May 25, 2023
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Trois-Rivieres, Quebec, Canada – The Lake Erie Crushers bounced back into the win column tonight with a 3-2 victory over the Trois-Rivieres Aigles. The Crushers (7-5) were able to avoid getting swept and snapped a three-game losing streak en route to taking home a much-needed win to close out their series versus the Aigles (5-7).
The Aigles were on the board first in the bottom of the second inning. After a leadoff single by Steve Brown, who then advanced on a Crusher error, the Aigles were set up with a man in scoring position and nobody out. Another base hit from Rodrigo Orozco put runners at the corners and a sacrifice fly from Malik Williams made it a 1-0 affair.
The Crushers pulled through in the next half-frame. Sean Cheely led off the inning by reaching on an error. Todd Isaacs Jr. singled, and Santiago Chirino was hit by a pitch.
It was a full house on the bases for Brendon Dadson, who reached on a fielder’s choice and knocked in Cheely. Jack Harris stepped to the dish next and laced a double into the outfield, scoring Isaacs Jr. and moving Dadson to third base.
Lake Erie struck for their third run of the inning when Kenen Irizarry hit a sacrifice fly to the outfield, scoring Dadson. This would be all the Crushers could produce, but it was enough for them to sneak away with the victory.
The Aigles made a run in the ninth and gave the Crushers some late-night drama. With runners on second and third and one away, a fielder’s choice from Canice Ejoh plated a run and shrunk the lead to one. The pitching and defense buckled down however, and two batters later got Sadler Goodwin to fly out for the victory.
The pitching was once again phenomenal. Right-hander Angelo Baez was one inning shy of going the distance. In his eight full frames, he allowed seven hits on just one unearned run while fanning five and not giving up a free pass. He finished the night by tossing a grand total of 71 pitches.
In the ninth, Sam Curtis was called upon for the save. It was not his prettiest performance of the season, but he came through when Lake Erie needed it most to slam the series shut on the Aigles. He pitched one inning allowing a run on one hit while walking two and punching out an Aigles batter.
Isaacs Jr. had a huge night at the plate. He went 3-for-4 with a run and made his presence known in the leadoff spot. Harris had the only other multi-hit performance, going 2-for-5 with a double and an RBI.
The Crushers coupled together eight hits and also surrendered the same amount to the Aigles. Tonight’s win marks Lake Erie’s first on the road this season.
The bus ride will continue to New Jersey, as the Crushers will square up in another nightcap tomorrow against the flaming hot Sussex County Miners. They will head back across the border and have the first pitch at 7:05 PM ET, looking for back-to-back wins.
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