Mudcats top Kearsley in walk-off fashion

Monday was a beautiful night in Grand Blanc, fitting for the Mudcats' final home game of the season. The home squad seemed to have things under control early Monday night, jumping out to a 1-0 lead in the first. Jacob Jackson singled to lead things off. He stole second, and then, with two outs in the inning, Brian Caine drove him in to put the Mudcats on top.

In the second inning, the Mudcats tacked on three more to push the lead to 4-0. The first two scored on bases loaded walks to Justin Pijaszek and Jackson, then Tim Hayden drove in another two out run with a single.

Meanhile, Pijaszek struck out the first batter of the night on three pitches (video 1 below), and needed just 39 pitches to complete three no-hit innings on the mound. Knowing that he would pitch again the next night, he was removed from the game headed into the fourth.

Tim Hayden entered the game to pitch and was able to hold Kearsley scoreless in the fourth with the aid of a double play (video 2 below). The Mudcats tacked on another run when Max Eaton was hit by a pitch, stole second, and scored on Pijaszek's two-out RBI single to give the Mudcats a commanding 5-0 lead.

In the fifth, Kearsley mounted a comeback. Three singles, two walks, and two hit batsmen led to five runs. Kyle Genord, who entered mid-inning, was able to induce outs from the final two batters, but not before the score stood tied at five.

 

The Mudcats were unable to break through in the fifth or the sixth, but Brian Caine pitched two shutout innings to set the stage for the Mudcats' walk-off win. Genord and Pijaszek reached base to lead off the bottom of the seventh. Coaches called on Tyler Hitchcock to move the runners over with a sacrifice bunt, but he laid down such a perfect bunt that he beat it out for a hit to load the bases with nobody out. Jackson then lifted a 1-1 pitch to right-center, deep enough to bring home Genord as the winning run (video 3 below).

The Mudcats are now 16-10 on the season as they close out league play with a doubleheader Tuesday at Carman-Ainsworth High School against the Great Lakes Cyclones.

Click here to view stats and game info on iScore.