Charlotte Stone Crabs even FSL Championship Series with 9-2 win

The Game: The Charlotte Stone Crabs defeated the Tampa Yankees 9-2 in game two of the FSL Championship Series on Sunday night at Steinbrenner Field. With the win, the Stone Crabs evened the best of five series at 1-1.

The Stone Crabs broke the scoreless tie in the third inning, striking for six runs in the inning. Matt Hall led off the inning with a single to short. Emeel Salem followed with an RBI triple that scored Hall. Drew Anderson then drew a walk to put runners on the corners. Greg Sexton reached on an error, scoring Salem and moving Anderson to second. Matt Sweeney then drove home a run with a single to center. Shawn Williams followed with an RBI double to left field, scoring Sexton. John Matulia kept the scoring going with a ground ball that scored Sweeney. Nevin Ashley pushed across the final run of the inning with an RBI single that scored Williams and gave the Stone Crabs a 6-0 lead.

The Yankees scored two runs in the bottom half of the inning. Jack Rye led off the inning by drawing a walk. Walter Ibarra followed with a single to center. Then Daniel Brewer hit an RBI single to center that scored Rye. Ibarra later scored on a ground ball by David Adams to pull within four, 6-2.

Charlotte added three more runs to their total in the seventh inning. Greg Sexton reached on a fielding error to lead off the inning and then later advanced to third on a single by Henry Wrigley. Matt Sweeney followed with a double that scored both Sexton and Wrigley. Sweeney scored later in the inning on a ground ball by John Matulia to give the Stone Crabs the 9-2 victory.

Jeremy Hall earned the victory, pitching 7 innings and allowing 2 runs on 6 hits while striking out 2 and walking 3. Marquis Fleming pitched an inning in relief and allowed no runs on 1 hit. Josh Satow followed with a no-hit ninth inning recording a strikeout. David Phelps was the losing pitcher for Tampa.

What Went Right: Matt Sweeney; 3 for 4 with a double, 3 RBI’s and 2 runs scored.

What Went Wrong: Drew Anderson; 0 for 4 with 1 K, only reached base once on a walk.

A Look Ahead: The FSL Championship Series moves to Charlotte Sports Park as the Stone Crabs and Yankees face off in game three on Monday night. Alex Cobb is scheduled to start for the Stone Crabs.