The Peninsula Oilers continued to slog out a rough opening road trip to the 2019 Alaska Baseball League season with a 4-2 loss Sunday to the Anchorage Glacier Pilots.
The Oilers dropped to 1-3 overall while the Pilots moved to 3-1.
The Oilers led 2-0 but could not make it stand against the Pilots, which got a shutout 3 2/3 innings of relief from Anderson Needham and Peyton Carson. Needham gave up just three hits in 1 2/3 frames and Carson earned the save with two supreme innings, scattering two hits with three strikeouts.
The Oilers pitching also shined in tossing a combined one-hitter, but was doomed by nine walks issued to Pilots batters.
Brian Merken started for the Oilers but it was Giancarlo Servin taking the loss on the mound. Merken lasted 3 1/3 innings of no-hit ball, giving up two runs on three walks, and Servin entered to pitch 2 1/3 frames of no-hit ball, giving up two runs on six walks, while striking out two.
Soldotna’s Joey Becher gave up the lone hit of the night for the Oilers, but kept runs off the board in 1 1/3 frames of relief, and Calvin Farris pitched the final inning perfectly.
Drew Thorpe led the way on offense, hitting 3 for 4 with an RBI, and Camden Vasquez went 2 for 2.
Peninsula took a 2-0 lead in the second inning on RBI singles from Victor Carlino and Thorpe.
In the bottom of the fourth, the Pilots tied it with consecutive bases-loaded walks by Alex Baeza and Jordan Brandenburg to force in two runs.
Servin walked the bases loaded in the bottom of the sixth, and the Pilots brought home the go-ahead run on a balk. Anchorage’s only hit of the game also scored a run, on a single by Daylen Calicdan with two outs.
