Kerr’s Homer Lifts Monarchs Over Mariners
The Lake Erie Monarchs came into Thursday night’s game against the Grand Lake Mariners on a bit of a losing skid. Coach Jim DeSana and the Monarchs knew the quality of their opponent and what kind of performance would be needed to get back to their winning ways.
The Monarchs offense was once again unable to produce many runs, but their defense matched the effort and put them in position to get the win. After taking the lead in the seventh, the Monarchs held on to gut out a 2-1 victory over the Grand Lake Mariners.
Starting on the mound for the Monarchs was Devin Peters. Peters has been one of the few steady hands pitching for the Monarchs this season. He held the potent Mariners’ offense scoreless up until the fifth inning, when he gave up the first run of the game to the Mariners after a passed ball brought home the game’s first run.
As for the Monarch offense, it wasn’t much better. Up until the fifth inning the Monarchs had only mustered up one hit and four baserunners total. But in the fifth inning the Monarchs’ offense seemed to come to life, earning two hits but not being able to see any runs as a result of the improved efforts.
The Monarchs finally broke through in the bottom of the seventh inning. After Paul Gomez crushed a two-out double, University of Michigan product Jimmy Kerr came up to the plate. Kerr crushed a homerun to give the Monarchs the lead, one that they would not relinquish.
Peters cruised through the eighth inning before handing over pitching duties to closer Greg Loukinen. Loukinen closed out the game without giving the Mariners much hope, ending the game by a score of 2-1.
With the win the Monarchs improve to 8-15 on the season and the Mariners fall to 14-9. Devin Peters earned the win for his fantastic pitching performance and Loukinen earned the save. Jimmy Kerr was the bright spot offensively for the Monarchs, going 2-4 and brining in both runs. The Monarchs continue play Friday evening in game two versus the Mariners in Celina, Ohio.
