Captains shut out, suffer first series loss

(Geneva, IL) - The Lake County Captains managed just one hit on Wednesday in a 4-0 loss to the Kane County Cougars at Fifth Third Bank Ballpark. Anthony Miller accounted for Lake County's only hit, as the Captains lost the rubber match of the three-game series to suffer their first series defeat of the season.

Kane County starter Taylor Clarke tossed 5.1 innings of scoreless baseball to earn his third win of the year. Though he allowed the only Captains hit, a single by Miller in the second inning, Clarke (3-2) kept Lake County off the scoreboard. The right-hander walked two men and struck out four.

Cougars relievers Gabriel Moya, Jency Solis and Keegan Long finished off the one-hit shutout. Moya, a left-hander, pitched 1.2 hitless innings. He walked one and struck out four. Solis and Long, both righties, pitched hitless frames in the eighth and ninth. Solis walked one batter and neither men struck out a batter over the final two frames.

Kane County's offense scored early with a pair of runs in the first inning. Captains starter Tom Pannone hit Galli Cribbs to begin the game and Zach Nehrir followed with a double. Trevor Mitsui then plated the game's first run with an RBI ground out and Joe Munoz gave Kane County a 2-0 lead with an RBI double. Later in the inning, Pannone picked off Luis Veras and Nathan Lukes made a sliding catch in centerfield to keep the Cougars from adding on to their lead.

The Cougars eventually scored again in the fifth and eighth innings. In the fifth, Nehrir and Mitsui hit back-to-back doubles to give Kane County a 3-0 lead. Mitsui's second RBI of the game gave him a team-best 19 on the season. Then, in the eighth, Jason Morozowski hit an opposite-field solo home run to right against Captains reliever Kieran Lovegrove.

Pannone (2-2) took his second loss of the season. The left-hander allowed three runs over 4.1 innings. Kane County struck for six hits and two walks against Panone. The starter struck out four.

Billy Strode returned to the mound for the first time since April 9 after recovering from an arm injury. The left-hander pitched a scoreless and hitless inning in the seventh. Dominic DeMasi also kept the Cougars off the scoreboard over 1.2 hitless frames.

Lake County will head to Clinton, IA to take on the Clinton LumberKings in the first of a three-game series on Thursday. First pitch is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET.

Individual game tickets are on sale at the Classic Park box office, online at captainsbaseball.com and by phone at 440-954-WINS (9467). Full season tickets plans, 12-, 20-, and 35-game mini ticket plans for the 2016 season are on sale now at great prices complete with several exclusive benefits. Information can be found at the Captains website www.captainsbaseball.com.