Mariners let one slip away

CELINA - The Grand Lake Mariners played in yet another close game on Friday night.

And it resulted in another loss, a trend that's become all-to-familiar for the Mariners over their last 10 games.

Holding a 4-2 lead entering the eighth, Grand Lake allowed the Cincinnati Steam to score three times - with the tying and go-ahead runs scoring on a two-base overthrow - and they held on for a 5-4 win at Montgomery Field.

The win gives Cincinnati (13-21) a 3-1 season series victory over the Mariners (16-21), who are on a three-game losing streak since the Great Lake Summer Collegiate League All-Star break. This loss comes a night after the Mariners outhit the Steam 14-5 in a 3-2 loss on the road.

"The last three out of four, we've lost and we've outhit them," Mariners head coach Sam Slavik said. "They're just close games and we can't find a way to get out of it, and one mistake there, and it cost you. We're playing fine, but when the games are that close, every little tiny thing makes a big deal."

Andre Jernigan's third-inning base hit and steal of second base set the stage for Andy Roser to deliver an RBI single and give the Steam a 1-0 lead.

The Mariners fired back in the bottom half of the third as a single by Alex Gransback and then a double by Brad Boss put runners on second and third with one out. Gransback scored on a wild pitch to tie the score at 1-all. Nick Roscetti, who finished 3-for-4, drove in Boss to make the score 2-1. After stealing second, Roscetti was singled home by Ricky Sylvestri.

Jernigan cut the Steam deficit to 3-2 with an RBI double in the fifth.

Hunter Dunn, a GLSCL All-Star, issued two walks and a base hit with two outs in the fifth. Boss scored on a wild pitch to increase the lead to 4-2 but the Mariners stranded the bases loaded.

Dunn (seven hits, four earned runs, three strikeouts, four walks) exited after 4 2/3 innings, giving way to Wyatt Myers, who allowed one hit and no runs in 2 1/3 innings to pick up the victory. Michigan State product Josh Buchalski threw the final two innings and got the save.

Damien Helm, a graduate of Crestview High School, threw six strong innings for the Mariners, giving up two runs on six hits and striking out four. Celina graduate Riley Luebke threw a scoreless seventh before leaving in the eighth after giving up an RBI single to pinch hitter Trey Ganns that trimmed the Steam deficit to 4-3.

St. Henry graduate Jeff Paul entered with two runners on and struck out Andrian Marquez for the second out. Adam Bolen hit a soft hopper down the third-base line on the next at-bat. Boss fielded the ball and threw it over the head of first baseman Josh Williams, allowing the eventual game-sealing runs to score.

"Damien did good. He threw a lot of pitches early. He would have been able to go a lot longer had he not done that," Slavik said. "He throws it in there. He competes. He did a good job. The middle relievers did exactly what I wanted them to do. They came in and threw strikes, got guys out, got ground balls when we need them to. We just didn't make a play for them there and it cost us."

Grand Lake had runners on first and second with one out in the ninth but Buchalski worked his way back from a 3-0 count to strikeout Roscetti and then forced a groundout to end the game.

Gransback and Boss each contributed two hits for Grand Lake, which travels to Coldwater's Veterans Field tomorrow for a 7:05 p.m. game with the Lorain County Ironmen.

"It'll be all right to play at the home field," said Slavik, a Coldwater graduate. "Hopefully we can get a win."