HAULErs fall to locos in halted and scheduled game

​Trailing 6-0 in the bottom of the fourth, the Ice Haulers and the Locos got caught in heavy rain on July 16th. The game was resumed today, as the Locos had two men on base with two outs.
 
The Locos would score five unanswered runs, as the Ice Haulers fell to the Locos in the halted game, with a score of 11-1. Jordan Andrade (Freshman, University of Nevada Las Vegas) would get the only RBI for the Haulers, to score Chris LoCurto (Freshman, East Tennessee State University). LoCurto had a single early in the inning.
 
The Ice Haulers would look to clinch home field advantage, and the North division in the second game. Brandon Bergert (Sophomore, Seton Hill University) took the mound, coming in with successful numbers over the Locos.
 
The seven-inning game started with the Locos drawing first blood. The Locos would strike with two runs in the second inning with an RBI single, then an RBI groundout.
 
The Locos would strike four more runs in the third inning, as they would stun Brandon Bergert, who has been the Locos threat all season. The Locos would lead with a score of 6-0.
 
In the bottom of the fourth, the Ice Haulers got a run back. Mark Connelly (Sophomore, Lansing Community College) hit an RBI single to score Scott Mackiewicz (Freshman, University of Toledo). However, the Locos would get a solo shot in the top of the fifth, to keep their six-run lead.
 
In the bottom of the fifth, the Ice Haulers scored four runs to close the gap. Drew Holderbach (Senior, Marietta College) would hit into a double play. However, the groundball scored the designated hitter, Bryce Richey (Junior, Tiffin University), giving Holderbach an RBI. This was Holderbach’s first game coming off his injury earlier in the season.  Scott Mackiewicz would score off a wild pitch, to close the gap even further. Jackson Green (Freshman, East Tennessee State University) would then cut the lead to two, hitting a two-run homer to score him and Three Hillier (Freshman, Liberty University). The game was now scored 7-5, in favor of the Locos.
 
In the bottom of the seventh, the Ice Haulers had one more chance to tie, or walk-off with a win.  The inning began with Nick Mueller (Freshman, Texas A&M University – Corpus Christi) hitting a single to left-centerfield. He would advance to second on a wild pitch, as Zachary Campbell (Senior, Tiffin University) was up at the plate. Campbell would ground out, leaving Mueller at second. Campbell’s college teammate, Bryce Richey would also ground out, leaving Mueller at second. With two outs, Scott Mackiewicz advanced to first, getting hit by the pitch. Mark Connelly would walk to keep the inning going for the Ice Haulers, as the bases were now loaded with two outs. Drew Holderbach would be next at the plate, hoping to keep the inning going. During the at-bat, the Haulers would get a run, as Mueller would score on a wild pitch. This brought the Loco lead down to just one run. With runners on second and third base, Holderbach was walked. However, a base running error by Scott Mackiewicz would lead to the final out. Mackiewicz thought the bases were loaded, as he caught himself in a rundown to be tagged out.
 
The Locos held on to win 7-6, as the Ice Haulers could not clinch the division in tonight’s two games. However, the Ice Haulers would take the series over the Locos this season, winning five out of nine.
 
The stage is set between the Locos and the Ice Haulers for the first round of the playoff. Currently for home field advantage, the Locos trail the Ice Haulers by two games. With two games left on the season, the Ice Haulers will look to clinch both the division and home field advantage, as they will travel to Royal Oak on Wednesday, to take on the Leprechauns at 7:05pm.