Five-run third inning proves too much for Flock to overcome

(Central Islip, N.Y., Sept. 20, 2017) – The Long Island Ducks were defeated by the Somerset Patriots 7-1 on Wednesday night in Game One of the Liberty Division Championship Series at Bethpage Ballpark. The Patriots now lead the best-of-five series one game to none.

GAME VIDEO: Highlights from the Liberty Division Championship Series Game One

POSTGAME VIDEO: Kevin Baez, Anthony Vega and Alex Burg talk about the LDCS opener

Somerset opened the scoring with a five-run third inning against Ducks starter John Brownell. RBI singles by Olmo Rosario and Joe Maloney, along with a pair of errors that plated runs, highlighted the frame.

Long Island closed to within 5-1 in the bottom of the fourth on three singles off Patriots starter Mark Hamburger, including an RBI base hit from Anthony Vega. However, a two-run sixth inning for Somerset put the game out of reach. RBI singles by Rosario and Kyler Roller did the damage.

Hamburger (1-0) earned the win, tossing seven innings of one-run ball, allowing eight hits and a walk while striking out seven. Brownell (0-1) suffered the loss, surrendering seven runs (four earned) on 13 hits and a walk in five and one-third innings with four strikeouts. Three Long Island relievers combined to pitch two and two-thirds scoreless innings of relief, yielding three hits and striking out three.

Elmer Reyes, Lew Ford and Alex Burg each had two hits to lead the Flock offensively.

The Ducks and Patriots take the field again on Thursday night for Game Two of the Liberty Division Championship Series. Game One of the best-of-five series will begin at 6:35 p.m., with the Bethpage Ballpark gates opening at a special time of 5:15. Prior to the game, there will be a cheerleading demonstration taking place on the field, presented by the Suffolk County Youth Cheerleading Association.

Tickets to the game, and all Ducks home games, are available by visiting the Bethpage Ballpark box office, calling (631) 940-TIXX or CLICKING HERE. Those unable to make the game can follow all the action on the Long Island Ducks Broadcast Network. Live streaming HD video and audio will be available via BoxCast on the Ducks’ official Facebook page, YouTube channel and at LIDucks.com.

The Long Island Ducks are members of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball and play their home games at Bethpage Ballpark. For further information, call (631) 940-DUCK or visit www.liducks.com.

About the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball (ALPB)

The Atlantic League has been a leader in professional baseball and a gateway to Major League Baseball since 1998. Over 38 million fans have attended Atlantic League games and more than 800 players and 50 managers and coaches have joined MLB organizations directly from the ALPB. The Atlantic League emphasizes winning baseball games, showcasing the talent of top-caliber players and offering affordable family entertainment to metropolitan markets serving nearly 15{fe96d6e17d87505a1465284f96a4c69c9ad7d7051973bed0757ffc13536530ff} of the US population.

For more information, please visit www.atlanticleague.com.

###

 Game Date: 09/20/2017 Somerset Patriots 7 AT Long Island Ducks 1 YTD YTD Somerset AB R H BI AVG L Island AB R H BI AVG Trapp, J RF 4 1 1 0 .250 Alfonzo, G 3B 4 0 0 0 .000 Rodriguez, A SS 5 2 2 0 .400 Reyes, E 2B 4 0 2 0 .500 Rosario, O LF 5 0 5 2 1.000 Krauss, M 1B 4 0 0 0 .000 Roller, K DH 5 1 1 1 .200 Ford, L LF 4 0 2 0 .500 Vidal, D 3B 4 1 1 0 .250 Songco, A DH 4 1 1 0 .250 Maloney, J 1B 5 1 1 1 .200 Burg, A C 4 0 2 0 .500 Richardson, D CF 5 0 1 0 .200 Cleary Jr., D CF 4 0 1 0 .250 Bortnick, T 2B 5 0 2 0 .400 Vega, A RF 4 0 1 1 .250 Gonzalez, Y C 4 1 2 0 .500 Lyons, D SS 3 0 0 0 .000 42 7 16 4 35 1 9 1 Somerset 0 0 5 0 0 2 0 0 0 - 7 16 0 L Island 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 - 1 9 2 2B--Rosario, O LF (1), Richardson, D CF (1). RBI--Rosario, O LF 2 (2), Roller, K DH (1), Maloney, J 1B (1), TOTALS 4 (0), Vega, A RF (1), TOTALS (0). SH--Trapp, J RF (0). SB--Trapp, J RF (1). E--Ford, L LF (1), Lyons, D SS (1). LOB--Somerset 10, L Island 8. DP--T. Bortnick(2B) - A. Rodriguez(SS) - J. Maloney(1B), E. Reyes(2B) - D. Lyons(SS) - M. Krauss(1B). YTD IP H R ER BB SO HR ERA Somerset Hamburger, M (W,1-0) 7.0 8 1 1 1 7 0 1.29 Below, D 1.0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0.00 Hessler, K 1.0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0.00 9 9 1 1 1 10 0 L Island Brownell, J (L,0-1) 5.1 13 7 4 1 4 0 6.75 Treece, Z 1.2 1 0 0 0 1 0 0.00 OGrady, D 1.0 2 0 0 0 1 0 0.00 Wilson, T 1.0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0.00 9 16 7 4 1 7 0 WP--Brownell, J (1), OGrady, D (1). SO--Trapp, J, Roller, K, Vidal, D, Maloney, J 2, Richardson, D, Bortnick, T, Alfonzo, G, Krauss, M 2, Ford, L, Songco, A, Burg, A, Vega, A 2, Lyons, D 2. BB--Vidal, D, Lyons, D. BF--Hamburger, M 30 (30), Below, D 3 (3), Hessler, K 3 (3), Brownell, J 31 (31), Treece, Z 5 (5), OGrady, D 5 (5), Wilson, T 3 (3). P-S--Hamburger, M 118-80, Below, D 12-7, Hessler, K 11-8, Brownell, J 97-68, Treece, Z 10-9, OGrady, D 21-14, Wilson, T 9-6. T--2:44. A--3103 Plate Umpire - Fred DeJesus, Field Umpire #1 - Brian DeBrauwere, Field Umpire #2 - Matt Hensel, Field Umpire #3 - Tom Gandolfo