The Evansville Otters (33-18) received 7.0 scoreless innings from left-hander Efrain Nieves (7-2) and a five run fourth inning to earn a 6-1 victory over the Lake Erie Crushers (19-29) on Sunday night. With the win, Evansville has swept Lake Erie and are in sole possession of first place in the Frontier League East Division heading into the All-Star break.
The teams stayed scoreless until the bottom of the third when Otters infielder Cory Urquhart reached on a two-base throwing error, advanced an extra base on a Dean Wilson groundout and scored on an RBI single from outfielder John Schultz.
Up 1-0, Evansville extended the lead with a five run fourth inning. The Otters capitalized on three Lake Erie errors in the frame as Urquhart and Schultz each recorded RBI singles.
Ahead by six, Nieves maintained the advantage by retiring 10 of the next 11 batters he faced in the middle innings.
Lake Erie’s lone run was scored in the ninth inning.
Nieves yielded just three hits and two walks in the contest while striking out six.
Schultz collected two hits and two RBIs in the victory. Urquhart also scored twice.
Catcher Dane Phillips also extended his hitting streak to eight games with a 1-for-4 performance.
The Otters return from the Frontier League All-Star break with a series opener against the Joliet Slammers on Friday, July 17. First pitch is set for 6:35 p.m. CDT at historic Bosse Field.
