In a game where the Huskies struggled offensively, their pitching staff came up big to help them secure a key 3-1 road win in Thunder Bay.
The Duluth offense only mustered five hits in the game. None of their three runs came on hits. In the top of the third, Ethan Cole scored on a sacrifice fly. Josh Duarte scored on a wild pitch later in the inning to give the Huskies an early 2-0 lead. From the fourth to the eighth inning, the Huskies were unable to muster a single hit.
With very limited offense, Duluth pitching needed to be almost flawless, and the staff was up to the task. The combination of Jacob Merithew, Taiga Yamane, Austin Humphres, and Eli Sundquist allowed just three hits against the Border Cats. Jacob Merithew provided an excellent start for the Huskies, going four innings and allowing just one run on two hits.
Yamane was also impressive in his season debut, pitching a scoreless inning. In many ways, the story of the game was the performance of Austin Humphres. The Arizona State product tossed three perfect innings in a one-run ballgame, getting crucial outs late in the game.
Humphres provides a much-needed left-handed arm for the Huskies. He has demonstrated a great command of the strike zone, something that Duluth has desperately lacked so far this season. He will likely play a crucial role going forward.
In the ninth, with the Huskies in front 3-1, Eli Sundquist closed it out with a hitless inning, recording his third save of the season in three appearances.
Through three innings this year, Sundquist has recorded 6 strikeouts and allowed no hits. Marcus Pointer came into the season with the South Dakota State product marked as his closer, and Sundquist has certainly proved he is worthy of that role so far.
The Huskies are back at .500 with a 4-4 record. They will play two more games in Canada, hoping for a series split or win, before returning home for a four-game homestand.