Baseball

The Northwest Indiana Oilmen entered Friday night's game looking to break a franchise record for consecutive wins. The Oilmen were shorthanded but were determined to get their ninth win of the season, even if it meant using pitchers in different fielding positions. 

 

The game stayed silent until the third inning when the Oilmen jumped out to a 6-0 lead after an error extended the inning. Ryan Groberski, Troy Vosburgh and Ethan Ganz all doubled in the inning. 

 

"We just had that one bad inning," said Generals manager Amir Wright, "we didn't play defense for two outs."

 

The Generals scratched one run across the plate when Braylon Holland grounded into a double play, which allowed Cameron Buckley to score. Griffith would not score again until the ninth inning. 

 

"[The Oilmen] had the momentum the whole night," said Wright.

 

Down 7-1 heading into the final three outs of the night, the Generals were not going to make it easy for the Oilmen in search of a new franchise record. Yashion Boswell singled to score Braylon Holland and Cole Hockman had a sacrifice fly to center field that scored Jaren Jackson. The Generals cut the lead to 7-3 but could not make the final score closer. 

 

"Getting a couple of runs there late gives us good momentum going into tomorrow," said Wright. 

 

Ian Clark started the game for Griffith and took the loss, though only three innings of work, Clark gave up six unearned runs on five hits. Draza Dupor relieved Clark in the third inning and only allowed one run to cross the plate for the Oilmen while striking out four. Colin McCarty also pitched for the Generals, making his first appearance in 2024. 

 

Jaime Luna led the Generals at the plate with two walks, while Connor Jerkatis drew three walks. 

 

The Generals fall to 3-6 on the year and currently sit in third place in the Northern League. The Generals and Oilmen face off again on Saturday night at Brian Jennings Field at 7 p.m.