The Lorain County Ironmen’s three errors led to three unearned runs, and snapped their three-game winning streak on Wednesday night, falling to the Slippery Rock Sliders, 4-2 in Pennsylvania. The three-game winning streak was their third streak of the sort this season.

The Ironmen jumped out to an early lead in the first inning when Amherst’s Evan Melendez singled and advanced to second base on a throwing error by the shortstop. Melendez moved to third when Westlake’s Matt McAllester grounded out. He came in to score when Stephen Hagen hit an RBI ground out.

Melendez then led off the fifth inning with another single and advanced to second when the right fielder kicked the ball. He then scored on Billy Urban’s RBI single.

Aaron Hilt started and pitched 5 2/3 innings of strong baseball before the errors started coming. Hilt allowed five hits, walked three and struck out four. He allowed three runs, only one was earned.

Hilt was relieved by Bay’s Brian Tariska. Tariska pitched 1 1/3 innings, allowing two hits, one unearned run and one walk. Jeff Kotler finished the game by throwing an inning. He gave up one hit and struck out one.

Austin Ingraham
Matt McAllester

The Lorain County Ironmen will have four players representing the Eastern Division of the Prospect League in the All-Star game on Tues., July 6 in Quincy, Illinois.

Avon graduate and Oberlin College pitcher Phil Brua, infielders Billy Urban and Austin Ingraham, who are both St. Bonaventure products, and Westlake’s Matt McAllester, who plays at Ashland University will represtent the Ironmen. Lorain County is sending the second most players in the Eastern Division.

Brua currently leads the league with three saves and is second in ERA (0.74). Phil is 3-0, in 24 1/3 innings, allowing just two runs with 11 strikeouts.

McAllester is the leading hitter for the Ironmen, hitting .337 with a double, a triple and 15 stolen bases.

Urban is the second leading hitter for the Ironmen, hitting .321 with four doubles, seven RBIs and has only struck out twice all season.

Ingraham is hitting .284 with two doubles, a triple, four RBIs and three stolen bases.

All four will participate in a pro day workout for Major League scouts before Tuesday’s game. The game will be available to listen to online through the Prospect League website.

The Prospect League is one of the several elite summer leagues in the country and has sent over 175 players to the Major Leagues.

Ironmen pitcher Eric Knight and Eric Cormell talk about the team's 4-2 victory over Slippery Rock.

Eric Knight threw an efficient seven innings and the Lorain County Ironmen beat the Slippery Rock Sliders 4-2 for their third win in a row.

Knight gave up two runs on two hits in the first inning but was nearly perfect for the rest of the game. From the second inning on, only three batters got on base — one by a walk and two on errors.

"(Knight) is doing a great job," manager Eric Cormell said. "He was able to throw his curve for strikes and get hitters to swing through is fastball. Every outing he’s had this year has been pretty good."

Stephen Hagen put the first run on the scoreboard for the Ironmen (11-14) in the second inning with a two-out single scoring Billy Urban from second.

Urban got a base hit with two outs and none on base and stole second.Later in the inning, Nate Antone hit a chopper that was mishandled by Slippery Rock third baseman Sam Trecaso and caromed into left field.

Hagen and Nick Hamilton scored on the error, making the score 3-2 in favor of Lorain County.

Matt McAllester, who owns the fifth highest batting average (.337) in the Prospect League, drove in a run in the seventh inning with a single up the middle.

"We got some timely hitting today, and they helped us out a little,"Cormell said. "When things are going your way, that’s what happens. We’ll take it."

A.J. Miller drove in the first run for the Sliders (8-15) on a groundout to short. The second came from an RBI single up the middle by Jeremy Banks.

Knight, though, retired 17 of the next 19 batters, including 11 in a row. He fast the minimum amount of batters in the fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh innings.

"I was just focused on getting in a rhythm," Knight said. "I was mixing up my pitches a lot, and they were all working pretty well."

In the seventh inning, Matt Fenster was thrown out at home trying to score off a wild pitch with two outs.

Catcher Mike Grieco’s throw to Knight covering the plate beat the runner, but Slippery Rock manager Andy Chalot was ejected for his vehement disagreement on the tag.

For the game, Knight (2-1) gave up two hits, two runs, walked two and struck out two in seven innings.

"Having a good defense behind me really helps," Knight said. "It gives me confidence knowing I doing have to strike everybody out."

Sliders starter Rich Raraigh (1-2) went seven innings, allowing seven hits, one walk and. The southpaw struck out four and two of his four runs were unearned.

Brandon Cantrill came in to pitch a scoreless eighth for the Ironmen.

Urban threw a perfect ninth inning or his first save of the year.

Two wins in a day is always nice.

Two walk-off wins in one day is even nicer.

The Lorain County Ironmen won a pair of games on Monday night, one being a rain-delayed game from earlier in the month and one being a regularly scheduled game. With the wins, the Ironmen climbed out of last place in the five-team Eastern Division of the Prospect League with a pair of 4-3 wins over the Slippery Rock Sliders at The Pipe Yard.

Avon Lake graduate Nick Hamilton was the hero with his bat and defensive play at third base. He plated a pair of RBI singles, including a walk-off RBI single to score Will Hodges, who led off the ninth inning with a double that went over the centerfielder’s head. His glove was flawless at third, recording four assists and two putouts.

"It all started with Will (Hodges), he really stepped up big for us," said Hamilton, whose team has six walk-offs out of its 10 wins. "He’s the guy that got on base and went to third on a wild pitch. I was able to get a fastball early in the count and that’s all I was looking for. It’s not too hard, especially when the guys get on ahead of you."

Westlake’s Justin Mackert, the Ironmen‘s newest player, reached on a fielder’s choice, then promptly stole second, before scoring on a Hamilton RBI single to get the Ironmen going in the third inning. After Hamilton went to second base on a Matt McAllester single, he advanced to third on a wild pitch, then scored on a bases-loaded walk to Stephen Hagen, to make it 2-0.

McAllester got things going in the fifth inning, hitting a first-pitch delivery to right center field for a lead-off triple. He then scored when Tony Brunetti lined a base hit up the middle for an RBI single.

"The guys did a good job of picking it up and putting it all together," Ironmen coach Eric Cormell said. "It’s harder on my heart, but I’ll take it anyway they come. It just shows that our guys don’t quit. They’ve come back from deficits this year. They’re able to step it up in the right time and make it happen. What more can you ask for."

Ironmen starting pitcher Mike Pereslucha faced the minimum 12 batters through four innings after two double plays by his defense. In the first inning, Pereslucha and catcher J.T. Feldkamp pulled off the strike-em out, throw-em out double play as Feldkamp threw out Brian Davila, who was trying to steal second base after Pereslucha struck out Sam Sivilotti. In the third, Hamilton started the double play, going to McAllester at second and Ingraham at first for the 5-4-3 inning ender. He went six innings of two-hit ball, allowing just one walk and two hit batters before giving way to Joe Burnett, who allowed the Sliders to tie the game at three in the seventh.

Before the nightcap, the 3-3 tie game from June 12 (delayed by rain) was completed as Michael Grieco and Nate Antone came up big in the ninth inning as the Ironmen won their fifth game via walk-off.

In the top of the ninth, Slippery Rock’s Brian Davila missed on an attempted suicide squeeze, but Grieco made a heads-up play, fielding the outside pitch from Phil Brua and quickly diving across the plate to tag a sliding Derek Carr.

In the bottom of the ninth, Grieco, who had a one-out single, scored the game-winning run on a RBI single by Antone that went down the right field line.
Phil Brua picked up the win in both games, improving to 3-0. The Ironmen are now 10-14, while the Sliders slipped to 8-14.

"It was a little different (pitching relief in two games in one day)," said Brua, who picked up a pair of wins in one day twice at Oberlin College. "I actually felt like I was throwing harder in the second game. I had a little more zip on my ball for whatever reason.

"It’s awesome. We’ve had some anticlimactic walk-off wins, but we’ll take ‘em. It’s always fun to get those. Those are the most exciting."

The City of Lorain and Lorain is Pro Baseball have partnered with the Lorain County Ironmen to present a dynamic event this Friday, July 2nd at The Pipe Yard in Lorain.

Flying in from California, Lorain native and Admiral King High School graduate, Ray Carrion, will perform live at 6:15 p.m.

Carrion has shared the stage with artists such as the Black Eyed Peas, KISS members Ace Frehley and Peter Criss, El Chicano, Tito Puente, Santana members, and Sheila E.

Carrion will be joined by local greats Sammy DeLeon, Benny Pacheco, George Lopez, El Mostro, and Jackie Warren.

The concert will be followed by the game between the DuPage Dragons and our own Lorain County Ironmen. Both teams are members of the Prospect League – a league known for producing over 150 pro players, including Ryan Howard, Mike Schmidt, and the late Kirby Puckett, to Major League Baseball.

Immediately after the game, a spectacular fireworks show will light up the sky and dazzle the crowd.

Please join us for this memorable event at our newly renovated stadium. The Pipe Yard now offers a new food concession center along with a 2-tier (20’ x 80’) party deck in the middle of the action. The following event sponsorship opportunities are still available:

• Gold Sponsor $ 500 (2 left)
• Silver Sponsor $ 250 (4 left)
• Bronze Sponsors $ 150 (2 left)

The event will be advertised in the Lorain Morning Journal on June 25th and July 2nd (full back cover page of Arcade Magazine), Lorain City website, Lorain County Ironmen website, local radio stations, and more. All sponsors’ names will be prominently displayed in a banner during the event. Sponsors will also be recognized during the game via the stadium’s PA system. For more information, please contact:

Rey Carrion, City of Lorain
Community Development Department
(440) 204-2020 Office
(440) 204-2080 Fax
(440) 670-4981 Mobile
rey_carrion@cityoflorain.org
Please make checks payable to: Lorain is ProBaseball

ADMISSION TICKET INCLUDES CONCERT, GAME, AND FIREWORKS:
Adults $5; Seniors $4; Children $3; Kids under 4 yrs FREE
TICKETS AVAILABLE AT LORAIN CITY HALL STARTING TODAY!
GROUP SEATING AVAILABLE – PLEASE CALL (440) 204-2020

The Pipe Yard Stadium
2840 Meister Road
Lorain, Ohio 44053
(Directly behind the 7-Eleven store @ corner of Meister & Leavitt Rd.)

Solid pitching and defense abounded when the Lorain County Ironmen took on the Springfield Sliders last night. The Ironmen have four walk-off wins this season but couldn’t pull it off again, as the Sliders outlasted them 3-1 in 14 innings.

Springfield scored two runs in the top of the 14th when Trevor Willis hit a two-run single.

Extra innings could have been avoided, as the Ironmen had a runner on third with no outs in the ninth but could not score.

Nate Antone led off the inning with a four-pitch walk and advanced to third on a two wild pitches reliever Kendall Meyer. Mike Grieco next walked to put runners on the corners.

But the opportunity would go to waste when Will Hodges, Matt McAllester and Tony Brunetti grounded out to keep Antone at third.

Lorain County (8-14) left a runner on third again in the 13th, but Hodges popped out to short.

Ironmen starter Kris Hall pitched five innings with four walks and six strikeouts. He repeatedly got out of trouble, allowing 10 baserunners without one crossing the plate.

Hall gave up two extra base hits in the first inning but did not yield a run. Nick Judkins led off the game with a double to right-center field and was doubled off after a line drive to shortstop Nick Hamilton.

Willis followed with a triple down the right field line but was left stranded at third.

Hall loaded the bases with one out in the second inning but struck out Matt Giovinazzo and got Judkins to tap out to the catcher.

The bases were left loaded again in the fourth when Judkins struck out.

Brunetti led off the bottom of the eighth with a double to right and moved to third on a sacrifice bunt by Evan Melendez.

Springfield (9-11) starter Jason Farrell got Stephen Hagen to fly out to shallow right. Farrell then came in to strike out Hamilton to end the inning.

Hamilton scored the first run of the game for the Ironmen in the fourth inning. He reached on an infield single, advanced to third on a failed pickoff attempt and scored on a sacrifice fly to right by Grieco.

Relievers Phil Brua, Brandon Cantrill, Brian Taricska and Jeff Kottar combined for six scoreless innings before the decisive 14th.

The Ironmen had already played in games lasting 13 and 15 innings so far this season, losing the first and winning the latter.

The Sliders scored off reliever Billy Urban in the eighth inning on a RBI double by Cody Coffman to make the score 1-1.

Farrell pitched into the eighth inning. The southpaw allowed one unearned run, six hits, two walks and stuck out one.

Notes

• The Ironmen added three new players to the roster: outfielder Justin Mackert (Westlake) of The Citadel and pitchers Brian Taricska (Bay Village) of Kent State and Jeff Kottar of Walsh University. Admiral King graduate Matt Toth has been released.

• Third baseman James DiBiasio has been placed on the disabled list.

• The Sliders and Ironmen are in fourth and fifth place, respectively, in the Eastern Division, trailing the Chillicothe Paints (16-5).

• Lorain County is off today and will take on Slippery Rock at The Pipe Yard tomorrow at 7:05 p.m.

The Lorain County Ironmen battled the league-leading Paints, but came up short 5-1 in Chillicothe on Friday night, falling to 8-13 on the season.

Avon Lake’s Nick Hamilton drove home Stephen Hagen on a fielder’s choice for an early 1-0 lead, but that was the only lead the Ironmen held.

Aaron Hilt (Ashland University) started and threw seven innings, allowing three runs, three walks, while striking out seven batters.

Hagen paced the Ironmen offense with two hits. Austin Ingraham stayed hot and delivered two hits as well.The Ironmen will be back at the Pipe Yard on Saturday to face the Springfield Sliders at 7:05 p.m.

It was only a matter of time before the Lorain County Ironmen’s offense put it all together during a game. It happened Thursday night in Richmond, Indiana as the Ironmen used a six-run fifth inning and 14 hits on their way to a 9-7 win against the River Rats.

Matt McAllester (Ashland University) led the attack for the Ironmen, going 5-for-6. McAllester had five singles, drove in a run, score three runs and stole three bases. The third steal was of home plate. With one out in the top of the eighth inning, River Rats pitcher Freddie Cabrera went into the windup with McAllester at third. Cabrera used a slow windup allowing McAllester to slide in with his first steal of home this year without a tag.

Tony Brunetti (Rollins College) and Austin Ingraham (St. Bonaventure) each had two hits. Stephen Hagen (Texas Tech) and Billy Urban (St. Bonaventure) each contributed an RBI each.

Eric Knight (Oberlin College) earned his first win of the season with five innings pitched. He gave up three runs and walked two. Brian Tariska (Kent State) made his first appearance of the year and pitched one inning. He allowed two runs on two hits.

Brandon Cantrill came on and the righty from Oberlin set down the 1-2-3 hitters, all from the Big 10, in order.

Phil Brua (Oberlin College) earned his third save of the season by going 1 2/3 innings. Brua allowed one run, walked one and struck out one. He struck out Ryan Skellie (St. Bonaventure) to end the game.

After snapping their four-game losing streak in a walk-off win on Monday night, the Ironmen hoped to keep that momentum going to begin their third winning streak of the season.

Enter Dean Wolosiansky and the West Virginia Miners.

Wolosiansky, who won four games at Ohio State in the spring, took a one-hitter into the sixth inning and the Miners 13-hit attack led to an 11-3 win over the Ironmen, at The Pipe Yard on Tuesday night, in front of 168 fans.

"It’s always nice to play against wood bats," Wolosiansky said. "Inside, out, location and mixing it up, it all seemed to work for me. It was a good time.

"(A lot of innings pitched) helps a lot. Any live innings always helps. Getting experience, working through and making adjustments on the mound. That’s what it is. You get a couple tough innings, or a couple tough pitches, and you make adjustments. That’s where you get better and that’s where you can take it to the next level."

Beside a second-inning single allowed to Austin Ingraham, Wolosiansky cruised the next three, before allowing a single to Evan Melendez in the sixth and a single to River McWilliams in the seventh. He finished with four strikeouts, three walks and a hit batter in seven innings pitched.

"We had some good timely hitting," Miners manager Tim Epling said. "We got some guys on base early and took advantage. Lorain did a good job. They hung in there. We were just able to get on them a little bit early.

"Anytime you can get a lead early in the game will make the pitcher more comfortable. We changed the line up around a lot this game and gave some guys some rest. Hopefully, we’ll be able to come out here and play a good game too."

The Ironmen got on the board in the bottom of the sixth inning to cut the deficit to 6-1. Mike Grieco walked and Melendez singled to start the inning, then advanced to second and third on a passed ball. Grieco scored on a groundout by Tony Brunetti. The run snapped a 13-inning scoreless streak by Wolosiansky.

Lorain County had a chance to score again in the bottom of the seventh, but a good throw from second baseman Isaak to catcher Mike Marietta nailed a sliding Nick Hamilton, who tried to score from first on McWilliams single down the right field line.

That’s when things got ugly.

The Miners batted around, scoring five more runs in the eighth inning.

The Miners scored first when Mike Marietta’s fielder’s choice scored Chris Holloway, who also reached on a fielder’s choice. Brandon Cantrill fielded Marietta’s grounder cleanly, but attempted to get Holloway at home, who slid home safely, instead of going to first base for the putout. That gave the Miners an early 1-0 lead.

They tacked on three runs in the second inning and took a 4-0 lead. Victor Ramos hit a double that went down the left field line, into the bullpen, scoring Gary Stafford from first base. Second baseman Nick Hamilton then missed a pickoff throw attempt from Cantrill, allowing Ramos to score and Joe Koch, who singled, went to third. Koch then scored on a sacrifice fly by Holloway.

Back-to-back-to-back singles for the Miners plated another run in the fifth. Travis Isaak, who went 4-for-5, singled and scored on a Phil Smith RBI single, then Jeremy Robinson, who singled, scored on a RBI double by Andrew Weaver.

The highlight of the game for the Ironmen came in the bottom of the eighth inning when Melendez tripled off the wall to score Grieco, who singled with one out. He then scored on a sacrifice fly by Brunetti.

On a four-game losing streak, the Ironmen would take a win any way it came.
And with the bases loaded in a tie game in the bottom of the ninth, a walk from J.T. Feldkamp gave the Ironmen a 2-1 victory over the West Virginia Miners.
“I just wanted to put something in the air and not ground into a double play,” Feldkamp said. “I didn’t feel any pressure to put it in play, though. I was willing to take the walk.”
The first run came in an equally unexpected way.
Evan Melendez, after walking with two outs, got to third base on a wide pickoff throw by Miners’ starter Chris Marlowe.
He scored moments later on a wild pitch to even the score at one.
“It kind of works the heart a little but, but we’ll take the win any way it comes,” manager Eric Cormell said. “It was a little anticlimactic at the end with a walk instead of a hit, but in the end it doesn’t matter.”
Mistakes on the base paths kept potential runs off the scoreboard early on for the Ironmen.
Melendez singled to lead off the first, he reached third with no outs on another errant pickoff throw.
The Ironmen couldn’t drive Melendez in, as he was thrown out trying to advance home on a grounder to third by Tony Brunetti.
Austin Ingraham was also thrown out at home after Mike Grieco hit a ball back to the mound.
“We were definitely being aggressive early in the game,” Cormell said. “We were struggling getting some hits, so we were just trying to make something happen.”
A third base running mistake resulted in an out when Danny Hagen failed to touch second base after a double by Ingraham in the sixth inning.
“I saw the play, and it looked like (Hagen) made the right play,” Cormell said. “To be honest, I don’t think it was the right call, but it’s human error. The umpires are entitled to that.”
Chris Hall got the start for the Ironmen and went five innings. He allowed one run on four hits, walked one and struck out six.
His only major mistake came in the second inning. West Virginia got its first run on a double by catcher Chris Kay.
Earlier in the inning, designated hitter Jeremy Robinson reached second on an odd play.
When Hall struck out first baseman Blake Roberts, most of the Ironmen infield headed toward the dugout. Realizing there were only two outs, Robinson sprinted to an uncovered second base.
Marlowe, who was drafted in the 21st round by the Blue Jays in this year’s draft, threw an efficient seven innings. The right-hander gave up one run on just two hits, walked four and struck out eight.
Ironmen reliver Phil Brua pitched two scorless innings to pick up the win.
“We seem to be a streaky team, winning three in a row then losing some,” Cormell said. “We’re starting to pick it up, so hopefully we’ll do out there tomorrow and do it again.”
The Ironmen and Miners will play again at The Pipe Yard tonight at 7:05 p.m.

Walks, hit batters and plain bad luck plagued the Ironmen in a 6-4 loss to the Quincy Gems Sunday at The Pipe Yard, extending their losing streak to four.

Starter Aaron Hilt (0-3) pitched an erratic four innings, allowing six runs on four hits. The right-hander struck out three, walked two and hit four batters.

“We hit too many guys and walked too many guys,” manager Eric Cormell said. “That put us in a bad spot. We just have to make those adjustments and do better tomorrow.”

Trailing in the eighth inning, James DiBiasio almost brought the Ironmen back in the game when he send a hard line drive to right field. Quincy’s Jon Meyers made a diving catch to end the inning, stranding two runners on base.

Whether it was hard drives hit right at fielders, spectacular plays by the opposing defense or close calls on the basepaths, the Ironmen couldn’t catch many breaks.

“In situation like this, you can put your head down and keep the losing streak going,” said Austin Ingraham, who was 2-for-3 with a run on the day. “That’s not how we look at it. Our attitudes are positive, and I’m confident we can turn this around.”

River McWilliams came out of the bullpen to throw five scoreless innings. He faced the minimum amount of batters three times, allowing two hits.

“I just wanted to go in there, throw strikes and give the team a chance to come back,” McWilliams said. “We’re hitting the ball hard, but they just didn’t go through today.”

The hits fell in just one inning for the Ironmen. Four runs crossed the plate on five singles in the second.

With two outs, Matt McAllester hit a slow roller to third. He beat out the throw, allowing DiBiasio to score from third.

Will Hodges took the Quincy defense by surprise, sprinting from second to reach the plate ahead of the catcher’s tag.

DiBiasio and Hodges also had RBI singles in the inning, giving the Ironmen a short-lived 4-1 lead.

Hilt pitched himself into trouble in the fourth inning, hitting two batters and giving up two hits and a walk before the first out was recorded.

Andrew Host it a hard single over third base to bring two runs home. Quincy scored five runs in the inning and took a 6-4 lead.

Hilt also ran himself into trouble in the first, loading the bases with a walk and two hit batters. Quincy center fielder Vinnie Fayard hit a fly ball to Tony Brunetti in left field, allowing leadoff batter Alex Jones to tag and score from third. Brunetti, however, threw out Jake Hibbard trying to tag from second to end the inning.

Quincy starter Cody Kopilchack pitched well outside of the second, going five innings. The righty allowed four runs, eight hits, struck out four and walked two.

Aaron Brett pitched a scoreless ninth for his second save of the season.

“These guys are working hard and putting in the time to improve on things,” Cormell said. “We’re due for some good luck and good karma.”

The Ironmen will try to break the losing streak when they host the West Virginia Miners tonight at The Pipe Yard at 7:05 p.m.

The Lorain County Ironmen came out hot at Chillicothe Saturday night, jumping out to a 2-0 lead through three innings. The Paints tied the score in the bottom of the fourth and took the lead in the fifth on a solo home run by Adam Gecewich (Ohio University).

The Paints closed out the game with a final of 8-2.

The Ironmen scored first when Nick Hamilton (Kent State) singled home Evan Melendez (Ashland University). They took a 2-0 lead when Hamilton singled home Matt McAllester (Ashland University). Hamilton ended the game 1 for 2 and reached base all four times to the plate.

Ironmen starter Eric Knight (Oberlin College) threw three hitless innings to start the game. He ended up going 5 1/3 innings allowed six runs, walked one and struck out five. He took the loss to drop his record to 0-1.

The Ironmen will be back at the Pipe Yard on Sunday to face the Quincy Gems. It will be a 6:05 start. It’s also Vegas Jewelers Diamond Dig night. Stop at Vegas Jewelers in Amherst for you chance to win a $500 diamond. You can catch all the action on Ironmen radio at www.lcironmenbaseball.com.

For five innings, the Ironmen outhit and outplayed the first-place Chillicothe Paints, but the Paints scored seven runs in the sixth inning en route to their 12-3 win at VA Memorial Stadium in Chillicothe on Friday night.

J.T. Feldkamp had an RBI single. James DiBiasio doubled and scored after stealing third base when the throw sailed into leftfield.

The Ironmen scored first when Billy Urban started the 2nd inning with a single. Consecutive singles by Austin Ingraham and Nick Hamilton moved Urban to third. Feldkamp drove Urban in on an RBI infield single that hit the pitcher’s mound and bounced straight up in the air allowing all the runners to advance.

After the Paints took the lead in the bottom of the third inning on an Ian Nielson RBI single, the Ironmen came back and tied the game in the fifth when DiBiasio doubled off the top of the wall in right and scored after stealing third base after the throw sailed into leftfield.

Ironmen starter Michael Pereslucha went 5 1/3, allowing 10 hits, two walks and two strikeouts.

Andrew Richardson picked up the win for the Paints. He went seven innings, allowing 10 hits, 2 runs, 1 earned with four strikeouts.

The Ironmen will be back in action in Chillicothe on Saturday night with a start time of 7:05. The Ironmen will be back home Sunday against the defending Prospect League champion Quincy Gems. Game time is 6:05 p.m.

The Lorain County Ironmen jumped out to an early 2-0 lead at Slippery Rock but the Sliders scored six runs in the 6th inning en route to a 10-3 victory over the Ironmen in Pennsylvania on Thursday night.

Patrick Mulligan took the loss. Austin Ingraham and Mike Grieco had an RBI single each.

The Ironmen took a 2-0 lead in the 4th inning when Nick Hamilton singled to start the inning. Hamilton then stole second base before scoring on Grieco’s base hit.

Mulligan went five innings and gave up nine runs, six earned. He walked six and struck out three. Mulligan was relieved by Brandon Cantrill, who pitched two innings, giving up one earned run, one walk with two strikeouts. Nate Antone pitched one inning and struck out two.

There’s been some pretty intense baseball being played at the Pipe Yard as of late.

For the third-straight game, the Ironmen pulled off some late-inning magic to win their third-straight game, defeating the Butler Blue Sox, 5-3 on Wednesday night.

With the win, the Ironmen improved to 6-6 and evened the season series with the Blue Sox at three games apiece.

The seventh inning proved magical for the Ironmen, scoring three runs off relief pitcher Kurt Roeder to erase a 3-2 deficit and give them a 5-3 lead. James DiBiasio led off with a walk, before Matt McAllester reached on a bunt single, sending DiBiasio to second. Billy Urban then doubled down the left field line to score DiBiasio and McAllester, who slid around the tag to grab a 4-3 lead.

"We have tons of good players, anyone can make plays at any given time," Urban said. "I happen to get a hit there and they scored, and (McAllester) had a great slide. Everybody is coming together. We have a chance to do something special. A lot of great guys and a lot of great players. Tonight we came out lucky."

Stephen Hagan then walked before J.T. Feldkamp sent a grounder to Blue Sox second baseman Jonathan Craycraft that went through his legs to score Urban with an insurance run, putting the Ironmen up 5-3.

"We’re starting to swing the bats a little better," Ironmen coach Eric Cormell said. "We’re taking some of the pressure off our pitchers. Urban comes up with a big hit, smokes the ball down the left field line. Me being an aggressive third base coach, I’m going to send that guy 99 percent of the time and he was able to get in there.

Especially in a wood-bat game, where hits are a commodity, they are few and far between, you take advantage of that and put pressure on the defense. I’m an ex-outfielder. It’s very tough for a guy to get the ball in and get the guy out."

Hagan came through on a 3-2 pitch in the first inning, delivering an RBI single to score Melendez, who was hit-by-pitch and stole second to give the Ironmen an early lead, 1-0.Butler answered back and tied the game at one when Max Vogel hit into a 1-6-3 double play that scored John Sulzicki, who led the second inning off with a triple. His triple was in the gap in left center and was close to clearing the fence for a home run.

Butler added a pair of runs in the fourth inning when Vogel and Craycraft each delivered clutch RBI singles to score Sulzicki and Adam Jury, who both drew two-out walks to give the Blue Sox a 3-1 lead.The RBI single by Jury, which scored Craycraft, was a bit controversial as Melendez’s throw from right field to Feldkamp appeared to get Craycraft, but the umpire called him safe.

The Ironmen blew a chance in the bottom of the fourth inning as Feldkamp (single) and Nick Hamilton (double) led off with hits. After a walk to Nate Antone, the bases were loaded with no outs for Will Hodges, who was acquired on Tuesday. Hodges struck out before DiBiasio’s groundout scored Feldkamp to cut the deficit to one. Hamilton (third) and Antone (second) were then left stranded as Melendez looked at a called third strike to end the inning and the threat.

Ironmen starting pitcher Kris Hall pitched strong, going six innings with six strikeouts, including four in a row at one point. He allowed three runs on four hits. River McWilliams came on to pitch the seventh, and gets credit for the win to improve to 2-1. He went 1 1/3 before giving way to Avon native Phil Brua (Oberlin College), who got the next two guys, leaving Austin Wulf and Colby Roberts stranded on second and third. Brua pitched a scoreless ninth to pick up his second save of the season.

"In that situation, I gotta come in and look to either get the strikeout or get somebody to hit the ball on the ground," Brua said. "I come in with a mindset, locate my fastball and try to keep it at the knees."It’s hard. I have to pump myself up, because I’m basically down there (bullpen) by myself. It’s what I love to do. I like the pressure. I like having the weight of the game on my shoulders and come in do what I do and try to get the win."

For the third straight night, the Ironmen went into the 9th inning tied at the Pipe Yard.

The first was ended by the weather. The second was a walk-off fielder's choice.

The third was a 15- inning marathon that ended with an RBI single by Evan Melendez to give the Ironmen a 3-2 victory over the DeKalb County Liners.

"It was a low pitch, so it was easy to drop the barrel of the bat on it," Melendez said.

Nick Hamilton led off the bottom of the 15th with a bunt single, then Nick Grieco sacrificed him to second.

Melendez, with first base open, ended the game with a hard single that fell just short of the center fielder's glove.

"I wasn't exactly posing the biggest threat with during the game," said Melendez, who had two hits in seven at bats before his final plate appearance. "I didn't know if they would walk me, but I knew they wouldn't give me a good pitch to hit."

Ironmen (5-6) starter Aaron Hilt gave up one run in the first inning but was sharp for all of his six innings on the mound. The right- hander struck out six and walked two.

He scattered six hits and did not allow a runner to reach second base after the second inning.

Lorain County got its first two runs in the third inning. Tony Brunetti lined a single to right, and an error by DeKalb County's Matt Lamore allowed Melendez to score from second.

The single would have been hit too hard for Melendez to score, but Lamore overran the ball on his running charge.

Then with Matt McAllester on third, Brunetti tried to steal second but halted halfway. McAllester broke for home during the ensuing rundown and was able to reach the plate before the tag.

Brunetti advanced to second on a fielder's interference by second baseman Joe Long.

DeKalb County (1-5) tied the game with a run in the seventh inning.

With one out, Trevor Popp hit a soft grounder between first and second that couldn't be fielded in time. Leadoff hitter Kenton Parmley drove Popp home with a double down the left field line.

Chris Barnett, who relieved Hilt in the seventh, got Joe DeBernardis to pop out to center with a runner on third to end the inning.

The Ironmen bullpen shut out the Liners from the seventh inning on. Five pitchers combined for nine innings, giving up three hits with nine strikeouts.

"It wasn't ideal to use as many guys as we did," Ironmen manager Eric Cormell said, "but we ended up coming through and getting the win. So we'll take it."

Long started the 11th inning by getting hit by a Phil Brua fastball and advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt.

Popp hit a slow grounder to first and just beat Brua to the bag, moving the runners up a base.

But the righty side-armer got out of jam by getting Beckmann to ground to second.

Brua also pitched a perfect 12th and scoreless 13th.

Billy Urban pitched the top of the 14th and struck out Ryan O'Gara with the bases loaded to keep the game tied.

DeKalb County starter Cody Hallahan went 8 1/3 innings, striking out eight and allowing just five hits.

Notes

• Shortstop Billy Urban was named to the 2010 Louisville Slugger Freshmen All-American team for his play at St. Bonaventure this season. He had a .337 batting average and 44 RBI, which were both second best on the team.

• Lorain County has tonight off and will play at home against the Butler Bluesox at 7:05 p.m. at the Pipe Yard. The team will see the Indians game today on their day off.

Ironmen manager Eric Cormell talks about his team's 4-3 win over the DeKalb County Liners on Sunday evening.



Tony Brunetti and Austin Ingraham talk about the final inning.

It might have taken a day longer than expected, but the Ironmen snapped their four-game losing streak with a walk-off 4-3 win over the DeKalb County (Ill.) Liners.

Just like Saturday night’s game that was suspended by rain, the score was tied 3-3 entering the ninth inning.

But this time, the Ironmen were able to finish.

With runners on first and third and one out, first baseman Austin Ingraham hit what seemed like a double-play ball up the middle.

Knowing that only getting the force at second would still allow the winning run to score, Liners second baseman Joe Long hurried his throw, sending it flying over the first baseman’s head.

“I just wanted to hit the ball up in the air, which is pretty much the opposite of what happened,” Ingraham said. “I can’t say some of the words that were going through my head as I was running to first.”

Tony Brunetti lined a double down the first base line with one out in the inning but was unable to score on a single by designated hitter Stephen Hagen.

“The outfield was playing pretty shallow, and there was only one out,” Brunetti said. “There’s a lot of things that can happen at third, like a passed ball or sac fly or a grounder. I think coach made the right decision.”

Making his first start in the Prospect League, Oberlin College’s Eric Knight, who is from Arizona, went six innings, allowing one earned run on seven hits. The right hander struck out four and walked one.

He got out a jam in the sixth inning when he got a strikeout and induced a pop fly on the infield with runners on the corners.

“He established his fastball and was able to throw is curve for strikes,” Ironmen manager Eric Cormell said. “When you can do that, you are going to be successful.”

The Ironmen (4-6) hitters were aggressive at the plate, swinging at pitches early in the count. They tallied 11 hits, including three each by Hagen and shortstop Billy Urban.

“Offensive teams are usually a little more aggressive, especially when the pitcher is throwing strikes,” Cormell said. “We’ve been doing a good job of putting the ball in play and were aggressive on the base paths. That’s our style of baseball.”

Western Reserve graduate Brandon Cantrill, who also plays at Oberlin College, came in the seventh inning with a 3-1 lead and inherited runners on second and third. Cantrill gave up a two-run single to Liners third baseman Adam Beckmann.

Both runs were unearned due to an error by Urban.

Otherwise, Cantrill went two innings with one hit and one walk.

Patrick Mulligan (2-1) picked up the win with a scoreless ninth inning. He gave up two hits, including a blooper over the shortstop’s head with two outs.

Urban took advantage of an aggressive base running attempt, gunning down Joey Bowens trying to get to third.

DeKalb County (1-4) starter Adam Karger went seven innings and threw over 120 pitches. He struck out five, walked five and hit two batters.

“I don’t know what their bullpen situation is, but we are playing so many games in such a short amount of time,” Cormell said. “Making that adjustment is important for every player, and I think these guys are starting to figure it out.”

Admiral King’s J.T. Feldkamp, who plays at Ohio Dominican, drove in the Ironmen’s first run of the game with single through the left side to score Hagen in the second inning.

Fellow Admiral King graduate Matt Toth brought a run home with a bases-loaded walk in the fourth.

The Iromen will be at home tonight to take on the Liners at 7:05 p.m.

Notes

• Saturday evening’s rain-suspended game with the Slippery Rock Sliders will be completed the next time the Sliders are back in town — June 28 and 29.

• DeKalb County came into last night’s game batting .177 as a team.

The Lorain County Ironmen were looking for a win.

Anyway they could get it.

The Ironmen, who are currently on a four-game losing streak, including three on the road, the Ironmen will have to wait another day. Their 3-2 lead was erased when Slippery Rock Sliders tied the game at three in the eighth inning, before the game was halted by lightning and rain on Saturday night at the Pipe Yard in front of 122 fans.

The Ironmen overcame an early 2-0 deficit in the bottom of the second inning as Mike Grieco’s suicide-squeeze bunt with the bases loaded, scored Stephen Hagan, who led off the inning with a walk. Matt Toth then followed with an RBI single to right field to score Austin Ingraham, who was on with a single. Matt McAllester then joined the rally with an RBI single to right field, scoring Grieco from second base to give the Ironmen a 3-2 lead.

Ironmen starting pitcher Michael Pereslucha pitched eight strong inning, allowing just three runs and scattering eight hits. He allowed two runs on three hits in the second inning when he loaded the bases with no outs, but was able to induce a double-play ball hit by Kevin Simms, who just joined the Sliders from Wright State.

The McAllester-to-DiBiasio-to-Ingraham double play scored Jeremy Banks, who led off with a single to right center field. Phil Bondi followed with an RBI single to score Matt Fenster, who reached on a walk.

Pereslucha got into a jam in the third inning with two outs when he allowed a double to Kyle Mossbarger and a walk to Matt Baer, but he got Banks to fly out to Evan Melendez in right field for the inning-ending out.

The Ironmen had a chance to add to their 3-2 lead in the bottom of the seventh inning, but DiBiasio, who doubled with one out, was picked off second base with one out and Tony Brunetti was caught looking at strike three with McAllester, who drew a walk, stranded at second base.

The Sliders tied the game at three in the top of the eighth inning on a sacrifice fly RBI by Fenster, scoring Matt Baer, who drew a walk and went to third on a Jeremy Banks’ double.

The game was officially postponed at 10:44 p.m. with no make-up date scheduled.
The Ironmen play today at 6:05 p.m. against the DeKalb County Liners at the Pipe Yard. Kids will get to run the bases after the game.

Notes
• The Ironmen signed two pitchers in Eric Knight and Chris Barnett. Knight pitched at Oberlin College and Barnett pitched at West Virginia Tech.

• Ironmen pitcher J.R. Osborne, of Ohio Wesleyan, was placed on the injured reserve.

• Ironmen third baseman River McWilliams had two base-running gaffes Saturday night. In the second inning, he was caught at third base as James DiBiasio was attempting a suicide-squeeze bunt. McWilliams broke for home, but the pitch was way outside and DiBiasio was unable to get any wood on it. In the fourth, after reaching on an error and taking second base on a heads up play, tried to score from second base on an infield single by DiBiasio. He rounded third and headed home as the throw got to the first baseman, who threw a strike to catch a non-sliding McWilliams at home by a few steps.

• Pereslucha made his second start of the season against the Slippery Rock Sliders on Saturday night. He started, but didn’t get the decision last week in a 5-3 win over the Sliders in Pennsylvania.

• The Ironmen began the day as the Prospect League leaders in stolen bases with 28. McAllester leads the team with nine.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

By CORY SCHUETT

cschuett@MorningJournal.com

A disastrous fourth inning put the Ironmen in a hole they could not recover from, as the Butler BlueSox beat the Lorain County Ironmen 11-3 at the Pipe Yard.

Butler (3-4) scored in the first five innings, including six in the fourth after the first two outs were recorded. Second baseman Austin Wulf got things started with a walk followed by an infield single by center fielder Colby Roberts. Designated hitter Kevan Smith, who is batting .435 this season, sent a two-run double to right-center field. After a hit batter and another infield single, catcher John Sulzicki sent a two-run single just to the right of a diving second baseman Matt McAllester in the right field grass.

Third baseman Adam Jury capped off the inning with a double to deep left field, bringing home two more runs to make the score 9-2.

"We’re at a point now where our pitchers are overworked," Ironmen manager Eric Cormell said. "We’ve had some issues with injury and homesickness that have used up a lot of arms in the bullpen."

Ironmen starter Joseph Burnett (0-2) never got in a rhythm, going 3 2/3 innings, allowing six hits and seven runs. The right-hander struck out two, walked two and hit two batters. He also allowed a run to score with an error in the second inning. With a runner on third, Burnett mishandled a ball hit back to him. Burnett’s throw to first brought Brandon Cantrill of the bag, allowing the runner to score.

The Ironmen scored two runs in the second inning on aggressive and opportunistic base running. After a balk moved runners to second and third, a pitch got between Sulzicki’s legs, allowing shortstop William Urban to score. One batter later, right fielder Austin Ingraham and third baseman Nick Hamilton collaborated on a double steal. Both runners were safe, including Ingraham at home. The Ironmen stole five bases on the evening, extending their Prospect League-best total to 28.

Butler starter Ben Rawding (1-0) threw five innings, striking out five and walking three. The southpaw allowed two runs on three hits. Lorain County batters struck out ten times total.

Ironmen pitcher Patrick Mulligan helped save an exhausted bullpen by going 3 1/3 innings, including a scoreless sixth and seventh. He gave up six hits and struck out three.

Lorain County has lost four in a row, falling to 3-6 overall on the season.

"We’ll get better," Cormell said. "We have a few new guys, and we didn’t want to throw them out on the first day, and we’ll be looking to bring in some more pitchers to help."

Eric Knight (Oberlin) and Nate Antone (Potomac State) are new additions to the pitching staff. Pitcher J.R. Osborne has been put on the disabled list.

Next on the schedule for the Ironmen is a home game tonight against the Slippery Rock Sliders at 7:05 p.m.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

Despite jumping out to an early 3-0 lead in the first inning, the Lorain County Ironmen dropped their third-straight game, falling 4-3 to the Butler BlueSox in Pennsylvania on Thursday night.

The night started promising for the Ironmen as they scored three runs in the top of the first inning. Austin Ingraham (St. Bonaventure) hit a two-run triple to score Westlake’s Matt McAllester (Ashland University), who started the inning with a walk and stole second base, and Stephen Hagen (Texas Tech), who was hit-by-pitch. Ingraham then scored on Billy Urban’s (St. Bonaventure) RBI single.

Kenny Bechaud (Missouri) and Kurt Roeder (Rippon) then combined to shut down the Ironmen for the rest of the game.

River McWilliams (Buffalo) took the loss to drop his record to 1-1. McWilliams came in to relieve Kris Hall (Cleveland State) who went 3 1/3 innings, striking out 3 and allowing three runs, one earned. McWilliams gave way to Avon’s Phil Brua (Oberlin), who pitched one inning.

The Ironmen return home to the Pipe Yard on Friday night to take on the BlueSox at 7:05 p.m. with fireworks to follow.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

http://animoto.com/play/x6TxOZfHjssb58hnE7Cdsg

Click on link to see Ironmen video

Lorain County Ironmen

FRIDAY NIGHT FIREWORKS
Friday, June 11th @ 7:05 p.m.
Pipe Yard Stadium

SATURDAY, JUNE 12TH @ 7:05 P.M.

vs. Slippery Rock Sliders (Cedar Point Saturday)

SUNDAY, JUNE 13TH @ 2:00 P.M.

vs. Dekalb County Liners

MONDAY, JUNE 14TH @ 7:05 P.M.

vs. Dekalb County Liners

FOR MORE INFORMATION PLEASE VISIT: www.lcironmenbaseball.com

The West Virginia Miners pounded out 13 hits as they defeated the Lorain County Ironmen Wednesday night, 10-4 in eight innings.

The Ironmen grab the lead early in the top of the fourth inning before the rain started falling, but the Miners got to the Ironmen starter Aaron Hilt (Ashland) in the bottom of the inning scoring three runs, with the big blow being a two-run homerun from catcher Chris Kay (Virginia Tech).

Lorain County kept battling back and scored three more runs, but came up short after the game was called by rain in the middle of the eighth inning. Amherst's Evan Melendez (Ashland) scored two runs, Billy Urban (St. Bonaventure) had two RBIs. Also scoring for the Ironmen were Admiral King's J.T. Feldkamp (Ohio Dominican) and Tony Brunetti (Rollins College). Westlake's Matt McAllester (Ashland) stole another two bases pushes his Prospect League leading total to eight.

Hilt (0-2) gave up five runs and took the loss. He was relieved by Nate Antone (Potomac State), who struck out two but gave up three runs. Avon's Phil Brua (Oberlin) relieved and didn’t fare any better in the wet conditions, giving up two runs while hitting three batters.

The Ironmen, who dropped to 3-4, will be back in action at 6:35 Thursday night as the finish their road trip in Butler, PA.

Lorain County Ironmen starter Patrick Mulligan pitched well through four innings but the West Virginia Miners reached him in the fifth. The Lake Erie College pitcher did not retire a batter in the inning as the Miners scored three times, en route to a 9-1 win in Beckley, West Virginia on Tuesday night.

Virginia Tech pitcher Joey Parsons pitched 5 2/3 innings for the win. He allowed just four hits and only one run.

Two Ashland Eagles provided Lorain County’s only run. Amherst gradute Evan Melendez set it up when he tripled off Parsons to lead off the top of the 6th. Westlake graduate Matt McAllester brought him home with an RBI groundout to first base.

The Ironmen fell to 3-3 and three games behind the undefeated Chillocote Paints, who are in first place in the Eastern Division. West Virginia is now 3-2.

The Ironmen will be back in action at 7:05 tonight as they complete their two game series with the Miners. The game will be available on Ironmen radio at www.lcironmenbaseball.com.

The Ironmen began their four-game road week with a 5-3 win over the Slippery Rock Sliders on Monday night.

The Ironmen capitalized off five errors and a three-run fifth inning to break up a 2-2 tie. Amherst’s Evan Melendez had an RBI single to score James DiBiasio, who walked and stole second. Tony Brunetti then hit an RBI triple to score Melendez and then scored on a Stephen Hagan sacrifice fly to right field.

In the third, DiBiasio singled, stole second and third, before scoring on a passed ball by the catcher for the Ironmen’s first run.

In the fourth, Billy Urban tacked on their second run of the game as he drew a one-out walk, then advanced to second on a passed ball by the catcher, then stole third before scoring on a wild pitch.

River McWilliams picked up the win, while Avon’s Phil Brua came on to pick up the save, going 2 2/3 innings, allowing just one hit and one walk. With the win, the Ironmen improved to 3-2 and are in sole possession of second place in the Eastern Division.

The Ironmen will be back in action at 7:05 Tuesday night as they visit the West Virginia Miners in Beckley, WV. You can catch the game on Ironmen radio at www.lcironmenbaseball.com.

Third baseman Nick Hamilton gets ready to put the tag on Cameron Squires as catcher Mike Grieco throws him out trying to steal.

Matt McAllester takes a swing at a pitch early in the game on Sunday.

By STEVE WALKER
swalker@MorningJournal.com

You got to love a walk-off win.

Playing in their fourth game of the season and third in a row at the Pipe Yard, the Lorain County Ironmen overcame a 4-1 deficit with a ninth-inning rally to defeat the Butler Blue Sox, 5-4 in a walk-off win in front of 116 fans on Sunday.

"Our guys don’t quit," Ironmen head coach Eric Cormell said. "Sometimes opportunities come your way and you take advantage of them and you come out on top. It was impressive to see how hungry the guys really wanted to win that game at the end.

"It’s going to be a long season, but when you fight hard and you never say die, you’re going to win a lot more games than you lose."

Jeffrey Cola started things off in the ninth with a triple that splashed on the right field warning track’s pond of water. He scored on a RBI double to left center by pinch-hitter Billy Urban, to make it 4-2.

"It’s really cool, it really gets us pumped up," Cola said. "Especially going into a long week on the road. Coming back in these conditions, with the rain coming down, really gets us going and gets us amped up for the coming week.

"At any point in baseball, especially in the bottom of the ninth, you get a couple hits together and when I led that off, all the guys get up and get pretty excited. I was amped up at third and it’s pretty cool. That’s what baseball is all about."

Admiral King graduate Matt Toth came on to pinch hit for catcher Mike Grieco and drew a walk. After a failed sacrifice bunt by James DiBiasio, Evan Melendez was hit-by-pitch, loading the bases with one out. Matt McAllester then hit a line shot to left field that the left fielder appeared to catch, but dropped it, allowing Toth to score. In the meanwhile, DiBiasio was thrown out on a force out at third base. That set up the heroics as Tony Brunetti lined a single to left, scoring Melendez to tie the game at four. McAllester made a hard turn at third, but slipped to the ground, which drew a throw home from left fielder Logan Uxa, who overthrew the catcher and McAllester got back up and scampered home with winning run.

"When I got up, I was just trying to put the ball in play," McAllester said. "(On the winning run) I was trying to get a big secondary lead, because I knew I was the winning run. On the crack of the bat, I was just going to bust it as hard as I could if I had the opportunity. So when Tony hit a line drive, I busted it. The left fielder was playing really shallow and so coach held me up because I would’ve been hosed at home. When I came around, I slipped, I got back up, coach started telling me ‘Watch the throw, watch the throw, see what happens’. (The ball) got by the catcher and I just put my head down and took off running."

Things didn’t start the Ironmen’s way in the first as Butler’s first two batters reached base on a walk and a throwing error by third baseman Nick Hamilton. Zach Duggan, who led off with a walk, scored when Austin Wulf reached on Hamilton’s error. Wulf then scored on a RBI single by Tyler Sciacca to make it 2-0. Ironmen starter Joe Burnett struggled with his command and walked the bases loaded, but then induced Max Vogel into a 6-4-3 double play to end the threat.

The Blue Sox added two runs in the third on a pair of two-out clutch hits by Tyler Sciacca and Uxa. Sciacca hit an RBI double to score Jon Craycraft, who singled. Uxa followed with an RBI single to score Sciacca to make it 4-0. Vogel then hit a shot to the right field corner for a double, but a heads-up play and on-point throw by Melendez to second baseman DiBiasio who threw a strike to catch a sliding Uxa at home as Grieco applied the tag for the inning-ending out.

The Ironmen were held to one run in five innings by 6-foot-7 power right-hander Ben Ballantine, of the University of Michigan, as he allowed six hits and struck out five before giving way to Kirk Roeder, of Ripon College (Wisconsin). Roeder held the Ironmen at bay for the next three innings, before Butler brought on its closer Ryan Thompson, who imploded.

The Ironmen cut a four-run deficit to three after a seven-minute rain delay in the fifth inning. McAllester stroked a two-out RBI single to left field, scoring DiBiasio, who reached on a fielder’s choice. Brunetti then hit a gaper into left center, but Uxa was there to make the inning-ending catch.

Grieco showed his arm strength behind the plate as he threw out three would-be base stealers in the game. He gunned out the speedy Cameron Squires trying to steal third base in the second inning, fired a strike to DiBiasio at second base to get a sliding Wulf in the third and then got Squires as he was trying to steal second base in the fourth.

The bullpen did their job after starter Joe Burnett pitched five innings, allowing the only four runs of the game. Western Reserve graduate Brandon Cantrill came on to pitch the next three scoreless innings before giving way to Patrick Mulligan, who pitched a scoreless ninth.

With the win, the Ironmen improved to 2-2 and head on the road to play the Slippery Rock Sliders (Monday), Beckley Miners (Tuesday and Wednesday) and the Butler Blue Sox (Thursday), before returning home on Friday against the Blue Sox.