Mavericks blow early lead in Lethbridge

By Ryan McCracken on July 15, 2017.

Medicine Hat News

Apair of big innings helped the Lethbridge Bulls turn a 5-0 lead on its head and send the Mavericks back to the dugout with a 9-8 loss to open an Western Major Baseball League doubleheader at Spitz Field.

The Mavs took over a 2-0 lead through the first two innings before extending the gap to five on an error and a 2-RBIdouble from Chris Caffrey in the fourth. But when the Bulls started to chip away, they didn’t stop.

Lethbridge answered right back with a single run in the home half of the fourth before finally getting the best of the Mavericks in the fifth.

While they managed a pair of hits on Mavs starting pitcher Connor Deeds in the frame, the damage was done through a trio of fielding errors — two by third baseman Blake Rowlett and another from shortstop Louie Canjura.

Deeds closed out the inning but was replaced to start the sixth after allowing six runs — four earned — on six hits through five complete innings.

Things continued to unravel for Medicine Hat when Bulls first baseman Jesse Hilyard stepped to the plate in the seventh in the seventh inning. The Oregon product slapped a bases-clearing double into the gap to widen a one-run lead to four and put the game effectively out of reach.

The Mavericks did what they could to answer back on their remaining six outs — closing to within one with the tying run on third — but they were unable to complete the comeback before the break.

Medicine Hat plated a pair in the eighth thanks to an error from Bulls centre fielder Brock Frentzel, then Brady Tedesco added an RBIsingle to close the gap to a run in the ninth before their luck ran out on back-to-back strikeouts.

Lethbridge reliever Ben Erwin took the victory after holding the Mavericks to three runs on six hits through 5 and 2/3 innings of work.

Dawson Moser earned the save after holding Medicine Hat to a run on three hits in the ninth.

The second half of the doubleheader did not finish by press deadline.

The loss puts Medicine Hat at 18-15 on the WMBLseason. The Mavericks hit the road to Okotoks to take on the Dawgs Saturday before the two teams return to Athletic Park to close out a home-and-home set at 2:05 p.m.

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