Miners win 5th straight

The Miners were able to continue their hot streak on Saturday night in Anchorage at Mulcahy Stadium with a come from behind 10-7 win over the Bucs.

Jeff Gonzales (Fr,/Washington) made his eighth start of the season for the Miners, but struggled giving up 4 earned runs on 3 hits walking 6. The Miners fell behind early in the bottom of the first inning when Bucs right fielder Boomer Collins (Jr./Dallas Baptist) belted a 2 run home run over the left field wall to give the Bucs a 2-0 advantage.

Gonzales struggled with control in his 2 inning outing and walked the first 2 hitters he faced in the second inning setting up a Landon Anderson RBI single to extend the Bucs lead to 3-0.

The offense for the Miners wouldn't stay quite for long as they where finally able to get to Bucs starter Collin Snow (Fr./Georgia Southern) who retired the first 7 Miners he faced. Mason Guymon (Jr./Carson Newman) ripped his first double of the season to left field. Guymon later scored on a throwing error following a Tim Zier (Fr./San Diego St.) single. The Miners weren't done yet as they added another run off of a Cam Kneeland (Jr./UMASS-Lowell) groundout that scored Zier pulling the Miners within 1 3-2.

The Bucs would add another run in the third on a Ryan Palermo (Jr./UC Santa Barbara) RBI single. Brandon Hedrick (Jr./Union) would come on from the bullpen and throw 3.2 innings allowing 2 runs on 3 hits, 4 walks and 3 strikeouts earning his second win of the season (2-1).

The Miners offense would stay quite until the 5th inning when they would pull within 1 (4-3) on a Stephen Branca (Jr./Tennessee Wesleyan) double down the left field line scoring Ryan Ford (So./Middle Tennessee St.).  The Miner weren't done however as they would go on to add 6 runs in the sixth inning highlighted by Stephen Branca's first homerun of the season, a grand slam over the left field wall to give the Miners a comfortable lead of 9-4. Branca went 2 for 5 with 5 runs driven in and a run scored.

The game was far from over though as the Bucs made a game of it when they scored 2 runs in the bottom of the sixth inning on  Jake Valdez (Fr./San Jose St.) and Boomer Collins RBI singles to cut the deficit to 9-6.

In the 7th inning Mason Guymon would continue his hot hitting lining a RBI single into right center to scoring Michael Suiter (Sr./Punahou High School) to add an insurance run making it a 10-7 Miners lead. Guymon ended the night going 3 for 4 with a double, a pair of singles and a walk.

The Bucs would again pull within three runs again adding a run in the eighth inning on a Boomer Collins double, his second extra base hit of the night, scoring Landon Anderson.

Miners reliever Brendan Lobban (Jr./St. Johns) would shut the door on the Bucs going 3.1 innings allowing an unearned run on 2 hits, 2 walks, and struck out 1. Lobban earned his second save of the year.

Collin Snow took the loss his first of the year (1-1) going 5.1 innings allowing 6 runs 5 earned on 7 hits. Snow walked 3 struck out 4.

The win improved the Miners record to 20-15. The Miners return to Hermon Brothers field tomorrow for the final game of the 2011 Alaska Baseball League season against the Anchorage Bucs. Game time is 2:00pm gates opening a 1:00pm. It is MTA Fan Appreciation Day which means free admission to all fans.