(Photo courtesy of Rick Thomason)
(Hagerstown, Md., July 23, 2026) – The Long Island Ducks defeated the Hagerstown Flying Boxcars 8-6 on Thursday night in the third game of a six-game series at Meritus Park.
Hagerstown opened the scoring in the second inning on Cade Fergus’ sacrifice fly to center field off Ducks starter Michael Dominguez. It stayed that way until the fifth when Austin Dennis hit an opposite-field, two-out, two-run home run to right field off Flying Boxcars starter Eddy Demurias, giving the Ducks the lead.
Two more runs came home for the Flock in the sixth, as Kole Kaler stole home on a double-steal with Terrell Tatum and Marcus Chiu followed later with an RBI single to center. Wilmer Difo doubled, stole third and scored on a wild pitch by Trey Braithwaite in the seventh to make it 5-1 Long Island. Jorge Bonifacio launched a solo homer to left in the eighth to make it a five-run game.
Hagerstown rallied and scored five unearned runs in the bottom of the eighth to tie the game at six. An error that plated Alex Isola, a two-run single by Fergus and a two-run double by Gabe Roessler did the damage. However, Long Island responded back in the ninth to take the lead for good on RBI singles by Tatum and Gavin Collins.
Neither starter factored into the decision. Dominguez tossed four and two-thirds innings of one-run ball, allowing five hits and a walk while striking out six. Demurias lasted five innings, giving up four runs on four hits and two walks with six strikeouts. Eddy Reynoso (1-1) picked up the win despite allowing five unearned runs on three hits and two walks in the eighth. Clay Helvey (5-3) suffered the loss, surrendering two runs on three hits in the ninth with two strikeouts. Rafael Kelly earned his seventh save with a 1-2-3 ninth, striking out one.
Bonifacio and Tatum led the Ducks offense with two hits, an RBI and two runs scored each.
The Ducks and Flying Boxcars continue their six-game series on Friday night. First pitch is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. at Meritus Park. Fans can follow all the action live on Dugout TV, powered by HomeTeam Network. Subscribe today by CLICKING HERE. Right-hander Ryan Cardona (1-1, 3.98) gets the starter for the Ducks against Flying Boxcars righty Chase Chaney (Flying Boxcars debut).
Long Island returns home on Tuesday, July 28, to begin a six-game series against the Staten Island FerryHawks. Game time is slated for 6:35 p.m., with the Fairfield Properties Ballpark gates opening at a special early time of 5:05 for all fans. The first 1,000 fans in attendance will receive QuackerJack Caps, courtesy of Built Different Sports. It will also be a Pat’s Marketplace Tuesday and Triple Play Tuesday at the ballpark. Tickets to the game and all Ducks games are now available and can be purchased by visiting the ballpark box office, calling (631) 940-TIXX or CLICKING HERE.
The Long Island Ducks are entering their 26th season of play in the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball and play their home games at Fairfield Properties Ballpark in Central Islip, N.Y. They are the all-time leader in wins and attendance in Atlantic League history, have led all MLB Partner Leagues in total attendance for five consecutive seasons, and have sold out a record 726 games all-time. For further information, visit LIDucks.com or call 631-940-DUCK (3825).
About the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball (ALPB)
Celebrating its third decade, the Atlantic League is Major League Baseball’s first Professional Partner League, a player gateway to the major leagues, and a leader in baseball innovation. Over its 27-year history, the ALPB has sent over 1,450 players to MLB organizations while drawing nearly 50 million fans to its 10 state-of-the-art ballparks that stretch from New York to North Carolina. Follow the action on DugoutTV.org.
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