Phil Capra hit a three-run home run and the New York Boulders also picked up two RBIs apiece from Kevonte Mitchell, Zach Kirtley and Brandon Bingel in a 12-7 win over the Sussex County Miners at Skylands Stadium in Augusta, NJ, on Thursday.
Milton Smith, Jr. added three hits for the Boulders, who beat the Miners for the fourth straight time after posting a three-game sweep of Sussex County back in Pomona on June15-17.
The Boulders broke from the gate quickly on this night with four runs in the top of the first inning on an RBI double by Ray Hernandez, a two-run single from Bingel and an RBI single by Zach Penprase.
The Miners got one back on a solo home run by Joey Rose in the second inning, but the Boulders answered in the fourth with a three-run homer by Capra, his first of the season, that increased their lead to 7-1.
Sussex County chipped away at their deficit with two runs in the fourth and one more in the fifth to close to within 7-4. However, the Boulders again had a response, plating three runs in the sixth – one on a wild pitch by Miners’ reliever Tyler Kovalewich that allowed Smith, Jr. to score, the other two on a single by Kirtley – that pushed their advantage up to 10-4.
The Miners, though, made it a 10-7 game with three runs in the sixth. John Jones hit a solo home run off Boulders’ starter Dan Wirchansky and, after a single by Aaron Knapp, the New York lefthander’s night was done with Mike Pascoe coming on in relief.
Pascoe, however, would wild pitch Knapp and Jackie Urbaez home later in the frame, allowing the Miners to get back within 10-7.
A Mitchell single gave the Boulders two insurance runs in the top of the eighth as New York increased their lead to 12-7.
Dan Wirchansky went 5 2/3 innings for the Boulders, allowing nine hits and seven runs, and picked up the win, while Mike Castellani lasted four innings and surrendered nine hits and seven runs to get tagged with the loss for the Miners.
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Debuting in 1993, the Frontier League is the largest and longest-running of the modern independent leagues and features teams stretching from the Atlantic Ocean to the Mississippi River and from the Ohio River to the St. Lawrence Seaway. In September of 2020, the Frontier League reached an agreement to become a “Partner League” with Major League Baseball.
As a “Partner League,” the Frontier League and its teams will meet on a regular basis with MLB representatives to discuss joint marketing and promotional opportunities, as well as collaborate on initiatives to provide organized baseball to communities throughout the United States and Canada.
More information can be found at www.frontierleague.com.