Spinners shortstop Nick Lovullo finishes off a double play after getting Williamsport runner Darick Hall at second on a feed from second baseman Andy Perez. (Photo by George DeLuca/Connector)
The Lowell Spinners (4-0) kept their unbeaten streak alive on Monday night in a 3-2 victory against the Williamsport Crosscutters (1-3) that stretched ten innings.
Both teams were slow to score, with Williamsport earning the first run of the night in the eighth inning. The visiting Crosscutters added another run in the top of the ninth inning, forcing the Spinners down by two in the bottom of the ninth.
The first few innings saw a battle between pitchers, with Kevin Steen starting on the mound for Lowell. Steen earned four strikeouts in his first three innings played and came up big at the end of the third and fifth innings when Williamsport had batters on third base.
Williamsport prevented the Spinners from scoring until the ninth inning, keeping Lowell from making it to the first base until the fifth inning. Both teams changed pitchers three times.
Strong play in the outfield for both teams kept the score low. A double play in the second inning by Lowell prevented the Crosscutters from scoring early on.
The ninth inning saw an end to the Spinners scoring drought. An impressive hit to the outfield from Roldani Baldwin allowed Tyler Hill to make it home and give Lowell its first score of the night. Baldwin was then able to earn another run for the Spinners when a hit from Ryan Scott skirted through Williamsport’s outfielders. The two runs tied up the game 2-2, sending the contest into extra innings.
Nick Lovullo started at bat for the Spinners in the bottom of the tenth, making it to first base. Hits from Matt McLean and Jagger Rusconi moved Lovullo to third base. With two outs in the inning, Hill made the final hit of the game, sending the ball far beyond first base and letting Lovullo sprint to home in the 3-2 Lowell victory.
The Spinners remain at home Tuesday night at 7:05 p.m. to conclude the three-game series against the Crosscutters.
