BLUEFIELD, W.Va. — The Tri-State Coal Cats continued their recent slide Thursday night, falling 6-3 to the Bluefield Ridge Runners at Bowen Field. With the loss, Tri-State dropped to 8-14 on the season, while Bluefield improved to 13-10.
It was a similar story from the previous night for the Coal Cats, who tallied 11 hits on the night but again struggled to turn them into runs. Tri-State left the bases loaded in the first and scored all three of its runs in the fourth inning, unable to capitalize on opportunities throughout the rest of the game.
Bluefield struck first in the third with a five-run frame, sparked by Chris Daniels’ solo home run to left — his second of the season. Colin Guerra followed with an RBI single to bring in Derek Gonzalez. With the bases loaded, Ryan Niedzwiedz drew a walk to plate Eric Maisonet, and a wild pitch from Noah LaFine allowed Jorge Valdez Jr. to score. Levi Jones capped the inning with a single that scored Guerra, giving the Ridge Runners a comfortable 5-0 lead.
Tri-State responded quickly in the fourth. Jackson Golden’s two-RBI single scored Michael Rodriguez and Sam Winsett, then Julio Soler added an RBI single to bring home Golden, cutting the deficit to 5-3. But that would be all for the Cats’ offense.
Bluefield added insurance in the seventh on a sacrifice fly from Ethan Guerra that scored Niedzwiedz. That made it 6-3, and the Ridge Runners’ bullpen handled the rest.
Connor Southwell started for Bluefield, throwing three scoreless innings with three hits and two strikeouts. Bryson Hoff gave up all three Coal Cats runs in the fourth, but Evan O’Neill, Brody Lanham and J.D. Greeley combined to shut the door, throwing five shutout innings with six strikeouts. O’Neill earned the win, Lanham picked up the hold, and Greeley secured his first save of the season.
For Tri-State, Reynaldo Castro made his first start and struggled, allowing five earned runs on four hits over 2 1/3 innings. LaFine steadied things with 2 2/3 scoreless innings, while Mason Sylvest and Aiden Sites combined for the final three innings, allowing just one run.
Despite the loss, Tri-State once again outhit its opponent (11-8) but failed to deliver in key situations.
Tri-State returns home to Jack Cook Field on Friday to begin a three-game homestand against the Kingsport Axmen (13-11). First pitch for the Fourth of July matchup is scheduled for 4 p.m.
For more information about the Tri-State Coal Cats, visit appyleague.com/tri-state or follow @TriStCoalCats on X and Instagram.
