DECATUR -- With opening game jitters behind them after the loss to Omaha April 7, the Decatur Bulldog baseball team got back on track with three victories on the road April 11 and 13 to begin its second week of conference action.
Decatur began the week by taking on the Pirates of Jasper April 11. The Bulldogs fell behind during the first two innings of the contest. Decatur managed to close the gap to within six of the Pirates before lightning struck for the Bulldogs and they went on an 11-run streak that eventually gave them a 27-22 win, the first of season.
The Bulldogs traveled to north central Arkansas for a doubleheader against the Alpena Leopards April 13. Behind the pitching of Jay Porter, the Bulldogs held the Leopards scoreless for an 11-0 win in the first game. In the second game of the doubleheader, Alpena took a 4-2 lead in the bottom of the first inning. That would be the only time the Leopards would lead in the contest. In the top of the second, the Bulldogs brought home five runs to take a 7-5 lead. In the fourth, the Bulldogs brought seven more runs across home plate and took a 14-6 lead and eventually the third win of the season.
Jimmy Mendoza came into the game in the fifth inning, relieving Porter, and is credited with the save for the Bulldogs.
The Bulldogs are now 3-1 going into the final half of the season. Decatur will travel to Omaha for a 4 p.m. game April 21. They finish the season on the road for a double-header April 25 against Deer Antlers. First game starts at 4 p.m., with the second scheduled to begin at 6 p.m.
Pitching Stats, Decatur-Alpena doubleheaders April 13:
Game 1 - Jay Porter 1 win, 5 innings pitched, 5 strikeouts, 51 pitches.
Game 2 - Jay Porter 4 innings pitched, 2 strikeouts, 56 pitches. Jimmy Mendoza 1 save, 1 inning pitched, 2 strikeouts, 21 pitches.
Pitching Stats, Decatur-Jasper April 11:
Jay Porter - 4 strikeouts, 1 walk, 51 pitches; Bryan Ward - 2 walks, 2 strikeouts, 59 pitches; Leng Lee - 1 save, 2 strikeouts, 3 walks, 47 pitches; Adam Garcia - 1 inning pitched, 3 walks, 59 pitches.
Batting Stats, Decatur-Jasper:
Jay Porter - 3 at bats, 2 runs, 3 hits, 2 runs batted in; Ryan Shaffer - 3 at bats, 4 runs, 2 hits; Leng Lee - 3 at bats, 3 runs, 2 hits; Bryan Ward - 4 at bats, 4 runs, 2 hits, 3 runs batted in; Joseph Armstrong - 4 at bats, 4 runs, 2 hits, 2 runs batted in; Taylor Haisman - 5 at bats, 2 runs, 1 hit, 1 run batted in; Austin Hamilton - 4 at bats, 4 runs, 3 hits, 2 runs batted in.
Sports on 04/19/2017