Bucs bounce Miners

PALMER — After eight grueling innings, Wes Smith and Shane Brown gave Mat-Su faithful something to cheer about.

Smith, a former Colony High School standout and the team’s bullpen catcher, pitched a scoreless top of the ninth and Brown singled and scored on a Jason Cramer sacrifice during the bottom of the inning to slightly dull the pain of a 13-1 loss to the Anchorage Bucs at Hermon Brothers Field on Wednesday.

Though the Bucs had popped it into cruise control, Mat-Su was able to put together a respectable final two innings. The Miners pieced together each of their four hits in the game, scored a run and managed to keep Anchorage off the scoreboard in consecutive innings for the first time in the game. Regardless, of the score, Mat-Su field manager Russell Raley applauded his players’ effort late.

“The thing about this team, I don’t think we ever quit all summer,” Raley said. “We’ve been beaten pretty soundly a couple of times. But it’s one of those deals. I don’t know if people understand summer ball. If you can get a group of guys to play hard every single night all the way through the game, it’s really pretty special. It’s not going to work out every night. But these guys, I’ve got to give it to them,. They battled every night, regardless of what the scoreboard says.”

Smith, who played his first two years of prep baseball at Colony High before making the move to Saguaro High School in Scottsdale, Ariz., made his first appearance on the mound, just days after he made his debut at the plate. The bullpen catcher allowed one hit and no runs during the ninth, and struck out Kellen Kiilsgaard to end the inning.

Mat-Su spoiled Anchorage’s shutout bid in the ninth when Cramer sent a sacrifice fly into center field that allowed Brown to tag up on third and score. Brown and infielder Ross Blondin, playing in just his second game in a Mat-Su uniform, posted consecutive singles early in the inning.

The Bucs had a no-hit bid through seven innings, before David Alleman led off the eight with a hard single straight up the middle. Scott Arthur singled late in the inning.

Anchorage’s Sean Lucas pitched five innings to earn the win. When Lucas found the plate — he walked five batters — he was effective. Lucas didn’t allow a hit, and reliever Po-Kai Lai also kept Mat-Su hitless for another two innings.

While the Miners hits were few, the Bucs had many.

Mat-Su boasted stellar pitching during back-to-back wins in Anchorage early in the week, but on Wednesday, the Bucs ravaged the Miners staff for 21 hits.

“The two days previous to this, we were very good on the mound,” Raley said. “We gave ourselves a chance to win. Obviously today, we weren’t very good starting the game and we couldn’t get it stopped.”

Starter Connor Hulse was chased off the mound after 1 1/3 innings. He was tagged for four hits and five earned runs. Reliever Owen Dew allowed five hits and one earned run in 2 2/3 and Anchorage hammered Mike Carlson for 10 hits and five earned runs in three innings.

“We had a lot of balls in the middle of the plate,” Raley said. “Any time you’re there against good teams, good college hitters, you’re going to be in trouble. And we were today.”

Mat-Su will not have another home game until the Miners host the Peninsula Oilers on July 21 at 6 p.m. The Miners started a four-day, five-game road trip in Kenai against the Oilers on Thursday. Results of Thursday’s ABL match were not available prior to press time.

Mat-Su continues its stay in Kenai with a game against the Oilers tonight at 7 p.m. The teams meet in a doubleheader that starts at 5 p.m. on Saturday, and the final game of the series is set for Sunday at 2 p.m.

The Internet broadcast of all games is available at www.matsuminers.org. The road games are also on the radio at AM 1430.

Contact Frontiersman sports editor Jeremiah Bartz at sports@frontiersman.com.

ON THE ROAD

The Miners started a four-day, five-game road trip at the Peninsula Oilers on Thursday. See www.matsuminers.org for the Internet broadcast.