HUNTINGTON, W. Va. -- Though starter Josh Paulina flourished during Thursday’s defensive battle, allowing one hit through six frames, Tri-State’s bats could not rally against the Danville Otterbots in a 3-1 loss at Jack Cook Field.
Just as it did in the series opener, Danville opened the game by taking an early lead. With runners on the corners following a Micah Dean walk and Michael Callan Moss single, the visitors took a 1-0 lead on an RBI groundout.
In the home half, Tri-State worked its way on base to apply pressure and answer back following two quick outs. Both Logan Poteet and Chace Chaplin drew walks, leading Ryan Limerick to tie the game with a single to left field.
Back on the mound, the two baserunners and run scored during the first inning were the only blemishes on an otherwise efficient start from Josh Paulina.
“The guy has been amazing this summer,” manager Tommy Gregg said of Paulina following the game. “He struggled a little bit in the first inning and made an adjustment. The guy’s just maturing and improving. It’s really cool to see a kid like that have an outing like he did against a pretty good hitting team, so I’m very proud of him.”
The Moss single was the only hit allowed by Paulina during his 5 2/3 innings pitched. Though the right-hander allowed four walks, Paulina earned twice as many strikeouts at the same time. Entering the game with nine consecutive no-hit innings under his belt and exiting with only one allowed, Gregg noticed Paulina’s adjustments making a difference not only in this start but throughout the season.
“Early in the year, he just didn’t have his control and when he did make a mistake, he got hit, so inevitably, he’s trying to pitch away from contact all the time,” Gregg said regarding what he saw early in the season.
“But now, Solomon and I have talked to him and said, ‘Use that fastball, use that breaking ball for out pitches, and get contact early. You’re going to get quicker outs, stay in the game longer, and then your confidence builds.’ You could see that throughout the game, he was just effortless in throwing the ball.”
Though a third-inning single by Jorge Gonzalez-Febo and Ryan Limerick walk gave opportunities to the Coal Cats, Otterbots pitching held the Cats scoreless and kept the score deadlocked at 1-1 through the sixth. The Otterbots bats quickly changed that in the next inning, as back-to-back singles led off the visiting half before a wild pitch put the Otterbots ahead by a score of 2-1.
Chaplin responded with a leadoff single in the bottom half. However, another scoreless half-inning kept Tri-State at a one-run deficit. In the eighth, Moss kept his torrid pace against Tri-State pitching. Moss’ solo shot to left field was not only his third of the series but also gave him the outright league lead in home runs and extended the Danville lead to a 3-1 advantage.
Across the final two home halves, an eighth inning walk to Cooper McKenzie ended as the only Coal Cats baserunner. Though the Coal Cats nearly matched the Otterbots in hits and equaled its number of walks drawn, neither were enough to rally in a 3-1 loss.
With the series halfway complete, Tri-State enters Friday with a record of 19-24 while Danville improves to 28-15 overall. The two sides will meet again for a 7 p.m. first pitch, as the Coal Cats still have a chance at a series split entering the final two games of the series.
