Two-run blast the difference in outstanding pitcher’s duel

(Sugar Land, Texas, Sept. 28, 2016) – The Long Island Ducks were defeated by the Sugar Land Skeeters 2-0 on Wednesday night in Game Two of the Atlantic League Championship Series at Constellation Field. Sugar Land now leads the best-of-five series two games to none.

Both starting pitchers locked up in a terrific pitcher’s duel. Ducks starter Matt Larkins pitched five and two-thirds strong innings, allowing just one run and two hits while striking out four. Skeeters starter Michael Nix threw six scoreless frames, yielding four hits and a walk with five strikeouts.

All the offense Sugar Land needed came in the sixth inning. After the first two batters struck out, Jeremy Barfield was hit by a pitch to keep the inning alive. Patrick Crider was summoned from the bullpen, and Travis Scott hit the first offering for a two-run home run to right field.

Nix (1-0) would pick up the win for Sugar Land, while Larkins (0-2) took the loss for Long Island. Roy Merritt, Ryan Mattheus and Derrick Loop each pitched a scoreless inning for the Skeeters, while Zac Treece and Amalio Diaz did the same for the Ducks.

Delta Cleary Jr. led the Flock offensively with three hits. The Atlantic League Championship Series will now shift to Long Island for Game Three between the Ducks and Skeeters on Friday night. Game time is slated for 6:35 p.m., with the Bethpage Ballpark gates opening at 5:35 (5:20 for full season ticket holders). The first 1,000 fans in attendance will receive Playoff Rally Towels, courtesy of News 12 Long Island. Right-hander Nick Struck takes the mound for the Ducks against Skeeters righty Sean Gallagher.

Tickets to the game and all Ducks home postseason 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 live on the Ducks’ official YouTube channel. Streaming video and audio will be available online by CLICKING HERE.

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 36 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{f7b134541f126dcd33819b5eec9a91dff238b58155023223dba97c27371a7fb5} of the US population.

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

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 Game Date: 09/28/2016 Long Island Ducks 0 AT Sugar Land Skeeters 2 YTD YTD L Island AB R H BI AVG Sugar Land AB R H BI AVG Lentini, F RF 4 0 0 0 .276 Prince, J 2B 4 0 1 0 .250 Lyons, D SS 4 0 0 0 .154 Tosoni, R CF 4 0 0 0 .174 Cleary Jr., D CF 4 0 3 0 .185 Barfield, J RF 3 1 0 0 .273 Ford, L DH 4 0 0 0 .192 Scott, T DH 3 1 1 2 .235 Puckett, C 3B 4 0 0 0 .231 Young, D 1B 3 0 0 0 .278 Gotay, R 2B 3 0 0 0 .217 Zawadzki, L SS 3 0 0 0 .263 Colvin, T 1B 3 0 1 0 .292 Rodriguez, W C 2 0 1 0 .294 Dowd, M C 2 0 0 0 .136 Dominguez, J LF 3 0 1 0 .444 Vega, A LF 3 0 0 0 .278 Martinez, J 3B 2 0 0 0 .353 31 0 4 0 27 2 4 2 L Island 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 - 0 4 1 Sugar Land 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 x - 2 4 0 2B--Cleary Jr., D CF (1), Colvin, T 1B (2). HR--Scott, T DH (1). RBI--Scott, T DH 2 (3), TOTALS 2 (0). HP--Barfield, J RF (1), Rodriguez, W C (1), Martinez, J 3B (2). SB--Cleary Jr., D CF (1). E--Gotay, R 2B (2). LOB--L Island 6, Sugar Land 4. DP--D. Lyons(SS) - T. Colvin(1B). YTD IP H R ER BB SO HR ERA L Island Larkins, M (L,0-2) 5.2 2 1 1 0 4 0 7.04 Crider, P 0.1 1 1 1 0 1 1 4.50 Treece, Z 1.0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0.00 Diaz, A 1.0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0.00 8 4 2 2 0 8 1 Sugar Land Nix, M (W,1-0) 6.0 4 0 0 1 5 0 0.00 Merritt, R 1.0 0 0 0 1 1 0 6.75 Mattheus, R 1.0 0 0 0 0 1 0 5.40 Loop, D (S,3) 1.0 0 0 0 0 3 0 4.91 9 4 0 0 2 10 0 HB--Larkins, M 3 (4). SO--Lentini, F, Lyons, D, Ford, L, Puckett, C, Gotay, R 3, Dowd, M, Vega, A 2, Prince, J 2, Tosoni, R 2, Young, D, Zawadzki, L 2, Martinez, J. BB--Gotay, R, Dowd, M. BF--Larkins, M 21 (34), Crider, P 2 (9), Treece, Z 4 (10), Diaz, A 3 (20), Nix, M 23 (23), Merritt, R 4 (18), Mattheus, R 3 (12), Loop, D 3 (17). P-S--Larkins, M 76-44, Crider, P 4-4, Treece, Z 12-9, Diaz, A 9-8, Nix, M 85-55, Merritt, R 18-10, Mattheus, R 8-6, Loop, D 13-11. T--2:16. A--4078 Weather: Clear, 84 Degrees Plate Umpire - Eric Thompson, Field Umpire #1 - 1B Greg Oros, Field Umpire #2 - 2B Matt Herrera, Field Umpire #3 - 3B Ken Langford