Tag: Brian Leach

The Pirates have signed 23rd round draft pick RHP Jordan Cooper to a contract.  He had been a pitcher for Kentucky, and that experience might get him a start at State College.  Here is a list of all the 2011 draft picks, with notations for which ones have signed.  

Friday's game action:

Harrisburg Senators  2,  Altoona Curve  0
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A 2-run homer in the bottom of the 10th broke the scoreless tie for the only scoring in this pitching duel.  Jeff Locke pitched 6 scoreless frames for the Curve, scattering 3 singles and a walk over his first 3 innings.  The he retired the Senators in order for the next 3 innings.  He threw 78 pitches (48 strikes) in those 6 innings.  Bryan Morris pitched a scoreless 7th, allowing just a single.  That base runner moved to second base on a balk, which started an argument by Altoona manager PJ Forbes -- and resulted in Forbes being ejected. Michael Dubee, back with the Curve after some time with Indianapolis, gave up a lone single in the 8th, and Noah Krol allowed a single and a walk in the 9th, but both kept the Senators from scoring.

But the Curve weren't scoring either.  They pounded out 7 hits, including two by SS Jordy Mercer.  Mercer's triple i n the 7th was the only extra-base hit for the Curve, and the only time that a Curve base runner reached as far as third base.  RF Andrew Lambo also walked twice.  CF Starling Marte opened the game with a single, but was thrown out at second after Mercer's strikeout.  1B Matt Curry and LF Brad Chalk both singled in the 2nd, but Curry was picked off second base, and Chalk was thrown out trying to steal second.  2B Brock Holt singled in the 4th, and pinch-hitter Anthony Norman singled in the 10th and stole second base.  

The Altoona Curve have a scheduled day off today (Monday), and the West Virginia Power are off for the first day of their All-Star Break.  The All-Star Game will be played in Delmarva on Tuesday, with Brandon Cumpton, Jameson Taillon, and Dan Grovatt representing the Power.  


Auburn Doubledays  7 ,  State College Spikes  6
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Pirates' 2nd round draft pick from 2010, Stetson Allie, made his professional debut tonight, as the starting pitcher for the State College Spikes, though he did not factor into the decision.  Allie struck out the first batter he faced, then gave up a single, struck out the next batter, and gave up an RBI double.  A line out ended the inning.  The second inning went better, as Allie retired three Auburn batters in order, including another strikeout.  

The third inning was another tough one for Allie.  A single and a walk opened the inning.  After a fly out, both runners stole the next base, and a walk loaded the bases.  Allie also walked the next batter, forcing in a run.  That signaled the end of his evening.  Cliff Archibald relieved Allie, but Archibald also walked in a run (charged to Allie), before getting the inning-ending double play.  Allie was responsible for 3 runs on 3 hits and 3 walks, with 3 strikeouts, in 2.1 innings.  
State College got onto the scoreboard with a run in the 3rd.  SS Kirk Singer led off with a double, then DH Carlos Mesa singled, moving Singer to third.  C Samuel Gonzalez's RBI single brought in Singer, to cut the Auburn lead to 3-1.  The Spikes tied the game in the 4th.  1B Walker Gourley led off with a single and moved to second base on a wild pitch, then to third on a ground out.  Singer walked, then CF Taylor Lewis' sacrifice fly scored Gourley.  Singer stole second base, then scored on RF Justin Benscko's RBI single.  

Archibald went on to pitch the 4th and 5th innings, allowing a walk and a single, but keeping Auburn scoreless.  Emmanuel De Leon relieved Archibald to begin the 6th inning, and gave up only a double in that inning.  With two outs in the 7th, De Leon gave up a double and a 2-run homer.  The Spikes got one of the runs back in the bottom of the inning, with a single by Benscko, a stolen base and a missed catch error to put Benscko onto third, and a sacrifice fly by Gonzalez.  

De Leon started the top of the 8th by giving up a walk and a stolen base.  After two outs, a single, a throwing error by Singer, and a double gave Auburn 2 more runs, for a 7-4 lead.  Jesus Brito relieved De Leon and ended the 8th inning with a fly out.  Singer tried to make up for his error with an RBI double after a single by 3B Brian Sharp, bringing the score to 7-5.  Brito pitched a scoreless top of the 9th.  The Spikes tried for another rally in the bottom of the 9th.  With one out, Benscko singled, then advanced to second on a wild pitch, and to third on a second wild pitch.  After a walk to Mesa, Gonzalez brought in Benscko with a sacrifice fly.  But a strikeout ended the inning and the game without the Spikes being able to catch up.                                       

All of the Pirates' minor league affiliates lost on Tuesday evening.....

New Britain Rock Cats  10,  Altoona Curve 4
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It was a tough night for Curve starter Bryan Morris, who gave up 7 runs on 9 hits and 3 walks in 4 innings of work.  Morris got into trouble in the top of the 1st.  He gave up a lead-off single, then set down the next two batters on fly outs.  Three straight singles and his own throwing error on the final single (a bunt) brought in two runs.  The top of the 2nd was worse -- three singles and three walks, with a throwing error by LF Quincy Latimore, and an RBI ground out brought in another 5 runs for New Britain, for a 7-0 lead.  Morris gave up a single in each of the next two innings, but retired those two runners with a pair of double plays.  

The Curve got three of the runs back in the 3rd inning.  DH Jose Hernandez doubled, and scored on RF Brad Chalk's single.  Chalk came in on 2B Brock Holt's triple, then SS Jordy Mercer doubled, plating Holt.  That cut the Rock Cats' lead to 7-4.  

But the Rock Cats added to their lead with 3 runs off reliever Tim Alderson.  A single, a ground out, and a wild pitch put the lead-off batter on third in the 5th, and two more walks and a wild pitch brought him in.  A walk, another wild pitch, an RBI single and an RBI double gave the Rock Cats 2 more runs in the 6th, for a 10-3 lead.  

The Curve put base runners on in most of the remaining innings of the game, but they were left stranded.  Holt singled and CF Starling Marte walked with two outs in the 5th, and the Curve did not put two runners on base again until the 9th. 1B Matt Curry walked to begin the 9th, and 3B Jeremy Farrell singled.  Curry went to third on the hit, and he scored on Hernandez's sacrifce fly.  

Saturday evening action for the Pirates' minor league affiliates:

Altoona Curve  11,  Reading Phillies  1  (Suspended)
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After rain delayed the start of this game, the Curve must have decided that they needed to score a lot and quickly, in case the rain cut the game short.  The rain did come again, but too early for a complete game.  Instead, it was suspended in the 3rd inning, with the Curve leading by 10 runs.  R-Phils starter Juan Ramirez could not get through the 1st inning.  The first four Curve batters reached base safely:  a lead-off triple by RF Anthony Norman, a double by CF Starling Marte (one run), a walk by SS Jordy Mercer, and a single by LF Quincy Latimore to load the bases.  After a fly out, 3B Jeremy Farrell drove in both Marte and Mercer with an RBI single (runs 2,3).  C Travis Scott singled, loading the bases again.  2B Greg Picart grounded to first, and the R-Phils' first baseman returned the ball to the plate, forcing out Latimore for the second out.  Pitcher Aaron Pribanic singled into right field, bringing in Farrell (run 4), and a walk by Norman forced in Scott with the 5th run of the inning.  That was the end for Ramirez, and the new reliever, Tyson Brummett, struck out Marte to end the inning.  

But the Curve came right back at Brummett in the 2nd.  With one out, Latimore singled, and 1B Matt Curry doubled him in.  A walk by Scott and a single by Picart brought in Curry, and the Curve extended their lead to 7-0.  

Pribanic retired the R-Phils in order in the bottom of the 1st.  He gave up one run in the 2nd, on two singles and two ground outs.  Then the Curve came roaring right back in the top of the 3rd.  Norman led off with a walk, and a fielding error put Marte on first and Norman on second.  Mercer singled, plating Norman.  After one out, Brummet threw two wild pitches, scoring Marte and leaving Mercer on third base.  Curry walked, then Farrell doubled, driving in Mercer.  Curry went to third base, and he scored on Scott's sacrifice fly.  A ground out ended the top of the inning, and at that point, the game was halted, with the Curve ahead 11-1.  The game will resume at 1:30 pm on Sunday, and the regularly scheduled game will follow, but that game will be only 7 innings long.  Hope the Curve didn't use up all their hits in those first three innings.  

The West Virginia Power have a scheduled day off on Tuesday, but the Marauders and the Curve are in action:

Jupiter Hammerheads  4,  Bradenton Marauders  3
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The Marauders had the luck to pull off a rare triple play, but Jupiter broke a 3-3 tie in the bottom of the 8th to take the win.  

Each team scored one run in the 1st inning.  RF Robbie Grossman opened the game with a walk, then went to third on 2B Kelson Brown's single up the middle.  Grossman scored on 1B Aaron Baker's sacrifice fly.  3B Elevys Gonzalez also singled, sending Brown around from second, but he was thrown out at the plate.  In the bottom of the frame, with Nate Baker on the mound for the Marauders, two lead-off walks and a grounder force out at second put Jupiter runners on the corners.  A sacrifice fly brought in the lead runner, and Nate Baker and Aaron Baker combined to pick off and catch stealing the second runner.  

Nate Baker retired the side in the 2nd inning, but gave up another run in the bottom of the 3rd, on a single and an RBI double.  The double would have been a triple, but an on-target throw from LF David Rubinstein to Elevys Gonzalez at third let Gonzalez tag him out.  

The Marauders loaded the bases in the top of the 2nd, when CF Evan Chambers reached on a fielding error, and both DH Calvin Anderson and Grossman walked.  But with two outs, a pop out by Brown ended the threat.  Both C Ramon Cabrera and Elevys Gonzalez singled in the 3rd, but both were left on base.  In the top of the 4th, the Marauders scored twice, courtesy of two wild pitches.  Anderson and SS Benji Gonzalez both walked to lead off the inning, and Grossman loaded the bases with a grounder through the hole into left field.  A wild pitch let Anderson score from third base, while the other two runners both moved up a base.  After two outs, another wild pitch allowed Benji Gonzalez to come across the plate, and the Marauders had a 3-2 lead.
Two strikeouts and a ground out gave Nate Baker a 1-2-3 inning in the bottom of the 4th.  He got into trouble again in the 5th, though, with a lead-off double and a hit batter.  A sacrifice bunt and a throwing error by Elevys Gonzalez loaded the bases, and an RBI single pushed the lead runner in to tie the score again.  With the bases still loaded, the Marauders had a rare triple play:  Jupiter's CF Jose Duarte lined right to Brown, who fired to first, where Aaron Baker doubled off the runner and fired back to Brown, who doubled off the runner at second base.  Nate Baker also retired the Hammerheads in order in the 6th.  He finished with 3 runs on 4 hits and 2 walks in 6 innings, with 2 strikeouts, but left the game with the score tied, so did not figure into the decision.  

The Marauders had 3 batters reach base over the 5th and 6th innings, all on walks.  Elevys Gonzalez worked a walk to lead off the 5th, and stole second base.  Grossman and Brown both walked with one out in the 6th.  None of them came around to score, though.  The only other Marauder to reach base was Aaron Baker, who singled with two outs in the top of the 9th.  Adalberto Santos came in to pinch-run for Baker, but he did not have a chance to do anything, as a ground out ended the inning.  
 
Brian Leach relieved Nate Baker to begin the 7th inning, and he retired the side on three fly outs.  Jhonathan Ramos came on for the 8th inning, and he was charged with the loss when he gave up the winning run.  A single and a sacrifice bunt began the inning, then a passed ball put the runner on third base.  After an intentional walk, a sacrifice fly brought in the runner from third, to give Jupiter a 4-3 lead.  The Marauders could not respond, and Jupiter had the win.  

The West Virginia Power have a scheduled day off on Tuesday, but the Marauders and the Curve are in action:

Jupiter Hammerheads  4,  Bradenton Marauders  3
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The Marauders had the luck to pull off a rare triple play, but Jupiter broke a 3-3 tie in the bottom of the 8th to take the win.  

Each team scored one run in the 1st inning.  RF Robbie Grossman opened the game with a walk, then went to third on 2B Kelson Brown's single up the middle.  Grossman scored on 1B Aaron Baker's sacrifice fly.  3B Elevys Gonzalez also singled, sending Brown around from second, but he was thrown out at the plate.  In the bottom of the frame, with Nate Baker on the mound for the Marauders, two lead-off walks and a grounder force out at second put Jupiter runners on the corners.  A sacrifice fly brought in the lead runner, and Nate Baker and Aaron Baker combined to pick off and catch stealing the second runner.  

Nate Baker retired the side in the 2nd inning, but gave up another run in the bottom of the 3rd, on a single and an RBI double.  The double would have been a triple, but an on-target throw from LF David Rubinstein to Elevys Gonzalez at third let Gonzalez tag him out.  

The Marauders loaded the bases in the top of the 2nd, when CF Evan Chambers reached on a fielding error, and both DH Calvin Anderson and Grossman walked.  But with two outs, a pop out by Brown ended the threat.  Both C Ramon Cabrera and Elevys Gonzalez singled in the 3rd, but both were left on base.  In the top of the 4th, the Marauders scored twice, courtesy of two wild pitches.  Anderson and SS Benji Gonzalez both walked to lead off the inning, and Grossman loaded the bases with a grounder through the hole into left field.  A wild pitch let Anderson score from third base, while the other two runners both moved up a base.  After two outs, another wild pitch allowed Benji Gonzalez to come across the plate, and the Marauders had a 3-2 lead.

Two strikeouts and a ground out gave Nate Baker a 1-2-3 inning in the bottom of the 4th.  He got into trouble again in the 5th, though, with a lead-off double and a hit batter.  A sacrifice bunt and a throwing error by Elevys Gonzalez loaded the bases, and an RBI single pushed the lead runner in to tie the score again.  With the bases still loaded, the Marauders had a rare triple play:  Jupiter's CF Jose Duarte lined right to Brown, who fired to first, where Aaron Baker doubled off the runner and fired back to Brown, who doubled off the runner at second base.  Nate Baker also retired the Hammerheads in order in the 6th.  He finished with 3 runs on 4 hits and 2 walks in 6 innings, with 2 strikeouts, but left the game with the score tied, so did not figure into the decision.  

The Marauders had 3 batters reach base over the 5th and 6th innings, all on walks.  Elevys Gonzalez worked a walk to lead off the 5th, and stole second base.  Grossman and Brown both walked with one out in the 6th.  None of them came around to score, though.  The only other Marauder to reach base was Aaron Baker, who singled with two outs in the top of the 9th.  Adalberto Santos came in to pinch-run for Baker, but he did not have a chance to do anything, as a ground out ended the inning.  
 
Brian Leach relieved Nate Baker to begin the 7th inning, and he retired the side on three fly outs.  Jhonathan Ramos came on for the 8th inning, and he was charged with the loss when he gave up the winning run.  A single and a sacrifice bunt began the inning, then a passed ball put the runner on third base.  After an intentional walk, a sacrifice fly brought in the runner from third, to give Jupiter a 4-3 lead.  The Marauders could not respond, and Jupiter had the win.  

West Virginia Power  5,  Lexington Legends  4
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Jameson Taillon surrendered 4 runs on 8 hits in 5 innings, but he still pulled out his second win of the season.  The 4 runs all came in the bottom of the 6th inning.  The Legends started the inning with back-to-back doubles, driving in one run.  A single and a fielding error by LF Rogelios Noris added a second run, then a 2-run homer made the score 4-0.  

The Power tied the score in the top of the 4th.  RF Dan Grovatt started the rally with a walk, and moved to second base on a wild pitch.  DH Kawika Emsley-Pai and C Elias Diaz also walked, loading the bases.  With two outs, 2B Andy Vazquez lined a single into center field, bringing in Grovatt and Emsley-Pai, and leaving runners on the corners.  Another walk, to 3B Eric Avila, loaded the bases again.  Then SS Drew Maggi lined another 2-RBI single into right field, plating Diaz and Vasquez to tie the game at 4-4.  

Grovatt began another rally in the 5th, with a single.  A passed ball advanced Grovatt to second base, and he moved up to third base on 1B Justin Howard's ground out.  Emsley-Pai drove Grovatt in with a single up the middle, and Grovatt came in with the go-ahead run.  

Taillon worked around at least one runner on base in 4 of his 5 innings.  He had a batter reach on a throwing error by Avila in the 1st, and he also gave up a single in the bottom of the 1st.  Taillon allowed a single and a double in the 3rd, but a double play helped him out of that jam.  He also gave up a lead-off single in the 5th, but retired the next three batters on three ground outs.  

Casey Sadler relieved Taillon to begin the 6th.  Sadler pitched 3 scoreless innings and allowed just one single in the 6th, and a walk in the 8th.  He struck out 3 Legends' batters.  Jason Townsend earned his 5th Save of the season with a scoreless 9th, allowing a single.  

After taking the lead in the 5th, the Power put at least one runner on base in every inning for the rest of the game.  Maggi tripled in the 6th, and Howard singled in the 7th.  Noris reached base on a fielding error in the 8th.  Both Grovatt and Howard walked in the 9th inning.  None of them could push around to score.  

The Pirates and all four of their minor league affiliates lost in Sunday's play:

Hickory Crawdads  4,  West Virginia Power  3
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Jameson Taillon pitched well in his 5-inning start this afternoon.  He surrendered one run on two hits, with no walks, and he struck out 4 batters.  Taillon zipped through the first two innings, retiring the Crawdads in order.  He gave up the only run in the 3rd inning, when the first Hickory batter of the inning homered.  Taillon set down the next three batters, then gave up a ground-rule double to the first batter in the 4th.  He retired three more batters in the 4th, then pitched a 1-2-3 inning in the 5th.  Taillon was on the short end, 1-0 when he left the game.

The Power put one runner on base in each of the first three innings -- singles by CF Mel Rojas in the 1st and 3rd, and  C Elias Diaz in the 2nd.  Each time they were left on base.  2B/CF Andy Vasquez got as far as third base in the 5th inning, with a single, a stolen base, and a throwing error, but he too was left stranded.  

Victor Black pitched a scoreless inning for the Power in the 6th, taking over for Taillon.  It was only his second appearance this season, and his second scoreless and hitless inning.  

Casey Sadler came on to pitch the 7th.  He walked the first batter he faced, then got two outs.  A single and a hit batter loaded the bases for Hickory.  A ground-rule double brought in two runs, to give Hickory a 3-0 lead.  The Power tied the score in the bottom of the frame.  RF Justin Howard started the rally with a single up the middle.  C Kawika Emsley-Pai walked, and a wild pitch moved both runners into scoring position.  Diaz lined a single in to right field, scoring both Howard and Emsley-Pai.  3B Eric Avila singled on a liner into left field, then a bunt by Vasquez again moved two runners into scoring position.  SS Drew Maggi singled, driving in Diaz from third base.  The rally ended when Avila was caught trying to steal home and Rojas struck out.  

The tie did not last long.  Sadler struck out the first two batters in the top of the 8th, then gave up a walk and a double, which brought the lead runner racing around from first to score, to give Hickory a 4-3 lead.  Jason Townsend pitched the top of the 9th, giving up two singles, but no runs.  RF Dan Grovatt led off the bottom of the 8th with a single, but he was the only Power batter to reach base in the final two innings.  
 

The Indianapolis Indians have a scheduled day off on Wednesday, and the Curve played a morning game.  The Marauders and the Power play in the evening.

Altoona Curve  7,  Bowie Baysox  1
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After allowing a run in the top of the 1st, the Curve pitchers held Bowie scoreless for the rest of this morning's game. The Curve posted a total of 14 hits, double the number they allowed the Baysox, and every hitter in the Curve lineup but one had at least one hit.  

Starter Mike Colla began the game by giving up a double into center field to the Bowie lead-off hitter.  A ground out moved the runner to third, and a sacrifice fly brought him in with the first run of the game.  The Curve managed only a single by CF Starling Marte in the bottom of the 1st, but they got things going in the bottom of the 2nd.   3B Jeremy Farrell and C Eric Fryer led off with back-to-back singles.  DH Kris Watts dropped down a bunt, but a quick move by the Bowie catcher forced out Farrell at third and left Fryer on second and Watts on first.  After a pop out by 1B Miles Durham, RF Brad Chalk lined a single into right field, scoring Fryer.   Watts advanced to third base and Chalk moved up to second base on the throw.  2B Brock Holt brought in both Watts and Chalk with a triple into right field, giving the Curve a 3-1 lead.

Four consecutive singles began the bottom of the 3rd for the Curve.  LF Quincy Latimore, SS Jordy Mercer, Farrell, and Fryer all singled, adding 2 more runs as Latimore and Mercer scored.  A ground out by Watts moved both Farrell and Fryer into scoring position, and after another out, Chalk singled to first base, plating Farrell and chasing the Bowie starter to the showers.  The Curve had a 6-1 lead.  

Colla worked around at least one runner on base in each of his 5 innings.  The biggest threat he faced after the 1st inning came in the 4th, when he gave up a ground-rule double and a single, to put runners on the corners with one out.  Colla got out of the jam by striking out the next two batters to end the inning.  Colla pitched 5 innings, throwing 76 pitches (53 strikes).  He gave up the one run on 5 hits and a walk, while striking out 4 batters, to earn his 3rd win of the season.  Tim Alderson took over for Colla for the 6th inning.  Alderson pitched a scoreless inning, allowing one hit.  Bryan Morris came on for the last 3 innings.  He earned his first save with 3 scoreless innings, allowing only a walk and a single in the 8th.  

The Curve added their final run in the 7th.  Marte led off with a double, moved to third on Latimore's ground out, then scored on Mercer's sacrifice fly.  Marte, Holt, Farrell, and Chalk each had 2 hits in the game, and Fryer went 3-for-4.

The Curve play another morning game on Thursday.  

The Curve were making up a rained out game with a double header:

Altoona Curve  2,  Akron Aeros  0     (Game 1)
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After shutting out the Aeros last night, the Curve pitching staff continued their dominance with another 7 shutout innings in Game 1 of the double header.  Tonight it was Aaron Pribanic who earned his 4th win with 7 scoreless innings, for a (shortened) complete game.  He gave up 6 hits, no walks, and also worked around two errors by his fielders.  Pribanic had at least one base runner on in all but one inning.  Akron had a small threat going in the 6th, when Pribanic gave up back-to-back singles with one out, but a foul pop ended that inning.  With one out in the 7th, Pribanic gave up a hit, then another batter reached on 3B Jeremy Farrell's throwing error.  Pribanic got a grounder force out and a fly out to end that inning.  

The Curve also posted just 6 hits, but they made them count.  Farrell singled in the bottom of the 2nd, and moved to second base on a wild pitch.  He scored on DH Eric Fryer's single up the middle.  Fryer also advanced to second on another wild pitch, and 1B Miles Durham walked, but they were left on base.  CF Starling Marte contributed the Curve's only other run with a solo home run in the 3rd.  Marte also singled in the 1st inning.  SS Jordy Mercer singled in the 2nd, but was picked off and caught stealing, and singled again in the 6th.  C Tony Sanchez walked in the 4th and stole second base.  


Aeros  8,  Curve  1       (Game 2)
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Curve starter Bryan Morris continued the streak with 3 scoreless innings, in which he gave up only a walk, and struck out 3 batters.  But the streak ended in the 4th, when Morris started out by giving up a single and a walk.  He was relieved by Matt McSwain.  The first batter McSwain faced dropped down a sacrifice bunt to put both runners in scoring position.  McSwain then walked the next two batters, forcing in a run, before striking out two batters to end the inning.  McSwain came back out in the 5th and began with a hit batter and a walk.  The lead runner stole third base, then scored on an RBI single.  A triple drove in two more runs, to give Akron a 4-0 lead.  

The Curve were held to just 3 hits, and two of those were by LF Quincy Latimore.  Latimore singled in the 1st but was thrown out trying to steal second base.  He singled again in the 4th and was left on base.  The only other hit was a solo home run by C Eric Fryer in the 5th inning, for the only Curve run of the game.  The last 7 Curve batters were retired in order.  

Brian Leach took the mound in relief of McSwain in the 6th and retired the side in order.  The Aeros rallied again in the top of the 7th.  The inning began with a double, a single, and a walk to load the bases.  A triple cleared the bases for 3 runs.  After a walk, a sacrifice fly brought in the 4th run of the inning.  Leach surrendered another single, then was relieved by Noah Krol, who ended the inning with a grounder force out.