By Lee W. Mowen

SPRINGFIELD, OH – Jake Miller (Chester, NY; Valparaiso) picked up his second win of the season, as the Champion City Kings powered nine unanswered runs en route to a 13-5 win over the visiting Danville Dans. Ben Ross (Springfield, OH; Notre Dame College) also took a record with his second hit of the game, becoming the single-season leader in hits with 73.

Danville got four off of Miller first, as the left-hander walked three in the first inning, allowing just one hit. Ben Higgins recorded the lone hit in the inning, scoring two runs. The Dans also got two sacrifice fly balls to right by Johnathon Thomas and Tony Castonguay.

The Kings got to work in the second inning, as Mitchell Okuley (Powell, OH; Ohio State) led the inning off with a walk. Ethan Krizen (North Port, FL) singled and moved both runners into scoring position. Breydan Cavey’s (Medina, OH; Akron) sacrifice fly scored Okuley to bring the deficit down to three. Alex Ryan’s (Lake Mills, WI; Valparaiso) single scored the second run of the inning. J.J. Wetherholt (Gibsonia, PA; West Virginia), the reigning Prospect League Slugger of the Week, kept the inning going with a base hit to send the Kings at the corners. Ben Ross walked to load them up with two outs, and up stood Brent Widder (Sheboygan, WI; Evansville.) Hitting into a double play in the first inning, Widder got his revenge with a bases-clearing double to put Champion City in the lead for good. The Kings led 5-4.

Four more runs came home for Champion City in the third, as Bo Seccombe (Tallahassee, FL; Faulkner) drew a one-out walk. Cavey continued the inning with a base hit. An error by Danville’s third baseman allowed Ryan to reach base, scoring Seccombe. That would be the end of the night for Patrick Dunn, who walked five in the two and a third pitched. Coming into the start at Carleton Davidson Stadium, Dunn only allowed eleven walks in eight other appearances. A groundout to second base by Wetherholt against new reliever Jacob Reed allowed another run to scoot home, then Ross singled in Ryan, followed by a two-error, around-the-base trip for the Springfield native. That base hit broke the single-season hits record in Champion City Kings history, held by Joe Acker since the 2018 season.

Jake Miller was stellar, exiting in the sixth after getting to the pitch limit. The Dans did threaten with a walk to chase the left-hander off the bump. Joe Toth (Stow, OH; Adrian College) had the bases full of Dans, but a 6-4-3 Double Play ended the threat. Miller’s final line included just two hits, four runs with two earned, four walks, and nine strikeouts.

The last run of the game for Danville scored in the seventh inning against Toth, as Ben Higgins hit into another double play, forcing in a run from third. Alex Finney (Oxford, MI; Ohio) came in to get the final out of the inning, making his debut on the bump. Champion City was able to get the lead back up to five, as a leadoff double by Krizen was quickly brought home with a Seccombe single. The Dans went to the bullpen two batters later, and Champion City enjoyed a 10-5 lead.

Mitchell Okuley would add the final runs of the game with his seventh home run of the season, a three-run variety over the right field fence against Aaron Chao.

Aidan Major (Mill Hall, PA; West Virginia) threw a 1-2-3 inning in the ninth the seal the victory for Champion City. After Miller’s departure in the sixth inning, the bullpen threw 3.2 innings of one earned run, three hit, two walk, three strikeout ball between Toth, Finney, Gage Voorhees (Springfield, OH; Flagler College), and Major. The Kings offense cranked out twelve hits, as Ross went 3-for-4 to lead the hitting attack.

In the last road games of the regular season, Champion City will visit Terre Haute for a doubleheader, Chillicothe, and West Virginia for two games. Playoff tickets are now on sale by visiting the ticket office at Carleton Davidson Stadium one hour before any home game or by visiting The MacRay Co. on West North Street in Springfield. Visit championcitykings.com for more information on tickets and how to watch the next games on PL TV.