The Johnstown Mill Rats picked up right where they left off on Thursday, shutting out
the Lafayette Aviators 3-0 en route to their first 4-1 start in franchise history.
The shutout win comes off the heels of a 3-0 victory over Chillicothe, whom the Mill
Rats split with in their first road trip of the season.
Starting pitcher Graeme Rios surrendered one hit on the evening in five scoreless innings,
while pitchers Brock DePute, Seth Stover and William Oczkowski managed things the rest of the
way, pitching four scoreless innings and only allowing 5 base runners in that time.
The Mill Rats found immediate offense versus Lafayette right-hander Elijah Griffith, as
Johnstown first baseman Peyton Starr collected a two-RBI single to score designated hitter Max
Humphrey and third baseman Landon Meyer in the first inning. Griffith would finish after just
four innings, allowing six hits while walking three Mill Rats.
Johnstown would add another run in the bottom of the sixth, with right fielder Colton
Ayres, who went 2-for-3 on the evening, collecting a hard-hit, RBI single to score shortstop
Parker Martin, bringing the lead to the final score of 3-0. Martin and catcher Garrett Pancione
joined Ayres in having multi-hit games.
The Mill Rats will face off with the Aviators on Sunday afternoon, looking for win
number five on the season to continue their best start in franchise history before hitting the road
for a six-game road trip beginning next week.