Miners finish up-and-down series 2-3 against Goldpanners

FAIRBANKS — An offensive explosion that saw the Mat-Su Miners demolish the Alaska Goldpanners 13-2 on Thursday was as fleeting as a firework.

The Miners dropped two of three Fourth of July weekend games to the Goldpanners, including a 6-2 loss in the first game of a Friday doubleheader.

Mat-Su would rebound for the nightcap to win 5-2, but fell just short of a rally in the series’ capper on Saturday, 4-3. The loss finished a rollercoaster five-game series in Fairbanks.

Goldpanners 6, Miners 2

The Goldpanners had little time to reflect on the drubbing they took the night before to start Friday’s action. Fairbanks broke out of the gates strong, taking a 3-0 lead into the top of the third inning.

Jason Cramer singled to lead off the third with one of the Miners’ four hits in the game. Cramer scored later in the inning off an RBI ground-out by James Ramsey. Right behind Cramer coming across the plate was second baseman Jonathan Johnson, who scored on a single from designated hitter D.J. Gentile.

Trailing 3-2 after the top of the third inning would be as close as the Miners would get, however, as the Goldpanners added three more insurance runs over the next three innings. While Sam Murphy was the star for Mat-Su the night before, pitching 5 2/3 innings of no-hit baseball, it was the duo of Jesse Darrah and Alex Gillingham that shined on Friday. Darrah allowed three hits over five innings, and Gillingham one in two innings of relief.

Miners 5, Goldpanners 2

In the second game of Friday’s twin bill, the Miners found their bats, stroking 10 hits en route to a 5-2 win.

The game didn’t start well for the Fairbanks team, as Mat-Su leadoff hitter Johnson was hit by a pitch. He would score off a Ramsey single.

Leading 2-1, Mat-Su broke the game open with a three-run third inning. Gentile continued his hot hitting, powering a ball more than 400 feet over the left field wall to extend the Miners’ lead to 3-1. Then with the bases loaded, Goldpanners relief pitcher Jeeter Ishida hit another batter with the bases loaded to force in another run. Scott Arthur would finish the offense for Mat=Su with an RBI single for a 5-1 lead.

Goldpanners 4, Miners 3

Saturday was the Fourth of July, and all the fireworks were generated by the Goldpanners’ bats. The Fairbanks team recorded 11 hits while pulling away in the fourth inning.

Tied 1-1 going into the bottom of the fourth, Andrew Pollak led off for the Goldpanners with a solo home run, followed by a pair of singles to put two more on base. Another run to close the inning and a score in the sixth extended the lead to 4-1.

There was still some fight left for the Miners in the final two innings.

Catcher Bobby Jacobs picked up an RBI in the eighth when he singled in Nick Cox. Then in the top of the ninth, the Goldpanners tried to help the Miners rally with a pair of errors that allowed a run and close the lead to 5-3.

But a game-ending double play preserved the win.