Ball, Hanewich and Mattson Combine to Shutout JetHawks 1-0

San Bernardino, CA- The Inland Empire 66ers of San Bernardino and Lancaster JetHawks locked up in a magnificent pitchers' duel on Thursday with the Sixers scoring in the first inning and a trio of hurlers making it hold up. Matt Ball, Brett Hanewich and Isaac Mattson combined to notch Inland Empire's (56-55, 23-18) 11^th shutout of the season.
The 66ers scored in the bottom of first with two outs against JetHawks starter Ty Culbreth (5-6) when Brendon Sanger ripped a double and Julian followed with one of his own to give the Sixers the 1-0 lead. Culbreth allowed just two more hits and a walk with eight Ks over seven frames in a tough-luck loss. Matt Ball (4-1) rolled for the 66ers giving up just one hit until the fifth when he gave up back-to-back singles to open the frame. Ball got a strikeout, groundout to first and an inning ending barehanded play by shortstop Connor Justus to end the threat. The second base hit of the frame was the final batter to reach base as Ball, Hanewich (2IP) and Isaac Mattson (2IP, SV) retired the final 15 batters in a row. Inland Empire stuck out 11 batters without issuing a walk as the two teams combined to throw just 199 pitches. Bernabe Camargo went 2-for-3 for the Sixers as the only player in the game that had a multi-hit effort. The game was a season-fastest one hour and 57 minutes long.
The Sixers open a series versus Modesto on Friday at 7:05 pm. The contest can be heard live at 66ers.com.