Riverdogs' rally falls short against Capahas

CHARLESTON -- A four-run ninth inning was not quite enough for the Charleston Riverdogs to climb back and overtake the Plaza Tire Capahas at Hillhouse Park on Thursday night, as the Riverdogs fell 9-7.

After the Capahas unloaded five runs in their half of the ninth inning on four hits, the Riverdogs answered with a four-run, three hit half of an inning. Unfortunately for the Riverdogs, they were already down 4-3 going into the ninth.

"We played them well," Riverdogs head coach Robin Minner said. "It was a very, very winnable game. We gave up five in the ninth and that ended up being the difference. But, I was pleased with the way we played."

Ivan Nails was in as the Capahas relief pitcher in the ninth after making his first appearance in the eighth. After Paul Bucher grounded out to begin the ninth, Brink Naile was sent to first on a walk, which was followed by a single from Caleb Hatton. Both Naile and Hatton advanced on a wild pitch during Trevor Irwin's at-bat. Irwin now had two men in scoring position and delivered with a two-run single to make it a 9-5 ball game.

A single by Taylor White moved Irwin to third base, and then Dustin Leggett advanced Irwin home to score the third run of the inning. Next up to the plate was Greg Craft, who sent Taylor home on an Capahas error to score the final run of the inning. Ben Walters ended the game on a ground out to third.

Although he received the loss, the Riverdogs got a solid outing from Justin Simpher out on the mound.

"We got a good performance from Justin Simpher," Minner said. "He could very easily be 3-0 on the season. He has definitely stepped up and become the ace of our staff."

Simpher had already pitched twice this season and is now 1-2 on the year. Despite allowing for runs the cross the plate, none of them were earned. Miscues by the Riverdogs allowed all of Simphers runs to score.

"You're going to have those nights," Minner said. "It just happens and I think these guys put those behind them. They've played enough baseball to know that it does."

The Riverdogs committed six errors on the night. Three of those were in the third inning when the Capahas scored two runs on no hits.

"We kicked it around a little bit in the infield," Minner said. "I think that hurt us more than the five run inning did. But, other than that I thought we played well for eight innings."

Brad LaBruyere received the victory for the Capahas pitching 7 1/3 innings allowing three runs (two earned) on five hits and two walks. He also struck out 11 Riverdogs.

"He's a good pitcher," Minner said about LaBruyere. "What he does, he keeps the ball down. He didn't start getting the ball up around the belt until about the seventh or eighth inning. Then we started hitting him a little bit."

The Riverdogs out-hit the Capahas 10 hits to nine. Irwin led the Riverdogs with a 2-for-5, two-RBI performance at the plate, followed by White, who was 2-for-4.

Tom Bolen was the Capahas' leading hitter with a 3-for-5 night, including a double and one RBI. Kendall Deason, who also hit a double, was right behind him with a 2-for-5 performance and one RBI. Chad Mercado also added a double and an RBI, but was 1-for-5 on the night.

The Riverdogs next game will be on the road against Jasper, Ind., on Saturday.