Tradewater leaves town with sweep

Anders

For the first time this season, the Bobcats have dropped four in a row, thanks in part to a series sweep by a surging Tradewater club. The Pirates left town Thursday with a 6-1 win to preserve the sweep and move to within one game of first-place Marion.

The Bobcats are 2-5 in July and 4-8 since returning from a four-day layoff on June 22. 

Marion (13-11, 14-11 overall) took an early lead Thursday with a run in the second, but Tradewater (13-13) tied the game in the sixth. The Pirates pulled away with a five-run explosion in the next frame, touching starter Josh Anders (2-1) for four runs. Stephen Glaze came in to finish the game for the Bobcats, but also surrendered a run in the five-run seventh.

Anders, who gave up three earned runs in 6 1/3 innings, came into the game with a minute 0.67 ERA. After the performance, his 1.35 ERA is still among the best in the league.

On the mound for Tradeater, former Bobcat hurler Logan Thomas (3-0) did in his old club Thursday, going the distance and allowing only one run. He gave up six hits, walked one and struck out nine.

Lately, it's been ex-Bobcats hurting the club's grasp on first place. Late last week, former manager Steve Fowler and shortstop Drew Barrett took a two-game series at Guess Field. And for the Pirates, Thomas is the second winning pitcher in as many nights to have worn the Bobcats tunic in the past. Caleb Luttrell was the first, doing in his old club with a 2-1 win in the second game of Wednesday's double header.

The bottom of the order for Marion saw solid production out of Landon Weitekamp and Jake Hirniak, each going 2-for-3 as the Nos. 8 and 9 hitters, respectively. Desmond Roberts and Taylor Banks also contributed hits. But Cody Schmitt, who was hitless on the night, drove in the Bobcats' only run, his seventh RBI of the season.

For Tradewater, Brock Bontrager drove in half of the team's six runs in the No. 2 slot, going 2-for-5. J.B. Sapenzia got three hits in four trips to the plate, including a double.

Click here for box score.

Fulton 4, Owensboro 2
Fulton move out of the Ohio Valley League cellar Thursday with a 4-2 win over Owensboro, though by only one one-thousandth of a percentage point. In fact, all teams except Marion ended the night in a different spot in the standings than the night before.