Clips Complete the Sweep of the Sluggers!
MUSKEGON, MI – The Clippers had their most complete series of the season after beating the Flag City Sluggers on Wednesday and Thursday to complete the sweep. The pitching staff has been nothing short of dominant over the last week or so. Andrew Pohlman and Chase Schwierking put together solid outings in the last two games of the series.
Muskegon now trails the Sluggers by just one game in the North Division heading into the final three weeks of the regular season.
WEDNESDAY
Pohlman, who has been dealing over his past three outings, continued his run on Wednesday with a five-inning performance, allowing just three hits and one run.
Game one was all Muskegon as they tallied 17 hits as a club and scored 17 runs to blow out the Sluggers 17-2 in a game that went just seven innings due to the mercy rule.
Flag City got its two runs in the first and was held scoreless over the final six innings. The Clippers led 5-1 heading into the sixth inning when they rallied for 11 runs.
Muskegon launched two long balls off the bats of Taylor Head (2) and Isaiah Domey (3).
Head, Domey, Ben Meyers, Drake Roa, Nick Moss, and Brayden Turner all recorded multi-hit games on Wednesday.
Kellen Payne came on in relief for two innings, allowing just one run while striking out two and sealing the game on the mound.
THURSDAY
The offensive prowess continued in the series' finale as Muskegon notched 12 hits on its way to a 9-8 nail-biting win.
The Clippers led 4-3 after three innings, and the game stayed close after four when both clubs brought in two runs apiece. Muskegon added insurance in the sixth with two more, but Flag City wasn’t going away that easily.
The Sluggers scored three in the eighth and one more in the ninth. It was a 9-8 score with two outs in the ninth and a runner on second when Jovanny Skrelja of Flag City singled to left. Zander Wills came up firing and gunned down the tying run with a perfect throw, followed by a brilliant tag from Brayden Turner behind the plate.
Dalton Dick was Muskegon’s best offensive performer with three hits and four RBIs, including a two-run double. Justin St. Antoine tripled and tallied two hits himself.
Schwierking was the starter, and he went four innings, allowing three runs while striking out three. Maddux Kipling came in afterward and dominated. Kipling tossed three innings of scoreless baseball and extended his scoreless inning streak to 15.
Zander Wills came in after Kipling and threw the final two innings.
Muskegon will now head to Grand Lake for a three-game series with the Mariners before returning home.