Black gold in Kenai

The Peninsula Oilers followed up Monday's one-run loss to the Alaska Goldpanners of Fairbanks with a pair of wins Tuesday, taking the first game of the doubleheader 2-1 in extra innings and then winning game two 3-0 at Coral Seymour Memorial Park.

Jeremy Reed contributed the holiday fireworks in game one, hitting a triple in the eighth inning (the game was scheduled for seven) and scoring on a wild pitch to notch the win.

Michael Falco and Jeff Jones took care of the aerial displays in the finale. Falco gave the Oilers all the lead they would need, blasting a home run some 375 feet to right-center field.

Jones gave the Oilers a cushion with his two-run double in the bottom of the sixth inning of the seven-inning game.

"Both teams are playing a great series," said Oilers head coach Gary Adcock. "If you come to the ballpark looking for pitching, defense and timely hitting, I can't think of any better games."

David Humen earned the win for the Oilers in game one, pitching two innings of scoreless baseball with a walk and a strikeout in relief of Andy Perkins. Perkins went six innings, giving up one run on six hits while striking out three and walking four.

With the game tied at one in the bottom of the eighth, Reed connected for a one-out triple to wall in left-center field.

Oilers pinch hitter Tim McCabe didn't get a pitch he could drive from Goldpanners pitcher Eric Doble -- but as things turned out, he didn't need to. McCabe drew a walk, and ball four was in the dirt and got away from Goldpanners catcher Greg Sain, giving Reed the opportunity to scamper home.

"I was just going to go with him no matter where he went," Reed said of the change-up offered up by Doble. "I was scoring no matter what. I was going to do whatever I could -- I wasn't going to wait for a hit. I was stranded at third last time -- that wasn't going to happen again."

Reed doubled in the second inning and took third on a passed ball. Jones was intentionally walked to load the bases with just one out, but the Oilers could not get a run across the plate.

Oilers newcomer Hunter Brown led off the fifth inning with a single, took second on a sacrifice bunt by Brad Carlson and third on a wild pitch. He scored on Reed's sacrifice fly.

Falco's solo shot in game two was all the run support Oilers starter Mike Miller would need. The righty from Oklahoma State pitched seven scoreless innings for the win, walking two and striking out four.

The Oilers gave Miller a little bit of breathing room heading into the seventh and final inning by plating a pair of runs in the bottom of the sixth.

Chad Sterbens led off the inning with a double and the Goldpanners intentionally walked Danny Garcia.

The strategy worked on Falco, who hit an infield fly, but Jones wasn't buying it and hit a double, scoring Sterbens from second and Garcia from first.

With Tuesday's wins, the only blemish in the Oilers' four-game series with the Goldpanners came Monday evening when Alaska's Brooks Conrad scored the only run of the game on a home run in the top of the fourth inning.

Oilers starter Philip Tribe struck out eight and walked three but took the hard-luck loss while reliever Ryan Prahm pitched two scoreless innings in relief, striking out one.

Alaska pitcher Barry Matthews kept the Oilers off the basepaths for much of the night as Peninsula runners advanced to second only twice -- on back-to-back singles in the fourth by Luke Simmons and Jones and on a single by Garcia and a sacrifice bunt by Reed in the sixth.

Adcock was pleased to see the Oilers learning how to play in Coral Seymour Memorial Park.

"I've coached at this park for four years and the ballgame's different here," Adcock said. "It comes down to pitching and defense and timely hitting. We did that today -- and we only scored two runs.

"We did well on our road trip with our offense, and we're playing well at home because we're pitching well."