Ethan S. Smith – 07/25/24
The Johnstown Mill Rats defeated the Lafayette Aviators 9-5 on Thursday night at Sargent’s Stadium at The Point, clinching their third consecutive victory in their chase for a Prospect League playoff spot.
“Coming into these last nine games, we told our guys it was postseason baseball.” said Mill Rats manager Josh Merrill, who kept things simple going towards the end of the year.
“Postseason baseball starts right now, we have to do everything at a high level.”
Johnstown opened up the scoring versus Lafayette starter Ryan Pehrson in the second inning thanks to a Wesley Parker RBI-single. Parker was replaced by Austin Stalker after his first at-bat.
Catcher Nolan Self collected a RBI as well in the second inning, giving the Mill Rats an early two-run advantage.
The Mill Rats would extend their lead in the fourth, starting with a Stalker RBI-single which was followed by an two-RBI-triple from third baseman Chance Satcho and another RBI from Self, who collected two-RBIs on the evening
Lafayette would answer back in the fifth, scoring four runs off Johnston starter Nathan Vidmar, who finished with three strikeouts in four innings of work. Designated hitter Mikey Scott led the way for Lafayette offensively, collecting two-RBIs.
Johnstown punched right back though, as center fielder Carter Rust collected a two-RBI triple to score shortstop Landon Meyer and designated hitter Peyton Starr, extending the lead to four runs for the Mill Rats.
Arguably the biggest moment of the game came in the seventh inning, as Johnstown reliever Matthew Benton stranded the bases loaded by forcing a fly-ball from Lafayette second baseman Nate Bingman, salvaging the four-run advantage.
“I just tried to calm down the situation.” said Benton, who worked 1.1 innings while collecting a strikeout. “I was able to get a better grip on pitches and was able to execute to get those out, it was huge.”
Johnston reliever Conor Thiele shut things down in the remaining two innings, securing the victory for Johnstown.
The win was crucial for the Mill Rats in their pursuit of their second playoff appearance in team history, pushing them to 10-11. Lafayette, who is trying to catch the Mill Rats, fell to 9-14.
Johnstown aims for the series victory on Friday versus Lafayette at Sargent’s Stadium at The Point.