Toledo comes up short in Game 3 of season opening series

Allentown, PA- The Toledo Mud Hens (0-3) fell to the Lehigh Valley IronPigs (3-0) in the final game of the season opening series.

The Mud Hens started hot. Wenceel Pérez led-off the game with a walk to reach base, Max Clark singled a soft fly ball to left field, and Jace Jung drew another walk to load the bases at the top of the inning. Max Anderson singled up the center allowing Pérez to put the first run on the board (1-0). Corey Julks followed with a walk and Clark reached home. (2-0)

Defense put up a strong 3-up-3-out inning to hold the opponent scoreless after 1.

Pérez singled to start the next inning, stole second base, and advanced to third on a throwing error by catcher, Caleb Ricketts. Clark hit a sharp ground ball up the center and raced to second. Pérez scored the third run of the game. (3-0)

A fourth-inning double play from Max Burt and Eduardo Valencia followed by a Cal Stevenson catch kept the Pigs off the board until they tallied 2 from a homer in the fifth. (3-2)

Three strikeouts from Ty Madden in the sixth helped Toledo maintain the 3-2 lead. Clark stole his third base of the series in the seventh, but no runs were added to the total.

Momentum shifted in the eighth when a batter interference on Tomás Nido forced a premature ending for the Mud Hens lineup. The IronPigs scored one on their turn to tie it up (3-3). Jack Little replaced Ty Madden on the mound in the eighth and Clark came up big with a catch to keep the game knotted entering the ninth inning.

Both teams put up a run in the ninth (4-4) forcing extra innings at Coca-Cola Park.

Three doubles from Anderson, Julks, and Nido put 3 runs on the board for Toledo and entered the bottom of the 10^th with a 7-4 lead, but it is not enough to hold off Lehigh Valley, as they earn a walk off win to sweep the series.

The Hens will be back in action on March 31^st at 4:05p.m. as they take on the Syracuse Mets, looking for their first victory of the season.