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Evansville, Ind. – The Gateway Grizzlies used a strong outing from right-hander Trevor Richards along with timely hitting to beat the Evansville Otters on Tuesday night at Bosse Field, 2-1.
Richards (2-2), a native of Aviston, Ill., dazzled on the mound through eight innings while allowing just one run and four hits. He struck out eight batters before giving the ball to RHP Kevin Jefferis in the ninth. Jefferis struck out the side to earn his first professional save in the series opener.
The Grizzlies (11-18) got the scoring started in the first inning when Craig Massoni reached with a two-out double, which was followed by Brandon Thomas’ RBI single. LHP Hunter Ackerman (2-2) shut down Gateway’s offense for most of the evening after giving up a run in the opening frame.
Gateway kept a 1-0 lead until the sixth, when the Otters (19-10) manufactured a run to tie it. Richards walked Chris Riopedre to start the inning and he would come around to cross home plate on Rolando Gomez’s sacrifice fly.
After allowing a base runner in the top half of the eighth, Ackerman was relieved by RHP Tyler Thompson. With two outs and Logan Davis on first base, Thomas stepped in and laced a go-ahead RBI double into the right field corner. The hit gave the Grizzlies a 2-1 lead that Richards and Jefferis would protect.
Cody Livesay chipped in with a pair of singles while Thomas drove in both runs in Gateway’s slim victory.
The Grizzlies and Otters continue their series on Wednesday afternoon at Bosse Field. First pitch is at 12:05 p.m. The game can be heard on the Grizzlies Radio Network, which airs Wednesday online at www.GatewayGrizzlies.com/Radio
