HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — The Tri-State Coal Cats opened their six-game homestand with another tough loss Tuesday night, falling, 9-3, to the Elizabethton River Riders at Jack Cook Field. It was a tale of two teams trending in opposite directions, as the River Riders extended their win streak to six games while the Cats dropped their third straight.
The Cats (6-10) continued to struggle, falling to 2-8 in their last 10 games. Despite humid conditions, the River Riders (11-5) executed their brand of complementary baseball, outhitting Tri-State, 10-3, despite striking out 14 times.
Elizabethton struck first in the third inning with Jack Ratcliffe’s RBI double followed by Donte Lewis’ run-scoring single. Lewis, who finished 3-for-4 with three RBIs and two runs, highlighted his night with a two-run homer in the eighth.
Tri-State responded in the fourth with two runs. Sam Winsett’s double scored Chandler Murray, and Luke Kosko brought home Tyler Smolinski on a groundout to tie the game at 2-2.
The River Riders broke things open with a seven-run stretch between the fifth and eighth innings. Only one run was unearned, the result of a throwing error by Cesar Gonzalez. The Cats tacked on a run in the bottom of the eighth on a sacrifice fly by Smolinski, but by then, the game was out of reach.
On the mound, Tri-State used six pitchers, starting with Jack Gibson, who pitched three innings, allowing two runs on three hits while striking out five. Joe Gomez continued his strong play from his last appearance with a scoreless fourth inning, striking out three. Aiden Sites, who took the loss, allowed two runs on three hits in the fifth. Mason Sylvest and Branson McCloud combined to give up five runs over three innings.
For Elizabethton, Matthew Porchas helped his team get off on the right foot with four innings of two-run ball, and Demarques Thompson followed with three shutout innings to earn the win.
The Coal Cats will look to snap their skid in Wednesday’s rematch against the River Riders. First pitch is set for 7 p.m. at Jack Cook Field. For more information about the Tri-State Coal Cats, visit appyleague.com/tri-state or follow @TriStCoalCats on X and Instagram.
