Pair of homers in four-run fourth leads Sugar land past Long Island

(Sugar Land, Texas, Sept. 27, 2016) – The Long Island Ducks were defeated by the Sugar Land Skeeters 7-1 on Tuesday night in Game One of the Atlantic League Championship Series at Constellation Field. Sugar Land now leads the best-of-five series one game to none.

The Skeeters opened the scoring with back-to-back two-out RBI singles in the first inning from Delwyn Young and Lance Zawadzki off Ducks starter Bobby Blevins. Long Island got on the scoreboard in the second when Lew Ford scored from third on a double play ball.

A pair of two-run home runs in the fourth by Juan Martinez and Jeremy Barfield extended the Sugar Land’s lead to 6-1. Martinez’s two-out RBI single in the seventh rounded out the scoring.

Skeeters starter Jake Hale (1-0) earned the win with six innings of one run ball, allowing seven hits and a walk while striking out four. Blevins (0-1) suffered the loss, surrendering six runs on nine hits and a walk in four innings with one strikeout.

Cody Puckett and Tyler Colvin each had two hits to lead the Flock.

The Ducks and Skeeters continue the Atlantic League Championship Series with Game Two on Wednesday night. First pitch is scheduled for 8:05 p.m. EDT from Constellation Field. Fans can follow all the action live on the Ducks’ official YouTube channel. Streaming video and audio will be available online by CLICKING HERE. Right-hander Matt Larkins gets the start for the Ducks against Skeeters righty Michael Nix.

After playing the first two games in Texas, the series will shift to Long Island for Game Three on Friday, September 30. 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. 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.

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: 09/27/2016 Long Island Ducks 1 AT Sugar Land Skeeters 7 YTD YTD L Island AB R H BI AVG Sugar Land AB R H BI AVG Lentini, F RF 4 0 1 0 .320 Prince, J 2B 5 0 1 0 .250 Lyons, D SS 4 0 1 0 .182 Tosoni, R CF 5 2 3 0 .211 Cleary Jr., D CF 4 0 1 0 .087 Barfield, J RF 4 2 3 2 .316 Ford, L DH 3 1 0 0 .227 Scott, T DH 5 0 0 0 .214 Puckett, C 3B 3 0 2 0 .273 Young, D 1B 4 0 1 1 .333 Gotay, R 2B 4 0 0 0 .250 Zawadzki, L SS 3 1 2 1 .313 Colvin, T 1B 4 0 2 0 .286 Rodriguez, W C 4 0 0 0 .267 Dowd, M C 4 0 1 0 .150 Dominguez, J LF 4 1 2 0 .467 Vega, A LF 3 0 0 0 .333 Martinez, J 3B 4 1 2 3 .400 33 1 8 0 38 7 14 7 L Island 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 - 1 8 0 Sugar Land 2 0 0 4 0 0 1 0 x - 7 14 0 HR--Barfield, J RF (1), Martinez, J 3B (2). RBI--Barfield, J RF 2 (2), Young, D 1B (2), Zawadzki, L SS (2), Martinez, J 3B 3 (4), TOTALS 7 (0). SB--Lentini, F RF (1), Tosoni, R CF (1). LOB--L Island 7, Sugar Land 9. DP--J. Prince(2B) - L. Zawadzki(SS) - D. Young(1B), L. Zawadzki(SS) - D. Young(1B). YTD IP H R ER BB SO HR ERA L Island Blevins, B (L,0-1) 4.0 9 6 6 1 1 2 13.50 Herrera, D 4.0 5 1 1 1 2 0 7.71 8 14 7 7 2 3 2 Sugar Land Hale, J (W,1-0) 6.0 7 1 1 1 4 0 1.50 Merritt, R 1.0 0 0 0 0 1 0 9.00 Velasquez, J 1.0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0.00 Johnston, A 1.0 0 0 0 1 2 0 0.00 9 8 1 1 2 8 0 PB--Dowd, M. SO--Lentini, F 2, Cleary Jr., D, Ford, L, Gotay, R, Dowd, M, Vega, A 2, Scott, T, Dominguez, J, Martinez, J. BB--Ford, L, Puckett, C, Barfield, J, Zawadzki, L. BF--Blevins, B 22 (22), Herrera, D 18 (36), Hale, J 24 (24), Merritt, R 3 (14), Velasquez, J 4 (10), Johnston, A 4 (7). P-S--Blevins, B 68-46, Herrera, D 57-35, Hale, J 92-69, Merritt, R 12-10, Velasquez, J 17-12, Johnston, A 20-13. T--2:32. A--3077 Weather: Cloudy, 83 Degrees Plate Umpire - Ken Langford, Field Umpire #1 - 1B Eric Thompson, Field Umpire #2 - 2B Greg Oros, Field Umpire #3 - 3B Matt Herrera