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Lancaster 6, Southern Maryland 1

The Lancaster Barnstormers finished the best half-season in franchise history with a solid, 6-1 victory over the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs on Sunday afternoon at Clipper Magazine Stadium.

 With the win, Lancaster completed a three-game sweep of Southern Maryland and ended the half with a record of 44-21 (.677) which beat the second half in 2015 when the Barnstormers went 47-23 (.671).  It was the 10th sweep of a series for the Barnstormers since the first of July.

 Dominic DiSabatino and Bret Clarke combined on a five-hitter against the Blue Crabs on Sunday.  DiSabatino, who picked up a save on Friday night after working three innings of middle relief on Wednesday, went the first four innings, allowing three hits and the lone Southern Maryland run.  The right-hander walked two and struck out nine.

 Clarke (3-2) took over in the fifth and faced two batters over the minimum for the remaining five frames, allowing two hits and a walk.  He closed out the game on a 5-4-3 double play off the bat of Ryan Haug.

 Southern Maryland struck first and had DiSabatino on the ropes in the second inning.  The Lancaster starter nicked Santiago Chirino with a pitch to open the inning, then walked Matt Hibbert.  Haug cleared third baseman Anderson Feliz with an RBI double, giving the Blue Crabs runners at second and third with nobody out.  DiSabatino struck out Ian Yetsko and Michael Baca in succession before retiring Jack Sundberg on a line drive to right to close the inning.  The Blue Crabs only advanced one more runner to scoring position in the game.

 Lancaster grabbed the lead to stay in the bottom of the second.  Alsis Herrera (1-5) walked Jacob Barfield to start the inning.  Anthony Peroni singled into right to second Barfield to second.  Joseph Carpenter tied the game with a double to right, and Jake Hoover followed suit with another two-bagger giving the ‘Stormers a 2-1 edge.  Trace Loehr brought the final run home with a grounder to short.

 Andretty Cordero opened the third with a booming homer to left, his third in three days as the Barnstormers went ahead, 4-1.  Another pair of doubles by Carpenter and Hoover and an RBI single by Chris Proctor off Patrick Baker in the sixth capped the scoring.

 Lancaster will host Southern Maryland in the first round of the playoffs beginning Tuesday night at 6:30.  Oscar De La Cruz (9-3) will make the start for Lancaster against Daryl Thompson (15-4).  Tickets for the post-season remain on sale.  Fans may also tune into the YouTube broadcast, beginning at 6:25.

 NOTES:  Lancaster pitching finished the season yielding under 1,000 hits (990) while striking out 1,153 in 1,136 innings…Cordero ended the year with 184 hits and 118 RBI…He ended the season second in the batting race at .339, behind Long Island’s Alejandro de Aza’s .343 and second to Lexington’s Courtney Hawkins (125) in RBI…Carpenter had three doubles and has nine extra base hits in the last seven games…The Barnstormers won 18 of their last 24 regular season games, finishing overall at 73-58. 

Long Island 7, Staten Island 5

(Staten Island, N.Y., Sept. 18, 2022) – The Long Island Ducks defeated the Staten Island FerryHawks 7-5 on Sunday afternoon in the rubber game of a three-game series and the final game of the 2022 season at Staten Island University Hospital Community Park.

 Staten Island struck first, courtesy of an RBI single by Mariel Bautista in the first inning off Ducks starter Joe Iorio. The Ducks answered with a four-spot off FerryHawks starter Anthony Rodriguez in the second to take a 4-1 lead. Jose Sermo's RBI double, Joe DeCarlo's RBI single, an error that scored Dustin Woodcock and a wild pitch that plated DeCarlo highlighted the inning.

 The FerryHawks closed to within a run in the third on a two-out, two-run homer to center by Bautista. Carlos Castro lifted a sac fly to center in the seventh, pushing the Ducks lead to 5-3. However, a two-run homer to left by Bautista in the seventh tied the game at five. It stayed that way until the top of the ninth when Castro launched a two-out, two-run homer to left, giving the Ducks a 7-5 advantage.

 Neither starter factored into the decision. Iorio tossed five innings, allowing three runs (one earned) on eight hits while striking out three. Rodriguez also pitched five innings, conceding four runs on seven hits and three walks with three strikeouts. Chas Cywin (1-1) picked up the win after tossing a scoreless eighth inning, striking out one. Nelson Figueroa (0-2) took the loss, surrendering two runs on two hits in one inning. Jose Jose collected his third save with a 1-2-3 ninth inning.

 Castro led the Flock offensively with three hits, three RBIs and two runs scored. Zach Racusin added two hits and two walks, while Dustin Woodcock chipped in with two hits and a run.

 The Ducks would like to thank their tremendous fans for a successful 2022 season, both on and off the field. CLICK HERE to read about the many accomplishments the team achieved this year. 2023 Ducks season ticket plans and sponsorships are now available. For season ticket or sponsorship information, or to learn how you can get involved with the Ducks, please call (631) 940-3825 or visit LIDucks.com.

 The Long Island Ducks are members of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball, a Professional Partner League of Major League Baseball. Over 8 million fans have enjoyed the Ducks brand of affordable, fun entertainment at Fairfield Properties Ballpark since inception in 2000. For further information, visit LIDucks.com or call 631-940-DUCK (3825).

York 9, High Point 3

YORK, Pa. – The High Point Rockers closed out the 2022 regular season on Sunday afternoon with a 9-3 loss at York. The Rockers will now focus their attention on Tuesday night’s opening game of the best-of-five Atlantic League South Division Championship Series.

The Rockers will open play at Gastonia’s Caromont Health Park on Tuesday at 6:15 p.m. with game two of the series scheduled for Wednesday at Gastonia, also at 6:15 p.m. The Rockers will host Gastonia on Friday, September 23 at Truist Point at 6:35 p.m. Games four and five of the series, if necessary, will be played at Truist Point on Saturday and Sunday.

The Revolution scored a single run in each of the first five innings in building a 5-1 lead over the Rockers. The Rockers were down 2-0 in the third when Joe Johnson walked, moved to third on a single by pitcher Junior Rincon and scored on a sacrifice fly by Michael Russell.

In the sixth, Tyler Ladendorf doubled and moved to third on a wild pitch. Roldani Baldwin doubled to score Ladendorf and pull the Rockers within 5-2. High Point added its final run in the sixth when Johnson again walked, took second on a single by Mike Gulino and scored on a single by pitcher Kyle Mott.

The Rockers used the day to get some work for the bullpen as manager Jamie Keefe readied the starting pitchers for the upcoming playoffs. Junior Rincon (L, 2-3) started and went three innings, allowing three runs on five hits while striking out four.

Mott tossed two innings while Gabriel Castellanos and Bryce Hensley each threw a single inning. The only hurler not to allow a run was infielder Giovanny Alfonzo who allowed a pair of hits in the ninth.

York was led by J.C. Encarnacion and Elmer Reyes who each had three hits. Reyes doubled and homered while driving in three runs as Troy Stokes, Jr. and Josue Herrera added homers for the Revs. York starter Courtney Mack (W, 3-2) went 6.1 innings and struck out seven while allowing six hits and all three High Point runs.

The Rockers will continue preparations for the playoff series with Gastonia on Monday.

Lexington 20, Kentucky 9

LEXINGTON, Ky. – The Lexington Legends closed the 2022 season with a 20-9 win over stadium-mate Kentucky 20-9 on Sunday afternoon at Wild Health Field.

Lexington’s Courtney Hawkins hit a seventh inning homer that marked his 48^th of the season. That ties Hawkins with Ozzie Canseco of the Newark Bears who in 2000 also hit 48. The two now share the Atlantic League record for the most home runs in a season.

In addition, Hawkins drove in four runs to bring his season total to 125, the second-most in Atlantic League history behind Canseco’s 129 in 2000.

Chris Shaw had three doubles and two RBI for the Genomes while Samir Duenez nailed a three-run homer. Jhoendri Herrera was four-for-four with a homer and a double.

Lexington also received superlative performances from Teodoro Martinez who was a single shy of hitting for the cycle and drove in two runs. Montrell Marshall went five-for-five with five runs scored, three homers and seven RBI.

Ean Walda (W, 2-3) went five innings and struck out seven. Alexis Candelario (L, 2-4) surrendered 14 hits and 14 runs in six innings.

Gastonia 7, Charleston 1

CHARLESTON, W.Va. – The Gastonia Honey Hunters used a pair of three-run innings to win their regular season finale by a 7-1 score over Charleston at Appalachian Power Park on Sunday afternoon.

Zach Jarrett hit a solo homer in the second inning and Joseph Rosa hit a two-run homer in the eighth for Gastonia. Reece Hampton and Alex Holderback each had three hits for the Honey Hunters. Reilly Hovis (W, 8-5) went five innings and held the Dirty Birds to just two hits. Gastonia’s pitching staff allowed just four hits in the game while striking out 11.

Charleston’s Scott Burcham plated Angel Garced with a sac fly in the sixth to account for the Dirty Birds’ lone run. Denson Hull (L, 3-11) went six innings and fanned six for Charleston.