(York, PA – The Southern Maryland Blue Crabs (0-2) lost game two of the best of five playoff series against the York Revolution (2-0) 7-2, as the Revs homered three times in the game played Sept. 21.
The Blue Crabs jumped on the board early, putting up two runs in the first inning. Victor Mateo (1-0) battled Jose Lozada to a full count to lead off the game, before Lozada won the battle on a solo homerun to take an immediate lead. Two batters later, L.J. Hoes drew a walk, advancing to second on a single from Michael Snyder. After a flyout to shallow left picked up the second out for Mateo, Cory Vaughn came through with a two-out double. Hoes easily came across to score on the hit, giving Southern Maryland a 2-0 lead early in the matchup.
Daryl Thompson (0-1) started the game strong for the Blue Crabs, working two scoreless innings to start his night. The Revs finally got to the starter in the third, putting up three runs in the inning. Chase Simpson led off the inning with a single, before Thompson picked up two quick outs. Rubi Silva kept the inning alive with a two-out single, to bring up the game one hero, Telvin Nash. Nash came through for York once more, with a three-run homerun to put the Revs ahead 3-2 heading to the fourth.
After a scoreless inning from Mateo, Alonzo Harris added another run to the York lead on a solo homerun in the bottom of the fourth. Both Mateo and Thompson settled in, trading scoreless innings in the fifth. Mateo allowed a one out double in the top of the sixth to Vaughn, before being lifted in favor of Michael Click. The hard-throwing reliever retired the next two batters to strand the runner in scoring position and maintain the two-run lead for York.
The Blue Crabs followed suit in the bottom of the sixth inning, turning the deficit over to the bullpen after five innings from Thompson. Craig Stem and Rob Carson both worked scoreless innings, taking the 4-2 score into the eighth. York turned the game to Ricardo Gomez, who gave up a pair of runs in the playoff opener on Wednesday. Gomez struck out the first batter in the inning, before giving up a single to Snyder. After picking up the second out, Gomez was pulled from the game for Chase Hutchingson (S,1). Hutchingson allowed Snyder to move up on a wild pitch, before getting a groundball back to the mound to finish the inning.
The Revolution offense then came alive once more in the eighth, adding three more runs in the inning. Isaias Tejeda singled on the first pitch from Evan Reed, putting the lead off runner on. Two batters later, Ryan Dent added a single of his own, his first hit of the series. Chase Simpson then followed with a three-run homerun, giving York a 7-2 lead.
Hutchingson returned to the mound for the ninth, looking for the multi-inning save. He walked the first batter in the inning, before a single from Luis Alen put two on with nobody out. Hutchingson bounced back to retire three straight batters, securing the 2-0 series lead for York.
The Blue Crabs will return home Friday, Sept. 22 for game three of the best of five playoff series against the Revolution. Southern Maryland will send RHP Brian Grening (9-8, 3.91) to the mound, with their playoff lives on the line. First pitch is scheduled for 6:35 P.M. on Friday at Regency Furniture Stadium.