Marauders Win in Walkoff Fashion in Series Opener
Bradenton, Fla. — The Marauders (22-18) returned home to LECOM Park on Tuesday night after dropping five of the six games on the road trip to Clearwater, playing host to the FSL East's Jupiter Hammerheads. After clawing back runs late in the game, the Marauders would eventually take the win
Bradenton, Fla. — The Marauders (22-18) returned home to LECOM Park on Tuesday night after dropping five of the six games on the road trip to Clearwater, playing host to the FSL East's Jupiter Hammerheads. After clawing back runs late in the game, the Marauders would eventually take the win in extra innings by a final score of 3-2.
Owen Kellington got the start for the Young Bucs and would toss four innings in his outing, allowing two earned runs off three hits and a pair of walks. Kellington would not claim a decision for his efforts.
Jupiter got the scoring started in the first when they scored a run on an RBI triple from Jordan McCants to put the visitors up by a run with only half an innings played.
Bradenton was held scoreless across the first three innings and did not have a base runner in the first third of the game, but the offense came alive in the fourth. After the Hammerheads chalked up their second run of the game in the top of the fourth inning, the Marauders clawed one back in the home half after Travis Swaggerty walked and Termarr Johnson singled to put men on the corners with one away.
Rodolfo Nolasco drove a ball to dead center, but it did not have the legs to leave the yard but was deep enough to allow Swaggerty to tag and score from third to cut the deficit in half.
The Marauders tied the game in the sixth when Deivis Nadal walked and then stole his way to third base to allow Termarr Johnson to bring him home with an RBI single to right, leveling the game at 2-2 with a third of the game to go.
Rehab bullpen men Tyler Chatwood and Blake Cederlind tossed three combined scoreless innings to shut down Jupiter in the seventh, eighth, and ninth innings to force an extra frame.
In the top of the tenth, Elijah Birdsong struck out a pair and stranded the automatic runner on second, putting the Marauders in position to drive the winning run from just a base knock.
Jack Brannigan walked to start the inning, and Rodolfo Nolasco, the runner on second, moved 90 feet away from home after advancing on a wild pitch. Enmanuel Terrero struck out to give the Hammerheads a glimmer of a chance to get out of the inning, but that dream was squashed the next at-bat.
Shalin Polanco stepped in and quickly fell behind 0-2 in the count before hitting a pop fly 187 feet in the air toward Short. Multiple men converged, but none could get a solid read on the ball thrown in the wind.
The ball dropped down three feet in front of the shortstop Spohn who tumbled to the ground in his chase after it. As the ball struck the dirt, Nolasco did not hesitate to break for the plate. The Marauders' base runner scored without a throw delivering Bradenton the 3-2 win in 10 innings. (Check out the walk-off hit at the link below!)
https://twitter.com/BenPokorny/status/1661202255373058048?s=20
The Marauders will look to carry the thrilling victory into the Wednesday night matchup with the Hammerheads, Alessandro Ercolani is the probable starter for Bradenton.