Game one of the Kingsmen’s Alaska trip came just 15 minutes down the road from the Knotty Pines B&B where the team is calling home during the first leg of its Alaskan tour. The summer club squared off in a Sunday matinee game against the Matsu Miners and sent left-hander Caleb Cox to the mound for the start.
Cox, who had arrived in Alaska early in the morning, had his stuff working in the early going. The North Greenville product struck out four Miners on 32 pitches in his first two innings of work.
By the top of the third inning, the cold, gusting Alaskan wind couldn’t cool down the Kingsmen offense. After two quick outs, outfielder Cam Troyer singled home Jack Davis to open the scoring. Troyer proceeded to steal second and score on a Bryce Frederick RBI triple that dropped just out of the reach of the Miners’ diving center fielder. A windblown RBI single off the bat of first baseman Colin Patterson, two wild pitches, and an RBI knock down the third base line from Micah Conner would cap a four run third inning for the Kingsmen.
In the bottom half of the inning, Cox’s command began to waver as a hit by pitch and a walk preceded a three-run homer to right to cut the lead to one. Cox would hit another Miner but get out of the inning without further damage done.
After a quiet top of the fourth, the Miners offense began to threaten again. Following a base hit to right and a couple of walks, a Miner connected on a deep fly ball to right center. With the bases loaded and the hit sure to clear them, North Greenville’s Darrien Whitaker had other plans. The Kingsmen center fielder dove deep in the right center gap, tumbling over his right shoulder to make the game saving catch. As Coach Joe Hudak mentioned in his postgame comments, the Miners head coach referred to the play as a “top five catch he’s ever seen in person.”
Nick George replaced Cox in the fifth inning and hurled two scoreless innings while allowing just one Miner to reach on a walk and striking out three.
The Kingsmen would add an insurance run in the top of the seventh thanks to some small ball. Leadoff man Aidan Rice began the inning with a bunt single and a stolen base, advanced to third on a fly ball from Frederick, and scored on another RBI knock from Patterson. Justin Stewart came in to pitch the final half inning and earned his first save of the summer, retiring the side in order. With the 5-3 victory, the Kingsmen moved to 3-0 on the year.
The team will travel to Chugiak tomorrow evening to take on the Chinooks before heading north to Fairbanks later in the week. Stay tuned for more Kingsmen news and updates throughout their Alaskan tour and the rest of the summer.
Cam Troyer Postgame Interview:
Coach Joe Hudak Postgame Interview:
