Miners move back into first place with another win over Chugiak

PALMER — The Mat-Su Miners are back on top in the Alaska Baseball League National Division.

Mat-Su used a 13-7 win over Chugiak Thursday evening at Hermon Brothers Field in Palmer to improve to 14-8 in league play. The Miners are now a game ahead of the Anchorage Glacier Pilots (14-10), who dropped a 3-2 decision to the Anchorage Bucs Thursday.

The Miners finished with 13 hits in the victory, and eight of the nine batters in the lineup finished with at least one hit.

Hunter Simmons, working in the No. 9 spot of the lineup, led the Miners with a 3 for 4 effort at the plate. The Utah product drove in a summer-high four runs, and scored another. Cameron Frost collected three hits in the win, and finished a dinger away from the cycle. Brandon Smith added two hits. Frost and Nick Blaser scored three runs each.

Jon Ferrendelli earned the win on the mound for Mat-Su. The right-hander scattered seven hits and six runs over 5 1/3 innings. Vince Arobio pitched a perfect ninth to grab his seventh save of the summer.

Chugiak took a 2-0 lead in the top of the second, but Mat-Su jumped on the Chinooks with five runs in the bottom of the inning. The Miners added three in the third, another three in the seventh and two in the eighth.

Mat-Su, now riding a four-game winning streak, will visit Chugiak Saturday at 7 p.m.

Contact Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman sports editor Jeremiah Bartz at sports@frontiersman.com.