MOOSEJAWTODAY.COM -- The Moose Jaw Miller Express saw their rollercoaster of season continue over the weekend as they split a two-game set with the Sylvan Lake Gulls before falling to the Regina Red Sox in a trio of games.
One night after picking up their first shutout of the season with a 3-0 win over the Gulls in Western Canadian Baseball League action at Ross Wells Park, the Express dropped a 16-8 decision to Sylvan Lake and then fell 6-5 to the Regina Red Sox on Sunday..
Moose Jaw is now 12-13 and remain in third place in the East Division, now seven games back of the first place Red Sox.
Miller Express 3, Sylvan Lake 0
Moose Jaw starter Matt Vasquez put together a shut-out performance on the mound for the second-straight game, and combined with a solid relief showing from Cameron Dunn, the Express were lights out from start to finish.
Vasquez scattered four hits over five innings of work and struck out seven before giving way to Dunn, who allowed a single hit and struck out five over the final four innings.
Austin Gurney hit his team-leading fifth home run of the season in the fourth to provide all the offence Moose Jaw would need, while Thomas Soto had a 2-for-4 outing and Darren Hagan was 2-for-3 at the plate.
Matty Fung and Gavin Roy had two hits apiece for Sylvan Lake.
Kyle Froehlich started for the Gulls and had a quality start, giving up three runs on six hits over six innings while striking out 11.
Sylvan Lake 16, Moose Jaw 8
Gavin Galenza hit home runs in back-to-back innings late in the game -- including a grand slam in the ninth inning -- and finished 3-for-5 with seven RBI to pace the Gulls to the slugfest win.
Marques Abulhosn also had a solid game at the plate for Sylvan Lake, going 2-for-4 with a home run, four runs scored and three RBI.
Things were back-and-forth as could be in the early going, as the Gulls led 4-3 through two before Moose Jaw scored four in the fifth to go up 8-5. A five-run inning in the sixth gave the Gulls the lead for good, and they’d tack on another six runs over the final two innings.
Nathan Houston was 3-for-3 with two runs and two RBI to lead Moose Jaw, while Robert Estrada went 2-for-4 with a pair of RBI.
Ethan Merk got the start for the Express and allowed five runs, four earned on six hits over five innings. A committee of five relievers closed things out, but were bit by untimely errors as only eight of Sylvan Lake’s runs were earned.
James Brock was the winning pitcher, taking over from Hunter Jones in the fifth inning and allowing four runs on four hits over the next three as Sylvan Lake pulled away.
Regina 6, Moose Jaw 5
It was a heartbreaker for the local squad to close out the weekend, as the Miller Express scored four runs in the top of the eighth to take a 5-4 lead in Regina, only for the Red Sox to come right back with a pair in the bottom of the inning to secure the win.
The Red Sox -- who picked up their 11th-straight victory -- scored a pair of runs in the fourth and another two in the seventh to build a 4-1 lead before the Express put together their rally.
Declan O’Hare turned in a quality start for Moose Jaw, allowing four runs, two earned, on nine hits over seven innings of work. Drew Sorrentino surrendered two runs while only getting a single out in the eighth before Takeo Cookson tried to finish things off, giving up a pair of hits as Regina’s Mathew Fox scored the eventual game-winning run.
Brendon Guitierrez had a solid outing of his own for Regina, giving up four runs on four hits and striking out 11 over 7 ⅔. Ty Fortin allowed the go-ahead run in the eighth, but retired the side in order in the ninth and was the winning pitcher.
Gurney and Joe Osborn each hit two-run home runs in the eighth and Wyatt Tweet was 2-for-3 with a run scored.
Jalen Meyers and Diego Aragon each had roundtrippers for Regina, Justin Carinci was 4-for-5 with a run and Jackson Syring 3-for-4 with a run.
The Miller Express have only three games this week, as they host the Saskatoon Berries on Tuesday and Swift Current 57’s on Thursday before traveling to Regina on Saturday. All game times at home are 7:05 p.m. at Ross Wells Park.
