Success in Seven Innings Leads to Clippers Sweep

Jonathan Timm

Athens, OH: A patient and poised Muskegon Clipper team came together twice Wednesday, claiming two wins (6-4, and 8-3) and a series sweep over the Southern Ohio Copperheads in double header fashion at Bob Wren Stadium on June 18th.  

The Clippers are now 4-8 on the season, and the Copperheads fall to a 5-7 record.

In Game 1, it was a big top half of the sixth inning to give the Clippers a three run cushion. Ten were to the plate for the Clippers with four of them crossing the plate. Connor Kelly’s RBI single off of college teammate Adam Wandzel tied the game at three runs a piece. Ethan Delgado walked with the bases loaded to drive in the go ahead run. Luke Noack would do the same next at bat. To polish the inning off, Jack Buckus continued his hot start with an RBI single which made the game 6-3. 

Additional offense came from Delgado advancing to the plate on an error in the first, and another RBI walk, courtesy of Bakus. 

The winning pitcher in Game 1 was Alex Hardacre who went .2 innings with no walks, and one earned run allowed. Aidan Pearson was brought on to close the door during the final five outs, and had one strikeout in his first save of the year.

Game 2 had the Clippers behind 1-0 in the first inning. An 8-2 stretch in the final six innings allowed for the sweep to be completed. 

Winning pitcher Kendall Brewer lasted four innings, with five hits, two earned runs, three walks and one strike out. Kelly would move from the plate to the mound in Game 2, where he pitched the shut down the Copperheads by not allowing a run or walk with two strikeouts.

Offense flurried in all forms in the second outing. Aidan Robinson started it all in the second with a single that scored a pair of runs to make it 2-1. After the C-Heads responded with a run, Braden Graves would hit an RBI double off the wall in the third to give the Clips the one run advantage.

Delgado would rack up his fifth RBI of the series with a run scoring single in the fourth. He would score later in the inning after a balk was called against Payton Buckley of the Copperheads. Those scoring plays had it 5-3 after four innings.

A three run cushion was added in the top of the 7th. Two runs came from one swing by Taylor Head, and Robinson tacked on another RBI single to make it 8-3. 

The Clippers are back in action against the Xenia Scouts this weekend in a three game series. Friday’s first pitch will take place at 6:35.