Lake County Sentinel
Captains complete sweep of TinCaps with 3-2 win
BY ANDREW LUFTGLASS
CAPTAINS MEDIA RELATIONS
The Fort Wayne TinCaps did not go quietly, but the Lake County Captains were able to stave off a ninth-inning rally to beat the TinCaps, 3-2. Captains closer Kieran Lovegrove struck out Rod Boykin with the tying and go-ahead runs on base to seal the narrow victory on Friday night at Classic Park.
Tyler Krieger keyed the Captains offense and helped Lake County jump out to an early lead. Krieger plated the first run of the ballgame with an RBI double to score Nathan Lukes in the first inning. Later in the frame, Krieger came home to score the game’s second run when Connor Marabell hustled to beat out a would-be double play ball. Krieger was again a factor in the third inning, as he singled and came home to score on a wild pitch to give Lake County a 3-0 lead.
Captains starting pitcher Casey Shane did not need much offensive support. The right-hander matched Tom Pannone’s performance from a night ago, as he tossed five shutout innings and struck out seven TinCaps. Shane (1-0) gave up just three hits and walked three en route to the victory.
Fort Wayne battled back late, but could not climb all the way back against the Lake County bullpen. Michael Gettys broke the TinCaps’ scoreless drought in the eighth with an RBI single off of Cortland Cox, but Fort Wayne’s real threat came in the ninth.
Lovegrove came in to pitch the ninth with the Captains clinging to a 3-1 lead. After the righty struck out the first batter of the inning, River Stevens followed with a double to right field. Two batters later, pinch hitter Austin Allen delivered an RBI single to cut the Captains lead to one run. Peter Van Gansen followed with a single to put the tying and go-ahead runs on base, but Lovegrove shut the door by striking Boykin out looking to end the ballgame and pick up his first save of the season.
Austin Smith was saddled with the loss for Fort Wayne. Smith (0-1) lasted 2.1 innings and gave up all three Captains runs on six hits. The right-hander struck out three and walked two.
Krieger emerged as the Capatins’ star of the game, offensively. The switch-hitter finished the game 2-for-3 with a double, an RBI and two runs. Shortstop Willi Castro also produced his second straight multi-hit game to start the season.
The Captains and TinCaps will head to Fort Wayne for a pair of games on Saturday and Sunday. LHP Sam Hentges is scheduled to start for the Captains on Saturday against RHP Brett Kennedy. First pitch will be at 6:05 PM.
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POSTED 04/08/2016 23:25
