MOOSE JAW -- The Saskatoon Berries got off to a good start against the Regina Red Sox and were able to hang on for their fourth-straight victory in Western Canadian Baseball League action on Wednesday night.
The Berries took a 2-0 lead out of the first inning and would hold off a late-game Red Sox comeback on their way to a 6-5 victory in Saskatoon, while the Moose Jaw Miller Express suffered their fourth straight loss with a 6-3 defeat at the hands of the Sylvan Lake Gulls.
Other results Wednesday saw the Medicine Hat Mavericks take a 7-3 win over the Weyburn Beavers, the Fort McMurray Giants down the Swift Current 57’s 6-0 and the Okotoks Dawgs take a 9-2 win against the Brooks Bombers.
Saskatoon 6, Regina 5
The Berries extended their lead to 3-0 in the fifth inning before Regina rallied with a pair of runs in the sixth to make things close, but Saskatoon would tack on runs in four straight innings to hold on for the win.
Nate Houston was 2-for-4 with a run scored and a run batted in to lead the Berries offence, Carter Beck crossed the plate twice.
James Wright went 2-for-4 with a double and RBI for Regina; Rafael Jackson and Michael Fox each had two hits and a run scored.
Michael Sall started for Saskatoon and allowed only three hits over five innings, Zac Laird was the winning pitcher, Tanner Hosick pitched the ninth to earn the save.
Chris Spry allowed four runs, two earned, over five innings for Regina, striking out six and walking 10. Calvin Shepherd was the losing pitcher after allowing two runs in the final two innings.
Saskatoon is now 19-3 and remains first in the East Division, Regina sits 11-10 and are third.
Sylvan Lake 6, Moose Jaw 3
The Gulls scored a pair of runs in the third inning and after Moose Jaw got one back in the seventh, tacked on four runs in their half of the inning and held on the rest of the way.
Noah Bourgeois was a major reason for Sylvan Lake’s success, as he turned in a quality start while allowing a single run on one hit in 6 ⅓ innings of work to pick up the win on the mound.
Rodolfo Guardiola took the loss despite also turning in a quality start with two runs allowed on five hits over six innings of work.
Noah Konings hit a pair of doubles for the Gulls and scored a pair of runs, while Ayden Makarus hit a solo home run. Jaden Flores was 2-for-4 with a pair of RBI.
Tanner DeGrazia had two hits for Moose Jaw and hit a solo round-tripper in the seventh.
Moose Jaw falls to 10-12 and are fourth in the East, Sylvan Lake improves to 12-11 and sit third in the West.
Fort McMurray 6, Swift Current 0
A five-run first inning was all Giants’ starter Luke Glenn needed, as he’d hold Swift Current to only two hits while striking out eight to secure the win, dropping his earned run average to 0.92 on the season. Eli McKeen and Chris Billings closed things out with three innings of shutout relief.
Hunter Mark couldn’t get an out while giving up four runs in the first and took the loss for the 57’s. Luke Reasor took over and didn’t allow a run over five innings, giving up four hits in the process.
Darcy Barry hit a home run and scored two runs for Fort McMurray, Elijah Olaybal went 2-for-4 with a double and three RBI.
Jose Ayala had two of Swift Current’s five hits.
The 57’s are now 5-17 and remain sixth in the East, Fort McMurray is 7-13 and fifth in the West.
Medicine Hat 7, Weyburn 3
The Mavericks did all their damage in the first four innings, including two runs in the third and three in the fourth. Weyburn rallied with a pair in the sixth and one in the seventh but would get no closer.
Ian Heck and Tyler Dale each had 3-for-4 showings for the Beavers, with Dale also scoring one of their runs.
Aaron Vulcano racked up three hits for Medicine Hat, Evan Morrison had a home run and pair of RBI.
Gary Dornan was the winning pitcher, giving up two runs, one earned while turning in a quality start with six innings of work.
Owen McConnell allowed seven runs, five earned, on 11 hits to take the loss.
Medicine Hat is now 16-7 and second in the East, Weyburn falls to 7-14 and are fifth.
