APPLESOX STRICKEN BY TOUGH PITCHING, FALL TO HARBOURCATS
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The Wenatchee AppleSox struggled at the plate Tuesday night, being kept off base for 6 2/3 innings and no-hit through 7 innings.
VICTORIA – The Wenatchee AppleSox (0-4), fell to the Victoria HarbourCats (1-3), 11-1 Tuesday night, while the HarbourCats starting pitcher was near-perfect at Royal Athletic Park in Victoria.
The AppleSox were held without a baserunner for 6 2/3 innings, and hitless through 7 innings, facing Dalton Erb of the HarbourCats.
Erb received tremendous run support from the HarbourCats in the third, fourth, and fifth innings. The HarbourCats scored 10 of their 11 runs over the three frames, and chased Sox starter Tyler Burch from the game, who appeared to leave due to some sort of injury.
After 3 2/3 innings, it was 3-0 HarbourCats when Nick Hoefling made his AppleSox debut in relief of the injured Burch. A 2-RBI single off of the second base bag made it 5-0 HarbourCats, and Victoria never looked back.
Cody Snider went 3-for-5 with a single, home run and double. He drove in three runs and stole two bases in the game.
Victoria added two more in the fourth and three more in the fifth, for a 10-0 lead after five innings.
It was all the help Erb needed, as he retired the first 20 batters faced, Tuesday. Ryan Murkle worked a 2-out walk off of Erb in the seventh inning to break up a perfect game, and Steven Machtolf started the eighth inning with a hard-hit single to right center field to break up Erb’s no-hit bid.
Casey Legumina threw in relief along with Hoefling. Legumina struck out three batters during his inning of work, but also surrendered the HarbourCat’s 11th run.
Wenatchee’s lone offensive bright spot came in the ninth inning. Royfel Granda and Jeremy Ydens got their first hits of 2016 during the frame. A walk of Ryan Murkle set up a bases loaded situation in which Wenatchee scored a run off of HarbourCat reliever Nick Wojtysiak. Steven Machtolf ended a streak of 18 2/3 scoreless innings dating back to the tenth inning of Saturday night’s game, and delivered the game’s only RBI for Wenatchee on a bases-loaded hit by pitch.
Erb went eight innings, giving up just one walk, and tossing 13 strikeouts. Wojtysiak added a strikeout to drive the game total to 14 for Victoria.
Wenatchee plays Wednesday at 6:35 p.m. Jimmy Dobrash will throw against the ‘Cats
