On the eve of Independence Day, Royal Oak won its makeup game with the Pit Spitters 10-9, but got dominated in the full game, 7-1 on Wednesday.
The Leprechauns resumed a game with Traverse City that began on June 20. The two teams picked the game up in the top of the seventh, with Royal Oak holding a 9-7 lead.
Traverse City tied the game to start the day, but the Leprechauns grabbed the advantage back on an RBI single from Riley Frost in the bottom half of the seventh. Griffin Kilander, making his Leprechaun debut, pitched all three innings of the resumed game and earned the win.
“[That win] is huge for us,” said acting head coach Chris Faust. “That counts as a second half game, so that’s going to be huge down the road, for sure.”
July 3 marked the first day of the second half of the NWL season, and is another opportunity for Royal Oak to make the playoffs. The Rockford Rivets earned a playoff spot with the best mark in the Great Lakes East in the first half.
Falling 7-1 in the full game means Royal Oak sits at 1-1 in the second half after one day, and 19-18 overall.
The Leprechauns stayed in the game until the final few innings, but defensive errors, opportunistic hitting for the Pit Spitters, and a poor day at the plate ultimately gave Traverse City a comfortable win.
“[Jayden Dentler] shut us down early in the game,” Faust said. “Couldn’t really get a feel for him.”
Dentler, who pitched under Leprechauns head coach Jonathan Vance at Northwood University, threw six scoreless innings, only allowing two hits. Vance served a suspension Wednesday after being ejected from Royal Oak’s game on Tuesday at Kalamazoo.
Royal Oak’s lone run of the game came in the seventh, as Riley Frost ran home on a wild pitch.
Despite only four hits on the day, the Leprechauns had plenty of opportunities to get more runs. Traverse City pitchers issued 10 walks and one hit by pitch. In total, 13 runners were left on base, including nine in scoring position.
Only three Leprechauns recorded base hits. Collin Overholt had two, and Ryan McKay and Parker Picot each had one.
Seven Pit Spitters recorded hits, for a total of ten. Five of their seven runs came with two outs in their respective frames.
Traverse City put the game out of reach with three runs in the ninth. The Leprechauns aided the Pit Spitter effort with three errors in the frame, making a total of five.
The Fourth of July does not mean a day off for the Leprechauns. Royal Oak will square off with the Pit Spitters for the eighth time this year. First pitch is scheduled for 4:05 p.m.
