Despite jumping out to a 3-1 lead after six innings, the Intimidators allowed a two-run seventh and a one-run eighth, falling 4-3 Sunday night at Intimidators Stadium supported by Atrium Health. In the second, cleanup hitter Jhailyn Ortiz smoked the first pitch of his at-bat to left field, one-hopping the
Despite jumping out to a 3-1 lead after six innings, the Intimidators allowed a two-run seventh and a one-run eighth, falling 4-3 Sunday night at Intimidators Stadium supported by Atrium Health.
In the second, cleanup hitter Jhailyn Ortiz smoked the first pitch of his at-bat to left field, one-hopping the wall as he jogged in to second base with no outs. Next up, Nick Maton singled into right field to put runners at the corners for Dalton Guthrie. Despite Rigler inducing a 4-6-3 double-play, Ortiz scampered home to take a 1-0 lead for Lakewood.
After striking out four of the first seven Kannapolis batters, LHP David Parkinson allowed Justin Yurchak to reach on a single with one out, followed by a Carlos Perez line-drive single into left field. After Nolan Brown grounded into a fielder's choice to second baseman Dalton Guthrie, Johan Cruz broke his bat on a single over the second baseman's head, bringing Yurchak into score from third, tying the game, 1-1.
In the fifth, Perez smoked the first pitch of his at-bat with Parkinson over the left field wall for his first home run of the season, regaining the lead for the I's, 2-1. One inning later, Craig Dedelow hit a one-out double off the right field wall, coming in to score with a close play at the plate two batters later after Michael Hickman hit a sharp-single into center field.
Up 3-1 going into the seventh inning, Rigler surrendered a one-out walk to Maton, followed by a Guthrie single. Two batters later and with RHP Jake Elliott now in to pitch for Rigler, the right-handed pitcher out of the University of Oklahoma allowed a two-out bloop-single to Jose Antequera, pulling the BlueClaws within one run, 3-2. Then, Josh Stephen singled on a ball into left field to bring in the tying run, 3-3.
In the eighth, Simon Muzziotti led off the inning with a walk before stealing second base and advancing to third on an Elliott wild pitch. Two batters later Ortiz brought Muzziotti in on a sacrifice fly to right field, giving the BlueClaws a 4-3 lead.
Zach Warren kept the door shut on the Intimidators in the eighth and ninth, working two-straight 1-2-3 innings for Lakewood.
Kannapolis will host the BlueClaws Monday night at 7:05 p.m. for the rubber match, as manager Justin Jirschele will lean on RHP Yosmer Solorzano against Lakewood's LHP Will Stewart.
