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Grizzlies Blown Out In Home Opener

by Jason Guerette
The Gateway Grizzlies were blown out in their home opener on Friday night, falling behind 15-0 before getting on the board in what became a 16-2 loss against the Windy City ThunderBolts at Grizzlies Ballpark.
Neither team scored in the first two innings, but a leadoff hit batter by Ryne Moore (0-1) turned into a sacrifice fly by Joe Encarnacion in the third inning for a 1-0 Windy City lead. In the following inning, a leadoff walk by Moore set the stage for a five-run inning that included an RBI double by J.J. Figueroa, an RBI single by Paul Coumoulos, and a three-run homer by Encarnacion that made the score 6-0.
It did not stop there for the visitors- Parker Johnson relieved Moore in the fifth, and surrendered a two-run double with two outs to Christian Kuzemka to make it 8-0. In the sixth inning, things fell apart for Johnson and the Grizzlies, as Windy City sent 11 batters to the plate and scored seven runs in the frame on four hits, using a pair of walks, wild pitches, and Gateway errors to aid the big frame that featured a grand slam by Kuzemka as the defining blow.
Down 15-0, the Grizzlies were able to get on the board in the bottom of the sixth on an RBI single by D.J. Stewart as well as a fielder’s choice by Cole Brannen, but the damage was already done, as the Grizzlies fell under the .500 mark at 3-4. In the game, the Grizzlies amassed ten total hits, including two-hit days from Stewart, Kyle Gaedele, and Andrew Moritz, but could not stop the deficit from snowballing in the series opener.
Gateway will look to respond on Saturday, May 18, in the middle game against the ThunderBolts at 6:30 p.m. CT. Collin Sullivan will also be looking to bounce back in his first home start of 2024, opposed by Windy City righthander John Mikolaicyk at Grizzlies Ballpark.

Jason Guerette is the Grizzlies' Director of Broadcasting and Media Relations and the "Voice of the Grizzlies." 2023 will be his second season with the organization, handling lead broadcasting duties on the Grizzlies Media Network as well as being in charge of all team press releases and game-day media materials.

2023 will also be Jason's ninth season in the Frontier League after spending 2014-21 in the same role with the Southern Illinois Miners. Overall, he has broadcasted close to 800 games in the league, including playoffs. During the baseball offseason, he serves as a play-by-play broadcaster for Manhattan College and the New Jersey Institute of Technology, with games being seen on ESPN+ among other platforms.

In addition to broadcasting, Jason works as a public address announcer for Seton Hall University women's basketball as well as Columbia University men's and women's basketball. He also spent nine years working "behind the scenes" as a freelance board operator and highlight editor at Westwood One for their coverage of the NFL, NCAA football, and NCAA basketball.

Jason graduated from Seton Hall in 2012 with B.A. in Communication Studies and a minor in Broadcasting & Visual Media.

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