Island. It’s also a Sunday Family Funday, presented by Bethpage Federal Credit Union! Prior to the game, fans will be invited down for a Catch on the Field from 12:40 to 1:00. After the game, fans of all ages are also invited to take part in Kids Run the Bases. Right-hander Joe Iorio (6-1, 3.81) gets the ball for the Ducks against Barnstormers lefty Augie Sylk (2-6, 6.24).

High Point 13, Lexington 5
HIGH POINT, N.C. – The High Point Rockers regained their offensive stroke in knocking 12 hits in a 13-5 win over the Lexington Legends on Saturday night at Truist Point. The Rockers used a five-run fifth inning to break-up a one-run game before cruising home to the victory.

High Point’s Michael Matinez had a pair of hits including a three-run homer while Jerry Downs and Adam Taylor each added a two-run single.

The Rockers were scoring runs almost from the first pitch of the game, tallying a pair of runs in each of the first three innings. Lexington starter Daniel Corcino (L, 2-6) walked the first two batters of the game and after Johnny Field moved to third on a fly ball to right by Jerry Downs, scored on a wild pitch. Michael Martinez then singled home Ben Aklinski, the first of four RBI on the night for Martinez.

Lexington scored a run in the second on back-to-back doubles by Blake Swihart and Cesar Cuevas. The Rockers’ two runs in the second came on an RBI single by Zander Wiel and on a fielding error by the Legends.  In the third, Jerry Downs singled with the base loaded to bring in both runs.

The Legends scored a pair in the top of the third on RBI singles by Phillip Ervin and Montrell Marshall.

Lexington was able to close to 6-5 in the top of the fourth when High Point starter Austin Glorius walked the bases full to start the frame before being relieved by Kyle Mott. An error by catcher Dakota Mulcay on a swinging bunt led to one run and a wild pitch plated the other score.

The Rockers blew up for six runs in the fifth inning with Adam Taylor collecting a pinch two-run single and a three-run homer by Martinez. High Point’s final run scored in the sixth when Mulcay collected his first professional hit, a double to right-center, and scored on a sac fly by Field.

Mott (W, 1-0) went two innings and did not allow a hit while walking one and striking out four to get the win. The Rockers relievers, Mott, Joe Johnson, Adam Choplick and John Hayes, struck out eight Legends over the final four innings.

The Rockers improved to 33-25 overall on the season. Gastonia swept a doubleheader from Southern Maryland to move their record to 40-17 with nine games remaining in the first half.

High Point and Lexington will conclude their three-game series on Sunday at 4:05 p.m. at Truist Point.

Kentucky 11, Charleston 8