DANVILLE, Va. — The Tri-State Coal Cats' momentum from back-to-back wins came to a halt Saturday night as the Danville Otterbots edged out a 4-3 victory at Dan Daniel Memorial Park. Despite holding an early lead, Tri-State’s inability to capitalize late and Danville’s timely hitting proved decisive.
The win snapped a four-game losing streak for Danville (3-12), which entered the game with the league’s lowest team batting average (.209) and ERA (8.15). The Otterbots collected eight hits and made the most of limited opportunities to secure their third win of the season.
Tri-State (6-8) continued a troubling trend, as the Cats have now held leads in six of their eight losses this season. They appeared in control early, taking the lead in the third inning with a three-run burst. Ryan Maggy singled to drive in Christian Recendez, followed by a Michael Rodriguez single that plated Maggy. Chandler Murray then capitalized on a pickoff attempt, dashing home to extend the lead to 3-1.
Danville struck early and late, opening the scoring in the first on a Seth Smith RBI single and reclaiming the lead in the fifth. Christian Hamilton’s RBI single tied the game and Jaxon Goldberg’s RBI double gave the Otterbots a 4-3 advantage they would not relinquish.
Kenyon Collins took the loss for Tri-State, pitching five innings while allowing four earned runs on seven hits with seven strikeouts. Joe Gomez shined in relief, surrendering just one hit and recording three strikeouts over three scoreless frames.
Danville’s pitching staff delivered one of its best outings of the season. Starter Aaron Lewis pitched three innings, allowing five hits, three runs, one walk, and striking out three. Matthew Spada followed with three shutout innings, giving up one hit and striking out three. Brandon Jung added two scoreless frames with four strikeouts and Peyton Huff closed with a hitless ninth, striking out three and walking one.
The Coal Cats, who have struggled to close games in the early season, will look to regroup as they wrap up their road trip against Danville on Sunday at 5:30 p.m. ET. For more information about the Tri-State Coal Cats, visit appyleague.com/tri-state or follow @TriStCoalCats on X and Instagram.
